Port Aransas, TX

This champagne shore washin' over me
It's a sweet sweet life livin' by the salty sea
One day you can be as lost as me
Change your geography and maybe you might be

Knee deep in the water somewhere
got the blue sky breeze blowin' wind thru my hair
only worry in the world
is the tide gonna reach my chair
Sunrise, there's a fire in the sky
never been so happy
never felt so high
and I think I might've found me my own kind of paradise

It has become a tradition, of sorts, for us to vacation at the beach town just outside of Corpus Christi with our friends, The Bradens. This year was chock-full of new experiences for the kids and us. Brian and John spent quite a bit of time fishing and even chartered a boat to take them out almost into international waters. Katie, the kids, and I all took some time in at the beach. Let me say, that Caden is FEARLESS when it comes to the sea and Ethan only wants to dig in every, single crevice to search for any signs of life-current or prehistoric. We were able to watch Kemp's Ridley sea turtle hatchlings be released into the ocean which was an amazing and precious experience. We took a boat around and did some dolphin watching. That was a surreal experience. Sadly, it also meant that we watched a pod of dolphins bring a dead dolphin up to the surface. Ethan told me it's just something they do. If a dolphin is sick, the pod will bring it up to help it get some air. If it's dead, they try to do the same. This was so interesting for me to learn and experience. I was in awe even more over the fact Ethan knew all of this and was more than willing to share it with the group.

We attempted to go crab fishing on a private beach. That was interesting. I'm glad Katie grew up in the Northeast so that she could teach us about these things. The private beach itself was nice. It's located on St. Joe's Island and is only accessible by taking a boat to and from. The kids collected tons of sand dollars, shells, and chased small crabs. It was beautiful! Ethan really enjoyed exploring the tide pools with John while Brian fished, and Katie and the two little ones fished for crabs with nothing more than a chicken wing and a string. (By the by, raw chicken-EW.)

We spent a good chunk of our time at the beach or hanging around town in Port Aransas. Katie and I stopped by our favorite store, Gratitudes, because it always has some great stuff. We went around the souvenir shops with the kids and, of course, Winton's Island Candy for some homemade caramel. We dined at some great restaurants and some not-so-great restaurants. (Beaches restaurant was awesome! Moby Dick's was NOT!) We usually try to do breakfasts and lunches at the condo and only go out for dinner. One night, for dinner, Katie showed me how to make a seafood boil. I can't wait to try to do it on my own. I actually went into a fresh seafood market with her and she showed me the difference in grocery store seafood and fresh seafood. Although this year we stayed longer than last year, it still didn't feel like enough time. Leaving is always sad. Apparently the beach feels the same way because it rained again for the second year in a row, the day we left.

One last thing: I fell IN LOVE with H.E.B. Plus stores. I love H.E.B. So, I just have to ask: