2016 Family Summer Vacation

2016 Family Summer Vacation - HHI

Summer Vacation 2016...

... awesome!

(created Oct. 8, 2016)

image source: http://www.hiltonheadisland.org

HHI Page 2 / Continued....

image source: http://www.scstatehouse.gov/studentpage/coolstuff/seal.shtml

On October 7-8, 2016, Hurricane Matthew arrived at Hilton Head Island. It looks like the evacuation was good for personal safety. It also looks like the property damage is significant. We hope and pay all returns to normal quickly.

http://www.islandpacket.com/news/weather/hurricane/article106913997.html

Images of the damage, from the Island Packet newspaper - https://www.facebook.com/islandpacket/photos/?tab=album&album_id=10153993386677947

We visited:

-Augusta, GA
-Charleston, SC
-Hilton Head Island, SC
-and we slept an overnight in both directions in Nashville, TN

And we had one of our best, most relaxing family trips... ever.

Itinerary, and links to other sites, and photos, are below.

Family Summer Vacation 2016

Day 7-14: Hilton Head Island, SC

Matt and Dad had fun playing tennis on the beach.

The ocean breezes were so strong they would hit the ball away from one another, and then both watch as the wind blew the ball to the other person... awesome! (no pictures)

Marriott Grande Ocean has an activity center. We created postcards to send home and and etched wine glasses and mason jars. We also enjoyed one of our favorite things... Iron Chef (which they call “Secret Ingredient”). One day of the week, just after lunch, families gather and are told the ingredient. They then have one hour to cook something and get back to the activity center.

This year the ingredient was mozzarella cheese.

Matt and Abby both created some amazing pasta.

Abby:

-on a bed of lettuce leaf, bow tie pasta,
-in the center there was mixture of tomato, onion, and fresh basil (picked from the small garden they have next to the BBQ grills),
-pesto and a fresh tomato
-triangle of toasted butter bread

Matt:

-bow-tie pasta with tomato sauce with onions in it
-on top of that was mozzarella cheese with a basil leaf
-a strip of bacon and a half slice of bread

We were blessed with great weather and fun in the pools and in the ocean.

Matt’s GoPro captured some great photos and videos.

Grande Ocean has some hammocks you can share... Abby and Dad saw this view one afternoon...

The pelicans tend to glide on the winds each day an hour or two before sunset.

“The view from the hammock”

One night, as several families grilled dinner next to the pond, this great blue heron patiently surveyed the water for fish, for his dinner.

We also were able to see “Tomorrowland,” an awesome movie!

Water Irises... found already fallen off their stems... then beautifying the room

Holy Family Catholic Church

When we visit Hilton Head, we stay at Marriott Grande Ocean, which is part of Marriott Vacation Club International (MVCI) Most people still visit weekend to weekend, but now they let you check in any day. Marriott still has the welcome breakfast on Monday mornings. They invite local businesses to talk with us, to let us know what to do on the island.

Ann Marie was quite optimistic that she’d win something with her attendance ticket... and she did! H2O Sports - http://www.h2osports.com - offers many water sports to visitors... and Ann Marie won two of our four tickets for ocean kayaking!

These were kayaks similar to those in Augusta, and they were equally stable and easy to paddle. We had a great time!

And we met someone working at H2O who grew up in St. Louis - small world!

On our last night we were blessed to see the first Stargazing session with Phil the Sky Guy. Phil brought large binoculars on a tripod and a newtonian telescope and we had a great viewing session on the new deck by the south pool:

1.Jupiter and all four Galilean moons: Callisto, Ganymede, Europa and Io, and some of its cloud belts

2.The moon

3.Saturn and its rings

4.Mars

5.M13

6.The coat hanger cluster (viewed in his binoculars)