Outerbanks Adventures - A Week With My Family

Every year of my life, except the summer I was pregnant with Ellie, I have spent at the beach with mom, dad, and sister. Since we met and married our husbands, we've continued that tradition with our spouses and children, too. This may be the last year we get to do a whole week away as my sister's kids are growing older and time fleets faster and faster with more activities for the kids and limited vacation time. But if it were my choice, I'd go to the beach with my entire family every summer until my parents were with Jesus in Heaven. It's one of my favorite things about my summers. Maybe we can still make it happen, who knows? I hope so! It is a treasured delight of mine and I have years of memories with my sister as we were little girls, mama making yummy food, parents taking us out for putt putt, setting us up for special movie nights in our shared bedroom - and as Kelsey and I got older we enjoyed going to summer blockbusters at the theater and shopping in Charleston and Mount Pleasant, sister date nights, and walks on the beach together at night. Then my brother in law and oldest nephew came into the picture and Jayden became my new roommate by the time he was a toddler. I have memories of him getting into my makeup, waking me up in the middle of the night, and watching fireworks with him through our bedroom window on the beach! I've so loved growing up at the beach with my parents, my sister, my sister's family, and then later my own little family. I've loved watching my daughter bond with her cousins on the beach in the way I always enjoyed playing with my sister. Clardy family trips are out of this world amazing, special, memorable, fun, and priceless. As a matter of fact, my parents showed me such an awesome time at the beach as a kid that I hope to replicate that for own family every year. I look forward to the days where I take my family and grandkids to the beach too: big family meals, games, and total chaos of sheer joy! 

This year, we went to the Outerbanks as a big family of 11. We had such a cute and perfect beach cottage my mama found. We spent time on the beach, but we also in true Gladden fashion went on a lot of adventures and went exploring. The Outerbanks are so far away that we didn't want to just sit on the beach all da everyday, we also wanted to see and experience the area and all of its treasures. I went to the Outerbanks 20 years ago exactly with my parents and sister. It was awesome to return and show my husband and daughter and see new things as well!

Because the drive is so long, Eric and I packed up and left after he got off work on a Friday night, drove to Raleigh and stayed in a hotel. On Saturday, we went to downtown Raleigh and explored and toured Videri Chocolate Factory! I've never had the opportunity to tour a chocolate factory before and while small, Videri's staff was as sweet as their chocolate! We toured, tasted, and bought our own chocolate treats. Ellie also got the book, "Curious George Visits a Chocolate Factory." It was neat and if you're ever in that area you should check it out. They also have a coffee bar! 

After this, we left for our final destination, the Outerbanks! Ellie and I slept and when we woke, there were beach cottages everywhere and salty air! We got settled in and shortly thereafter, the cousins arrived and it was happy, happy, happy! My mama and daddy had also went up early but were touring the Cape Hatteras national seashore scenic byway. They came in later. Us Gladdens unpacked and like every first beach night ever, we went and found us some tasty pizza from "Max's Italian."

Our first full day was a beach day with the full crew. It was hot, beautiful, and there were killer waves! We found awesome seashells, played hard in the sand, and stayed out in sand 'til dinner. 

Our second day was spent exploring as a Gladden crew. This day we traveled the Cape Hatteras National Seashore Scenic Byway to the ferry to Ocracoke Island! The views were gorgeous. The ferry boat ride was so fun. Ellie has had a lot of experience with boats this summer. She is like a little pro and all about a boat ride. She found it particularly amazing the boat carted our car along and we drove on to the boat! On the island, we stopped for lunch at Howard's Pub, visited the Ocracoke Island lighthouse, drove around to get some views and got Ellie's Jr. Ranger booklet to earn her badge. Then we drove to see the ponies which are the descendants of the wild horses that roamed the island. We boarded the ferry once again to the mainland. Once back, we visited Cape Hatteras which was available to look at but not climb as it was being painted. 

The next day our adventures took us to the Currituck Lighthouse (my fave!!), lunch at "Uncle Ike's Sandbar and Grill." Amazingggg crab dip, and seafood mac and cheese. It had scallops, shrimp and crab in the cajun mac and cheese. So dang good. Then we got ice cream, rode the oceanfront boulevard where Ellie purchased fresh squeezed lemonade from some kids, and then....the big adventure....we checked into Corolla Jeep Adventures where we rented a jeep to drive ourselves on Corolla Beach to view the wild horses. We got so lucky and saw more horses than I can count, and honey, those wild stallions got right up close to us too! It was so dang cool! When I was a teenager all I wanted was a Jeep Wrangler. I freaking love them. While I prefer the space of my car now, they are still a fun toy! Tops down, wind in our hair, music jammin', Ellie was all about it y'all. We loved seeing the wildlife. The horses were insanely cool. I mean, sometimes they would practically be on a beach house's front porch! It was a 2 hour amazing tour. I was laughing so hard with my man, feeling young and wild and free, and just so happy. As we began our return, we drove down the beach and stopped and got out to play a bit, hunt for shells. We found amazing cool things. we discovered plankton colonies that almost look like the body of a small jelly fish.....or a small breast implant...ha! I mean, it was my career after all 😂 Even Eric was like, "umm, is that a breast implant?" And I laughed because I could see that too, it was even textured like some are. But I told him, "Well, honey, if a woman lost her breast implant out here on the beach then she got big problems 'cause her skin is popped open and flapping around!" We weren't the only ones with this in mind as the guy leading the truck in front of us of other tourists explained they were a plankton colony. We prepared to hop back in the Jeep. Eric had been doing all the driving but he told me, hop in the driver's seat and I'll take your photo. So Ellie and I hopped in and let him snap away. Then he encouraged me to drive it...it was automatic; it was the 4 wheel drive bit that made me uneasy and the terrain of the deep soft sand...but when my man lovingly encourages me, I can do anything! So I became the pilot and it was a thrill! I was squealing! I turned the radio up, let the wind caress my face, and Ellie was proud of me too! It was so fun and I'm glad I took my chance! I totally highly recommend this adventure. And do it late in the day. Our tour was 3:30-5:30. Perfect timing. 

For our next adventure, we went to the Orville and Wilbur Wright national memorial site. Ellie earned another Jr. Ranger badge. Then we went out for a full family dinner with the entire crew at Sweet Creek. We took family photos then on their dock. We left there and all of us played putt-putt at Lost Island Adventure Golf. so fun! One of the best putt putt places I've ever gone to. The kids had so much fun. Then we went out for ice cream! Once home, the big kids and one or two of the twins (they would come in and out playing with us or with Ellie) played some board games until we could hardly keep our eyes open. I love board game nights! 

The next adventure we took was to Bodie Island Lighthouse (pronounced Body - not Bo-die) where Ellie finished earning her Cape Hatteras Jr. Ranger badge. We toured the lighthouse. The views were gorgeous as were the grounds. Ellie participated in a ranger talk where she learned about rip tides (so well that she repeated her knowledge back to my daddy in the ocean that evening and told him what they were and how to get out of it! Um, wow! Smart girl!) She also voluntarily answered the ranger's questions and she was right! She blew me away! We left there and went to Roanoke Island. We toured the Roanoke Island Marsh lighthouse, Fort Raleigh National Historic Site where Ellie earned her third Jr. Ranger badge of the trip (her 6th total). Then, we went to Roanoke Island Festival Park. This place was amazing! Ellie toured the early settlers ship, the blacksmith shop, the carpenter, Indian American life, ship life, colonist's lives, etc. It was really a great experience! After this we toured the Pea Island Cookhouse. here you discover there was an all black male lifesaving crew who saved countless lives, yet they were never recognized publicly as the white lifesavers were (early coast guard) until 100 years later. The history is incredible. Then we took Ellie to the beach to play with my parents, and Eric and I went on a date night in Duck. We had a good crab cake dinner on the water followed by ice cream and a sunset on the water. It was so so lovely to be with my man. we are blessed by my parents to be given date nights often, but at the beach it is always extra romantic. He sat right beside me in our boardwalk booth for ice cream, we talked, and laughed, cuddled, held hands, and flirted as lovey dovey as ever. Gah I love him! My best friend! Then we came home and cuddled and relaxed together and just enjoyed being alone together! 

Friday was our last day and the whole family spent it on the beach again playing super hard all day until dinner time. We left and went to Jockey's Ridge State Park to climb the dunes, roll down them, and fly a kite. After having hiked 6.2 miles worth of MOUNTAINOUS dunes at Sleeping Bear Dunes in Michigan the month prior, Jockey's Ridge was nothing comparable, however; still gorgeous, fun, and included a lovely view at the top! Ellie enjoyed flying her kite and running all over the dunes with her cousins. My parents left this evening as we had to check out on the next morning and they went to VA and D.C. to do some more touring for a few days. Us sisters closed up the beach house Saturday. 

It was a marvelous trip! Everybody got a long, played and laughed together, helped one another, and enjoyed the company of each family member. We are truly a deeply blessed family Who God is the center of and that is why, I know, we are all so close to one another. I'm so immensely thankful to my parents that they would love us and desire our company so much that they would rent a beach house every year for us all and make a way for us adults to go on dates, that they would help with our babies, and want to spend time with us each evening. I'll never take my parents for granted. My days with them are not promised and so every chance I get I'm going to relish in their presence in my life. They mean the world to me and are some of the very few people I truly enjoy being around. What a blessing to have parents who have created this life and love for their children, their sons in law whom they consider their own sons, and their grandchildren. I know our bond as a family is rare and I'm just deeply thankful to God that He would allow me the love of that of the Clardy family. I pray I replicate this for my own family as we grow. Once again, every year of my entire life has been a blessing to be their daughter and to be loved by them.