Tradition

It's become a tradition - now three years running - that the Milligan clan converge on the beach over Labor Day weekend and take the small fishing boat out to the island for some fun in the sun.

We continued the tradition this year but only after watching the Gamecocks beat up on the ECU Pirates in person Saturday night.

So - after a long, fun-filled day of tailgating with old friends and new we rolled out of bed Sunday and hit the road by 7:15 to get a full afternoon of beach playtime.

The kids piled in the back of Poppy's pick-up truck and we headed to the dock. The boat is super tiny so we go in shifts. The boys (Todd and Jeff) took the kids and I out first and then came back to pick the the rest of the adults.

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Emma patiently waiting.

Riley waiting the back of the truckster.

Another cousin, Ava, waiting paitently herself.

Jack- ready to go.

It's always fun to watch the big boys tinker with the boat. They're old pros now and do it quickly.

The 'big boys' - Jeff and Todd.

Loving the life-jackets. Not.

The boys dropped us off and headed back to get the rest of the Milligan's and I promptly sat on the beach and watched the kids have a blast.

Ri kept her life jacket on for a while and stuck to the shore for a little bit.

It didn't seem to stop her from having fun.

Annual photo op.

It didn't take long for Scoop to jump in the water.

The boys came back and the kids promptly used the boat as a diving board. The island we were on is where the ocean meets the creeks in DeBordieu. At times the current was pretty strong.

Ri didn't want much to do with jumping off the boat until we were about to leave.

Ri had fun w/ her silly Popster instead.

And Jack and Ava continued to jump off the boat over and over and over again.

Until they spotted something in the not-so-far-away distance.

Two dolphins were bobbing up and down about 20 feet from where the kids were boat-jumping. It was awesome.

It really was a great afternoon. We are definitely going to keep it a tradition. The memories (and pictures) are worth it.

I love the beach.

I can't wait until next summer.

Until next time...