I'm back! Back from a lovely, lovely vacation on Kiawah Island, South Carolina, with John's parents and his brother Tom's family. We left last Thursday and returned today, all four of us. What a great time! Beach and sun and surf and pool and food (grits, baby!) and FUN. We stayed at The Sanctuary, a grand hotel in true Southern style, with sweeping staircases worthy of Miss Scarlett O'Hara herself, y'all. We lucked out with gorgeous weather (until late yesterday), so we've all had more sun than we probably should have. But it was impossible to avoid the rays with such an idyllic beach scene - warm, gentle waves lapping at a wide, flat shoreline, perfect for biking and walking and playing catch. Oh, there was plenty of pool time as well, of course - the kids lurve a pool, any pool - but the beach was the super-star. I'm not usually a big ocean swimmer, so imagine my surprise at not being able to stay out of the water. I even snuck in a walk and swim in the dark last night, after dinner, all by myself. A little scary, swimming in the ocean at night, but thrilling too. And warm, warm, warm, a giant salty bath. Gorgeous.

So, home now. Which is good too, mind you, I (almost) hate to leave Minnesota in the summer and give up one of our precious, lovely days. But it's always a bit of a bummer to end an amazing trip, to ease back in by unpacking (I loathe unpacking, ugh) and cooking and laundry and dishes. I'll reacclimate quickly, probably by this time tomorrow, but for now, I'm in a bit of vaca limbo. A good night's sleep should do me. (Although a twilight ocean swim would be a nice - NICE! - way to close this day...oh well.)