The Nielsens: Fourth of July '13

We went down to Long Beach for the 4th of July, meeting up with Daniel and his family. The atmosphere this year was very low-key, with not many people on the beach (and by that I mean it wasn't jammed pack, wall-to-wall with people). We stayed at the same motel as last year, this time taking advantage of enjoying the hot tub each evening. Jessica and I walked the main drag of the town, popping in to stores. I was on a mission to buy a hooded sweatshirt. I've been wanting one each time we've gone down, but just never broke down and bought one. I did this year. We spent lots of time on the beach (I have tons of sand in our car to prove it). Daniel brought tons of fireworks to share between the five boys. Kristjan and (mainly) Clifford had tons of fun shooting them off. The fireworks show Long Beach puts on was a lot better than last years. All in all, it was a good trip. There's a few things we'll do differently for next year.

First, we plan on staying at a bungalow instead of the motel. They're small and cute, plus they're located right up the road from the main entrance of the beach. Pete doesn't want to have to drive the car down onto the beach and deal wit the sand getting in every nook and cranny. We'll just walk our sportsbrella and camp chairs down to the beach, and walk back to the bungalow for meals. The place is slightly more expensive, but the perks outweigh the price issue. Plus, I make payments on our room throughout the year to ease on the financial issue.

Second, we want to be more active. Next year we want to go on a day hike, bring bikes down for a ride, and bring some crabbing/fishing gear. Once you've walked the town, you really don't need to do it every year - it never changes. And the beach is wonderful, but we want to add a little more to our trip.

Third, NOT eat at the pizza place. With omitting dairy from our diet, pizza (as much as I love it, and will still occasionally eat it) isn't the best option for us. Plus, Pete and I were really disappointed with our order and service. So our goal is to try a new place or two to eat at.

Lastly, we would like a new crowd to join us. This year wasn't much fun in the company department (last year was slightly questionable). It's really annoying when someone is either on their phone ALL the time reading or in their car watching a movie, and when they do talk, it's with a bad attitude (seriously?!). Or when the other person just wants to sit around and drink. Now, granted, all one does on the beach for the 4th is do that. But it's also a social thing. And Pete and I drink, but for us it's more a social thing (shocking!), not so much to get wasted. And we don't necessarily want to do that the other two days we're down there. Having a new crowd come along also ties in to the goal of wanting to be more active and try other activities while visiting the town (someone has an issue with getting off their butt and simply walking around, unless it's to go spend money).

Anyhow, here are pics from our vacation. Enjoy!

Boys during the long drive. Clifford decided to take a nap.