Camping in Jacksonville

Last week my parents let us tag along with them while they went camping at the beach. They were kind enough to meet MUCH closer to us, instead of making me drive up to SC with the 3 kids. Dan had classes to teach, so on Monday I headed over with the kids to Little Talbot State Park in Jacksonville. We all stayed in a pop up camper, which might sound cramped with 4 adults and 3 kids, but we actually had plenty of space, especially since my kids chose to cram themselves into tiny spaces to sleep. Andrew took up the most space in his pack and play, but Caitlyn just folded right up...

Andrew hanging out in the camper.


Jeffrey & Grandpa Leckie out in the waves.

Mom & Andrew kicking back on the beach.

The reason that we got invited, and the reason that we wanted to go with Grandpa: grandpa plays with the kids on the beach and they keep each other occupied! For as long as I can remember, my dad has brought a shovel to the beach....and built really big 'sand castles.' The kids loved it!

The kids getting buried in the sand. It turned into more of a slide than a castle, but it was fun either way!

The only real casulty....Jeffrey was pushing a truck along on the hard sand and fell. It looked pretty rough for a long time!

An inverted castle - a few days later Grandpa dug a hole instead of mounding up sand for a castle. Never a dull moment!

Grandpa also brought rope and a swing. Another big hit!


One day Jeffrey & Grandpa went out with hotdogs tied to strings and tried to catch a crab. Within about 2 minutes they caught this guy.

Andrew out watching the crabbing action.

All the kids were excited by the novelty. Aunt Sara was trying to get another sting ready and lost several pieces of hot dog in the marsh. A few minutes later we saw another crab prancing by carrying our hot dog pieces. Lucky day for him!

Jeffrey & Grandpa heading back after searching for who knows what. They often wandered off together.

Grandpa & Jeffrey racing cars. I think there was some major cheating going on, but Jeffrey's cars managed to win the 'race.'

I would have taken a few more pictures of the camper and the nature walk and another unsuccessful fishing trip, but I dropped the camera in the sand and haven't been able to get it to work ever since. Don't know if it's repairable, or if another camera purchase is in the near future. Even with the loss of the camera, it was a great trip! Thanks, mom and dad, for letting us crash the beach party!