Three Northern Stars: Kill Devil Hills, NC

Our brief time in Virginia Beach ended but we would be heading back that way to fly out when our vacation was over. Next stop: Kill Devil Hills in the Outer Banks of North Carolina. We left early on Saturday morning to try to avoid heavy beach traffic. Well, we left way too early. We arrived in the Outer Banks around 10:30 AM. Earlier in the week, we were told that we most likely would be able to check into our rental house by noon. So, "no problem", we'd explore the beach and grab a bite to eat. Well, things didn't go exactly as planned. We hit a few shops then decided lunch was in order. All was going well until lunch was over and we checked with the rental company again, who then thought 3 PM would be the earliest we could get into the house. By this time it was pouring rain and lightning, so the beach was out as an alternative to kill the time. Thank goodness for air conditioning and the dvd player in the mini van. We watched Tangled with the kids to waste some time. Mike's folks arrived and we went to the grocery store to stock up on some food for the week. It seemed like forever until 3 PM finally arrived. Luckily, the kids were such troopers through this ordeal and did a great job of making the best of the situation.

The house Mike's parents rented for us all for the week was great. Plenty of space to sleep, lots of bathrooms, room for the kids to run around and explore, walking distance to the beach, game tables, a hot tub, and pool. I think the kids were most excited about the pool. After we did some unpacking, Mike's brother, sister-in-law, and their two girls arrived. The whole family was together.