Donuts and Dolphins

What could be more exciting than starting the day making donuts?

It couldn't be simpler with a package of Krusteaz Fat Free Cranberry Muffin mix and 3/4 cup of water.  And with two sets of stirrers eager to help…..

it's really a piece of cake!   Oh….I mean donut.

Mix the dough, squeeze it into the donut pans (Gramma G doesn't have any photos of this step 'cause she needs  two hands to help the squeezers)…..pop it into the oven for about 10 minutes.

In the meantime, we mix up the glaze.

And, finally, the donuts are baked and ready to dip.

After one last stir.

And, don't forget the sprinkles!

And….since they are "fat free"…we can call them "Healthy Breakfast Donuts"…..right?

And, even better, they taste yummy!!  Great way to start the morning.

But that's not the only excitement of the day.  I was sitting at the beach, gazing at the ocean when a wave crashed,  and I spotted a dolphin swimming so close to the shore we could have been rubbing shoulders with him had this been Wednesday!

He was soon joined by some friends, and when they began to swim north, you could hear the "aahs" echoing from the bystanders, over and over,  as they made their way along the beach.  

Apparently we weren't the only ones impressed with their antics so close to the shore.

And, as if that wasn't enough excitement for the day, upon exploring the beach just a little ways north, we spotted what looks to us like the remains of an old pirate ship land-locked on the shore.

Don't these two make great Pirates?

AAARRRGGGH!

Wednesday: A Weather Reprieve

Excitement!  The Red Flag warning was finally lifted, which meant that eager souls could venture out into the ocean.  But this gallivanting gal decided that getting her knees wet was enough excitement for the day!

But, first things first…..before some of this gang had the opportunity to partake of breakfast…. we were admiring the catch of the day:  Flounder.

which was the source of curiosity early in the day.

Then, we headed to the beach, and  you can be guaranteed that the rest of the gang took advantage of this sudden opportunity to access the waves.

But one face full of salt water resulted in oceanside beach entertainment.

Luckily, we had a volunteer who was willing to offer his services.

Personally….I think he was nuts, but those two certainly had a grand time.  And sand does wash off in the ocean, after all. 

Then, we were onto bigger and better things with Gramma G's assistance.

Yet another creation devoted to King Crab, who decided, once again, to make his appearance among this family…..only this time Amy's leg was fair game as one of the creatures decided to rush towards her as she sat along the shore, scrambling up her leg.  I'll let you imagine the course of events after that excitement.

So, this little one designed the sand creature, adding the scowling the eyes and the mouth entirely by himself.

He said that the crab was mad, and that was why it had run up Aunt Amy's leg.

No one mentioned how Amy felt about all of this!

But there was even more excitement to come:

A Mullet on the line caused this little one to proclaim that we now have a new Mullet Man in the family.

Poor Pap Pap G has apparently lost the title.  Because, only a short while later, yet another was caught by the new champion.

At the end of the day, it was clearly time to head back to the beach house.

Where we all could relax with a little refreshment.

.

Obviously it was quite a hit!!

The "Red Flag" Blues

I can't  help but think of that old saying, "Red Flag at Night….sailor's delight.  Red Flag at morning….sailor's warning."

So far….every morning, we head to the beach and within short time, a young woman on an ATV drives up and raises the a red flag, which states in bold print :NO SWIMMING.

The flag comes down at night….but who's swimming in the dark?

There is some disappointment among the crew…..but we're still finding plenty of fun things to make up for the lack of wave running.

Sandforts to jump in:

Kites to fly:

Standing

and sitting

and sharing

Smiles

and frowns

Hanging out in the makeshift pool:

Building sandcastles

Then knocking them down

And the most fun for me?

Hanging out with Gramma G

Of course!! 

A CRAB-tastic Day at the Beach

Yesterday was special for two reasons:  One……it was our check-in day at the beach, a day that we look forward to each year, which promises a week of fun and relaxation and lots of gallivanting fish adventures with Grandpa G.

Second, it was my daughter-in-law's birthday.  And, with both dates converging on the same day, you KNOW excitement had to be in the air!

My grandson and I had been secretly discussing (via Skype) just what type of cake I should make his mommy.  Here you see a modified version of my grandson's "idea".

Isn't it cute?

I could only hope that it would survive the trip without incident.

We really couldn't ask for a better travel day.  Great weather, and some entertaining breaks along the way.

And after picking up the keys, checking in to our beach rental, and unpacking the car, how could we resist heading down to the beach to check out those waves?

The tide was rolling in, and this  little guy had a blast jumping the waves…..although I will admit that one of those waves ended up jumping at us!

But that's all part of the fun…..right?

And…speaking of fun….it was soon time to head back for some dinner and the much-anticipated event:

Now there's a story behind that cake ( I'll bet that you aren't too surprised by that).

Several years ago, at this very same beach, we were relaxing under the canopy, enjoying the antics of a sand crab that kept popping its head up and peering at us.  At one point, my son thought it would be cute to play with it a bit.

Well…..that was a HUGE mistake.  The crab popped out of the sand, began scurrying across our beach blanket, and made a B-line right to an innocent victim, who was relaxing on a beach blanket, engrossed in her book. 

Needless to say, we were all quite shocked  and surprised to find the crab suddenly running up this poor girl's leg.

Who was that victim, you may ask?   My son's wife.  Don't worry…. he survived the experience.  But it's always been a memorable story, as you can well imagine.

Now, my grandson was only an infant at the time, but the story has been retold every year since, and he came up with the idea that I should make a cake that looked like his Mommy's leg with a crab running up it.

Don't you just love kids?  They put no limit on one's abilities.  But, I decided to forego the leg, and I'm fairly certain that was a wise decision on my part.

And no one appears to be disappointed.

Happy Birthday to Mommy!

Who knew that such a quirky event would be part of the celebration so many years later?

Here's the link to the past highlighting this family's reaction to the antics of that crab: http://gallivantinggeismom.blogspot.com/2011/06/fun-in-sand.html

But it's time to get out and enjoy the beach…….

Nuts over Raleigh

With my husband once again off on a business trip, it seemed the perfect opportunity to gallivant to Raleigh for a few days, to catch up on things with my childhood friend, who just so happens to be my aunt.

Growing up, I thought everyone had a playmate to enjoy at their grandma's house, so it would be with much excitement that I would anticipate the frequent visits on weekends throughout the year, and the summer vacations we would spend together.

It had been years since we had made the time to get together and catch up on life, and now seemed as good a time as any.  The price was right…..so why not?

My few days here have been relaxing as well as entertaining.

My mornings found me in the company of this little pal:

whose cute little face brought a chuckle to mine everyday.

Really…..how could it not?

I enjoyed my afternoon walks exploring some nearby sites

where one might think I was back in Europe, 

with charming shops enticing some window shopping

and surprises around nearly every corner.

And today's adventure into Raleigh offered a quick glimpse into the highlights of the city:

We walked through the Art Space

admiring the handiwork of many creative and talented artists.

And explored some sites along the historical streets:

We passed the Old Railroad station in town

The Briggs Building Hardware Store built in 1874

and the North Carolina State Capital building built in 1840:

And here is something new that I learned today:  not only was Andrew Johnson born nearby…

but his poor mother had the unfortunate circumstance of delivering him in the kitchen!  This story may warrant a little research on my part…..but that's for another day.

But here you spy the main attraction for our visit today:

The Giant Acorn

Every year since 1992, this Acorn is dropped on New Year's Eve as the clock winds down to midnight.

If you find that to be a bit odd, consider that North Carolina's Mount Olive drops a 3 1/2 foot pickle at midnight, while Morehead City lowers a Crab Pot.

But all of that excitement pales in comparison to Brasstown's celebration, where a live possum was lowered in a box at midnight. 

I don't know about you…but I'd say the possum adventure was, by far, truly nuts!!