Live, Love, Run: Beach Life

What a perfect week we had in Myrtle Beach. I miss the sea already. As a Pisces I will eternally be drawn to water. There is something so natural and elemental about being at the beach. I'm overcome with such a sense of peace and relaxation - until I step off the plane back in Baltimore and it's 67 degrees. #weatherfail Confession: I am not a seasons girl, unless every season is summer. I have no use for pumpkin spice lattes, skiing, or hibernating under 12 layers of clothing for 5 months at a time. I am convinced I was born in the wrong geographic location. I love sunshine. I love the feel of the warm air on my skin. And I love wearing as little clothing as possible. Maybe I'm a closet nudist. But I really don't look forward to everything dying and burrowing away each year for the long cold winter. I'll admit I do enjoy the sense of hope, anticipation and new life that spring brings every year, but I would be just as happy if the natural world never had to die up here just to be reborn every year. I guess that's the circle of life though, eh?

On to vacation details...

It was so nice to spend quality time with my extended family all week. You'd think with 12 people in one giant beach house, there would be chaos, but there really wasn't. We spent most days swimming in the pool or the salty waves, taking long walks on the beach, snacking on fresh fruit and just enjoying the sunshine and each other's company. Aunt Jilly got quite the workout all week as well, compliments of a few certain toddlers in the house!

I also (mostly) kept to my training schedule for the Runner's World Half while I was down there. I was worried about the long run I had prescribed for the week since it would be hotter and more humid down there, but I managed to get 7 miles in last Monday and felt good. I also got a 4 mile run in on Wednesday. I ran with my little sister and my brother in law which made the miles fly by. Shout out to my little sister who just started running this summer and is already up to 3+ miles! I am so proud of her. She joined a training program a few months ago to prepare her to run her first 5K in October and has stuck with it and is enjoying herself! People, we have another convert!

I had also planned another 3-4 miler for Friday morning, but we went out Thursday night so Friday's run did not happen! This is the second time I've been to Crocodile Rocks Dueling Piano Bar and it did not disappoint. Has anyone else been here? I went for the first time last year and loved it. There are two guys on pianos up on stage that play requests all night long. Like anything. It's amazing. They know the words and music to current songs on the radio, show tunes, oldies, country, college fight songs and everything in between. You just write your request on a napkin and take it up with a few dollars and they'll eventually get to it. I requested "Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da" by the Beatles and "Dixieland Delight" by Alabama and they played both so well. The crowd gets into the music too and everyone is standing, dancing and singing along. I also got picked up simultaneously by a farmer from Augusta and a surfer from North Carolina, so all in all a great night! HAHAHA

One of the coolest experiences we had was going to the Tigers Preservation Station at Barefoot Landing. The agency operates a 50 acre preserve in Myrtle Beach dedicated to the preservation of endangered species, including tigers, leopards, chimps and many more, so the cost of our interactive experience there helped these great people do their work. We got to cuddle with a real baby tiger, hold a larger tiger cub and sit with a monkey. No, I'm not kidding! Here's the picture to prove it (sorry, I don't know why I can't flip my iPhone pic!):

I'll leave you with a few more photos from the week. There was really nothing better than getting to spend time with both of my sisters for 7 whole days.