Howdy, everyone! I am fresh back from a week long vacation to the Outer banks of North Carolina and while it was truly nice to sit back and unwind, I am very glad to be home!

Our trip just happened to fall during a period of heightened shark activity that had me in an anxious frenzy prior to leaving WV. Those who really know me, know that I am terrified of big bodies of water. (Like, big puddles scare me. No joke....and I know it sounds crazy!) I watch shark week; I know that I supposedly have a better chance of being struck by lightening than by being bitten by a shark. However, this year I am not too terribly sure about those odds! But, I pulled on my big girl panties and ventured into the ocean...up to my knees. And I let the kids play in the ocean as much as they wanted...up to their knees. My absolutely fearless, half-fish husband had a blast body surfing and splashing with the kids...in knee-deep water.  But seriously, we had a blast anyway!

Normally we stay in the Nags Head area of OBX but this year we ended up staying a bit out of the way in Corolla. I was super surprised to find that I actually like this area a bit better! It was much less crowded, less commercial but still had all of the perks you look for when vacationing such as shops, restaurants, miniature golf, go-karts, etc. I mean just take a look at our "deserted" beach (it doesn't get much better than this!):

We even got our annual Showen Family portrait done...super fancy, guys...

Haha, we totally take this shot every year and I get a kick out of seeing how those little piggies have grown! And since it is just feet, there is no arguing over location, wardrobe, etc. Easy-peasy and everyone is happy!

A few more from various activities:

Surf fishing...

Ghost crabbing...

Anyway, it is great to be home and I look forward to getting back into the swing of things! Be on the look out for a teaser of a special session I did for one of my family members, coming up this week!

T