Beach Trip - Day 6, Thanksgiving Day

Dad, Skip, and myself got an early start on fishing this morning. We were up and out by 6 am. We went to the little pier by the marina with high hopes. We probably only stayed there for an hour with not a single bite. So we packed up and headed to a different fishing spot on the beach on down the road a ways. No luck there either. I got a little adventurous at this fishing hole, however.

My fishing clothes consisted of regular layers of clothes (t-shirt, long sleeve, and sweatshirt) and my freezer bibs from work (made for sub-zero temperatures). I would also wear my big yellow jacket on top. My waterproof boots made me almost completely waterproof. At this new fishing hole there was a small seawall just to the south. I decided to fish from on top of it. At first I would stay away from the rolling waves that would flow over top of the wall (it was about 2 feet wide). As time went, though I thought it would be better fishing if I could walk out on the wall a little ways in attempts to get my hook out a little farther.

Even though I was wearing my layers, they were not waders by any means. So to have a way to get out further in the water was very nice. The only thing about the wall was it gradually disappeared into the water at a downward slope. The more I scooted out on the wall, the closer to the breakers I became until I was right on top of the spot where the waves were breaking. It got to the point where the waves were literally breaking on my ankles, but I didn't care. I hadn't caught a thing and I knew we would be out too much longer.

It was so adventurous, and it was fun! It also afforded me a great view of the ocean floor. What appeared to be several feet deep from the shore was actually only about 2-3 foot deep. This was a bit disappointing since I thought we were fishing in a deep hole, but it was beautiful none the less.

Before we came back to the house (around 9 am) we decided we could not come back empty-handed. We made one last stop at Krispy Kreme for our second round of donuts for the week. Those donuts didn't even last 12 hours (a new Surfside beach trip record). There were two dozen, too! They were delicious (I had only one! But that's okay).

Being that this was Thanksgiving Day, I decided to spend more time with the family than with the fish for the day - regardless of what happened with the fishing. I held true to this all day. And wouldn't you know it, but later in the evening after the kids went to bad (which is the prime time to fish for me because I know Ashley would not be alone with the kids) I decided to spend time with Ashley.

What most always happens on trips like this is I focus so much on spending time with my family (Mom, Dad, Maw Maw and Paw Paw and others) that I often neglect my own family. But we are on vacation, too, and do not get this many baby sitters very often. Being as tired as Ashley was, though, we decided not to go out, but to stay in and play some games. Skip's girlfriend, Stephanie, arrived sometime around 8:30 and we decided to all play some games.

We had a great time. We taught them the joy of playing Ticket to Ride and they were instantly hooked. We'll have to play that one again.

We were in the middle of one of our games when the fishermen returned from the pier. They had caught so many fish. Wouldn't you know it. The one time I don't put my hook in the water is the one time I would have caught a bucket full of fish. But I had to remind to myself one thing - that family time is way more important than fishing time. I didn't pay my hard-earned money to spend time with slimy fish (that usually aren't cleaned and cooked right anyway). No, what I was most looking forward to was being with my family. Fish or no fish, I have had a great time this week.

Thanksigiving came and went like the ocean waves, and just about as fast. The ladies spent literally hours in the kitchen. It only took us less than 20 minutes though, to devour the feast they had prepared. Then after the deed was done, everyone went back to doing their own thing. This was a little disappointing to me. I envisioned us spending more time at the table reminscing of Thanksgivings past. I wanted us to savor the moment. Unfortunately, that didn't happen. BUT we have been spending some good time together this week and that makes up for it. The truth is, in my heart we celebrate Thanksgiving just about every time we eat together. I have been so very thankful for the time we have spent together this week.




I love my family.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!