I took about a million photos of our Cape Cod vacation so I'm going to break the trip up into a few parts because it was SO much fun!
The week started out with a quick night at Grammi and Bean's house where we watched the Lightning beat Montreal in game 3 of the Stanley Cup playoffs, which put them up 3-0. I can't believe I got my Bruins loving in-laws to watch the game!
You wouldn't know it, but I'm smiling here!
Todd, Grammi and Bean took the kids to the indoor pool at Great Island, where they live.
Thankfully, Grammi took some great pics because I was back cleaning up and getting us ready to go to Hyannis.
Awww, I love this picture of Natalie!
Grant apparently held this handstand for a really long time!
It was kind of blurry, but we took a goodbye selfie with Warren and Carole (and Mark!) and took off for the Cape in the pouring rain.
Welcome to Cape Cod, where it's chilly and raining (a lot). Not a great start to the week, but it definitely got better - before getting worse again! Crossing the Sagamore is always a fun moment in the trip.
We arrived at our AirBnB in Hyannis on Craigville Beach and unpacked before heading out to get some dinner.
And we went to Gannon's Tavern to start the trip with a yummy meal! Notice Natalie is a chip off the old block and trying to put her drink in front of my face!
Toward the end of dinner, Todd showed Grant how to make a paper napkin flower.
After we left Gannon's - we saw a beautiful rainbow that extended from one end of the horizon to the other.
On the morning of the 4th of July, the kids woke up and ran down to Craigville Beach with Todd. The weather wasn't great, but it wasn't rainy (uh, yet.)
The good news is... neither of my kids looks like me.
We went into Hyannis to see what was going on down there for Independence Day because the weather wasn't exactly good for a beach day (which you can tell by our hoodies!) Our first stop was to check out the JFK statue in front of the museum. I really want to go - some other day, though!
Welcome to Hyannis Main Street!
We went to Finn's Craft Beer House for some snacks (we had a late breakfast) and a beverage and this is how the kids reacted. We tried to order some simple snacks, and 45 minutes later, they still hadn't arrived, so we cancelled them, paid the bill and left. Maybe the kids grumpiness was warranted!
We ran down to the harbor to catch the end of the Hyannis 4th of July boat parade. Lady Liberty was there (on this very red, white and blue boat!)
Everyone got a kick out of the fact that the flag was bigger than the boat!
Just waving at the decorated boats going by.
Uncle Sam made it to the parade!
Once the parade was over, we strolled down the docks to the Artist Shanties.
Here is Grant in front of one of the Artist Shanties - I love hydrangeas so much!
But then... this happened.
So we high tailed it down to Main Street where we found the first place we knew Grant could eat with his allergy - British Beer Company. Natalie was looking a little drenched!
We had to wait for a bit to get a table (because of the rain) but finally we got one!
Blueberry Lemonade: Smirnoff Blueberry Vodka, Combier Creme de Mure (which is a blackberry liqueur), lemonade, fresh blueberries. Not QUITE as good as Mandy's Snark Juice (which is similar) but really tasty!
Someone just must have wanted to hug their daddy after an early dinner.
Then we made our way back down Main Street and we passed by the First Baptist Church which has some of the best hydrangeas I've seen on the Cape!
"Hey, someone go be a lobster for me!" Of course, Grant had to give her bunny ears.
So Todd repaid the favor.
We finally found a place that had ice cream that Grant could have, hooray! He was VERY excited.
AND one more time, we started going back in the other direction on Main Street, past a dance party that had broken out to the sounds of 24 Karat Magic by Bruno Mars.
On the green behind the Barnstable Town Hall, someone had a large bubble blower - much like the kind we used to see in the main squares of European cities. The kids are out there trying to pop them.
More music was playing on the grandstand. This little area is called the "Walkway to the Sea" according to the Barnstable town website.
The Cape Bloom garden center was CERTAINLY blooming!
At this point, Todd had decided to run back to the car to grab the chairs we had bought, because you can tell by the sky that it was nearing sunset. The kids stopped for a picture in front of the Federated Church, which was built in 1830.
And of course, while we were waiting for Todd to come back, we stopped at KKaties for a drink. Our preference is still to sit outside - except when it's raining!
Alas, it was time! We went down to Memorial Park and found a nice spot on the green to watch the 4th of July fireworks.
Gotta take that family selfie before it gets dark.
Grammi gave the kids a little money, and Grant knew immediately that he wanted to have this flashing diamond Minecraft sword! Practically every kid out there had one!
That sunset is almost as pretty as Natalie! (Mom! Stop being so cheesy!)
So pretty!
Grant is on the lookout for fireworks on the horizon. They shoot them off from a barge down by Kalmus Beach.
I won't bore you with a million firework photos, but they were really good! It was nice to have 4th of July fireworks again after missing them last year. The crowds weren't too crazy heading back and the traffic wasn't bad either. Happy 4th of July!
On Monday the 5th, we went down to Craigville Beach, which we are staying very close to. The air temp and water temp weren't ideal, but the kids didn't really care too much.
It was actually a really pretty day!
Grant is always the first one out of the water, even when he's at the pool because he is just like his mama. Always cold.
I love these crazy people so much. There is no way you will ever find me in water that cold.
But I did enjoy the beach! The sand is nice - not quite like Clearwater Beach soft, but definitely way better than the rocky Croatian beaches.
Grant was watching Natalie and Daddy from the binoculars. I love that the place we stayed at had this beach chair for us to use. If you grew up in Florida in the 80s, you definitely had these chairs!
We (ahem, Todd) grilled out some burgers in the evening - YUM!
And after dinner, we went for a quick walk down to the beach.
Even if it was cloudy, it was a lovely end to the day.
Until next time, Hyannis Independence Day!
