When we entered the visitors center the attendant asked the boys if they wanted to participate in the Junior Ranger program. The boys all had fun becoming Junior Rangers on our last trip, so they were excited to participate again. They each got a Junior Ranger booklet to work on as we visited the memorial. Austin was excited to find a small bench just his size to sit on while he filled out his booklet!
Part of the Junior Ranger program requires that you go to two programs put on by the staff at the memorial. We listened to one of the Rangers tell about the Wright Brothers and their plane. It was very interesting. He talked at least 30 mins. and the boys all listened well and didn't have any problems.
After the program the boys went up and talked to the Ranger. They asked him some questions and had him sign their booklets.
Shortly there after a nice couple asked if we would like them to take our family picture. We, of course, said yes. Afterwards, we asked them where they were from and we found out they live in the same town we live in. Wow, small world!
Next we watched a short movie about the first flight and then we walked up to the memorial. It sits up on a hill overlooking the area. It was a pretty chilly windy day, so we didn't stay very long.
The kids found a small little area to hide it in while I took some pictures.
After being "blown away" by the memorial we headed back down to the visitor center so the boys could finish the Junior Ranger program. The final assignment was to recite the Junior Ranger pledge. They passed with flying colors!
On our way out of the park we stopped at the glider statue. The ranger told us that the boys could climb all over it - they were all over that.
Once we had seen all there was to see at the memorial we headed back to the hotel for lunch and to warm up a bit. We didn't stay long, though, because we wanted to go explore the Cape Hatteras National Shoreline. Our first stop was the Bodie Island Lighthouse.
Cape Hatteras has three lighthouses along the coast. This was the closes one to us. It was really cool to see, but unfortunately, we couldn't go inside, so the kids stayed inside the car while I took some pictures.
I thought it was interesting that this lighthouse was situated about half a mile inland and it doesn't sit on a hill.
Almost directly across the street from the lighthouse, over some sand dunes was a nice beach. It was still cold and windy, but the boys really wanted to go to the beach, so we decided to stop and play a little. The only stipulation was that we would leave when someone got cold, even if it was just one person.
It was very pretty and peaceful, despite the wind. The sand was very soft and warm. I actually think it was warmer at the beach than it had been at the Wright Brother's Memorial.
When we got to the sand Kaden, Trevor and Devon took off for the water. They were determined to get in the water despite the cool temperatures. They ran down the beach and into the surf. They got wet up to maybe their ankles and then they high tailed it back up to where the rest of us had stopped to play in the sand.
Kaden, Trevor and Devon all eventually made their way back down to the water at one point or another. Kaden still only put his feet in.
Trevor actually laid down in the shallow surf (then sprinted back screaming!)
Devon ran around in the surf for a little while. He probably got wet up to his knees.
Tanner and I enjoyed looking for seashells. We found several cool shells. Some we kept and some Tanner used to make a sand castle.
One of the things on the bucket list for the boys was being buried in the sand. Kaden, Trevor and Devon were all able to check that off their list. Tanner would have been buried as well, but he opted not to get his swimming suit on because he was cold. Austin was just happy to pour sand all over his brothers!
Even though it was short, it was fun to play at the beach!
Chad and I enjoyed taking pictures of the beautiful shoreline!
As I was walking around I came upon a piece of driftwood that I was taken with.
I also loved watching the birds fly around the shoreline.
Once we had our fill of the beach, we decided to drive down the coast a little more. There wasn't much out there except sand sand water. We did come across the occasional beach town. I love seeing all the colorful beach houses!
The coast line is made up of several little islands, so we went over a couple of bridges. The boys love it because they always try to hold their breath. Austin is usually the first to spot the bridges (or tunnels) and he quickly alerts his brothers.
That night we went to dinner at a local restaurant. We enjoyed eating hush puppies and seafood!
No comments:
Post a Comment