Vacation Superlatives: 2014

We’re wrapping up a week of vacation-y posts, highlighting our adventures (and misadventures) in Bethany Beach earlier this fall. Just stopping in now? Check out seven beachy things that can be an easy DIY back at home here and a video montage of our trip here. To bring it all home today, we’re putting a spotlight on the best and worst parts of the trip. Soooooo, without further ado, I bring you our Vacation Superlatives of 2014!

Coolest Antique Store: The Pelican Loft, located on the Rehoboth boardwalk. This place was awesome. Think cool, vintage-y things for reasonable prices. A novel idea, I know. They had a great mix of antiques and modern decor. You can see some of the things we saw in this post, but I couldn’t resist grabbing a shot of what was probably the first ever penny board. Shout out to all you Ocean Grovers… you know who you are.

Most Allergic: Mitch- to the horses we rode! It was his first time riding a horse (apart from carnivals) and even though it was an awesome two hour ride, Mitch ended up with red, itchy, puffy eyes. I don’t have a picture of the goods- you’ll just have to take my word for it… it was bad. Even with all that though, Mitch still said he enjoyed the ride and is glad he went. What a trooper.

Best “Beachy” Store: Sea Level in Bethany Beach. Remember that sentiment about wishing I had a beach house so that I could fill it with shells and driftwood? Well, this store might have fueled that fire…

The great part about this store was that there was something for everyone- they had sea shells for $3 and mirrors for $250. It was nice to see such a great variety of items.

Biggest Let-Down: Not getting to go parasailing. It was suuuuuper expensive and closed down for the season. Bummer.

Largest Crowds: The Delmarva Bike Week was happening and I can say with confidence that I’ve never seen so many motorcycles in one place in all my life.

Largest Chair: This HUGE Adirondack in front of Justin’s Beach House… after hunting for a photo of it online (I forgot to take one of my own), I found the story behind this house and it’s pretty incredible. Check out that link above to read more about it.

Biggest Regret: Not buying a $7 watercolor from a local vendor. It was a tiny, beautiful picture of a sailboat, but I didn’t want to spend $7 on a printed copy of the original. The vendor wasn’t budging, so I went on my merry way but am since regretting not getting the pretty keepsake.

Most Random Landmark: This totem pole, sitting right in the center of town. I wonder if there’s a story to it… if anything, it was incredibly helpful in navigating around town our first few days.Best Deal: Renting bikes for $5/hr. We spent two hours riding around town (and got yelled at by some grumpy people for riding on the boardwalk) our second day and it was one of the highlights of our trip. We rented the bikes from a Bike Shop located in the Marketplace at Sea Colony on Sea Coastal Highway (Rt. 1). They don’t have a website, but the owner was so friendly, they had a lot of rentals (boogie boards, umbrellas, etc.), and the price was definitely right. We highly recommend.Most Educational: Leslie learning how to play tennis.Worst Tennis Player: Leslie. I’ll spare you a picture of me and give you a shot of this previous tennis player back in action…Most Relaxing: Reading on the front porch. Ahhh to have the time to read for fun… sounds like vacation to me!Best Muscles: Mitch holding up this shirt:Cutest Breakfast:These smiley “homemade” waffles…Best Breakfast: The Kool Bean Bistro… I had an AWESOME pumpkin waffle. Yumm! Oh, and their style/decor… so fun. Just check out this fireplace/chalkboard combo that greets you as you walk in:

And this is where I leave you, folks… the best and worst of Thomas Family Vaca 2014. Have a great weekend and we’ll see you next week!

-Leslie

Thomas Family Vacation!

Hey there! As previously stated (here and here), we took off early last month for a family vacation to Bethany beach, DE. Mitch’s uncle very graciously lent us his beach house for the week, so we packed our bags and headed out on a road trip to Delaware! This vacation was awesome- we relaxed, slept in, went on adventures, the whole bit. I won’t bore you with the play by play, but I do have that video montage I promised. Excuse my amateur editing skills- you’ll be happy to know that Windows Movie Maker and I are back on good terms. If anything, I had a lot of fun learning how to piece it all together. Before you watch, here are some highlights you’ll want to look out for:

• A Totem Pole cameo
• A view from atop a horse (!!!)
• The horses’ names that had us laughing
• Mitch does one of his famous “moves” (if you know him, you’ll know what I’m talking about… happens around 3:35)
• No, we never made it to the beach on Sunday… Mitch won that battle.

And with that, here is our 6 day vacation in 7 minutes and 34 seconds. Enjoy!

Tomorrow, we’ll be back with our 2014 Vacation Superlatives- the best and worst of the trip… get pumped. Have a great day!

-Leslie

Inspiration on Vacation

Ok, that title is confusing. Please read: Inspiration While on Vacation, Not: My Inspiration is on Vacation. So back in the beginning of September, Mitch and I took a trip to Bethany Beach, DE for a few days. His uncle graciously lent us his beach house, so we hit the road with our bags packed and music blaring. There’s a full recap coming your way tomorrow (video!!!), but I figured I’d share some of the snapshots I grabbed throughout the week that made me think “Oooh, that’s awesome! I wonder if I could make that!” 

So, for the sake of all things beachy, adventurous, and home/crafty related, here are:1. Use a shell as a dish. This one was $4 at Beach Plum Antiques, but I’m sure you could find a large, shell-like thing somewhere for a similar price or cheaper (or FREE if you find it on the beach!). Clean it up, fill it with change, keys, jewelry and you’re all set to go.2. Spray paint a star fish (or any other natural-looking thing) for a quick burst of color. I found these ones at a store called Sea Level (one of our favorites from the week!).

3. Fill a vase or glass piece with sand and shells for instant beachy decor. We actually have this exact piece at home, which is what sent my mind into “I COULD TOTALLY DO THAT” mode. This is also from Sea Level.

4. Distress wooden letters for a vintage-y look. And then, while you’re at it, spell something on your mantel, shelf, table, etc. These $10 ones came from Bella Luna on the Rehoboth boardwalk.

5. Spray paint glass jars white to make them look ceramic. I was in love with these $23 and $17 ones from The Pelican Loft (also on the Rehoboth boardwalk), but resisted the urge to buy every last one.6. Use mini pencils to create a cute, school-themed picture frame. How fun and simple would that be?!

7. Perhaps my favorite, stamp letters onto burlap bunting to create custom signs and decor. This might be one I try pretty soon… with fall here and the holidays around the corner, you might see some burlap-y decorations popping up around our house. I don’t remember which store these were from, but they were selling them for $5 a piece. So cute!So that’s that. Seven ideas inspired by the beach and there’s more vacation where that came from. The montage video of our trip is just about finished, so you can look for that tomorrow and on Friday, we’ve got a Superlative party all lined up! Our favorite restaurant, best day trip, coolest shop, etc. all comin’ your way. Stay tuned and have a great rest of your day!

-Leslie