Thanksgiving 2020 - Wild Dunes during COVID pandemic

 

We drove the four and a half hours north to Isle of Palms, South Carolina on November 21st which was a Saturday. Andrea reserved a small house for us and with the pandemic this year it was just us. We definitely missed having family to celebrate with, but we are thankful that everyone in our family is safe and healthy at this point. 

We brought both of the kid's bikes and surprisingly didn't have the car as packed as we have in the past. The rental came with some bikes, but the kids do better with their own bikes and it's not too hard to just bring two. I worked during the week, but I've recently gotten some travel-friendly equipment so my work gear is much more compact. Since we weren't sharing the house with anyone we didn't need to bring air mattresses or anything like that. The drive was pretty simple and we stopped at a new charger that was pretty fast, thankfully not a lot of traffic.

We arrived, unpacked, and got some pizza and spaghetti delivered from Luke and Ollie's which is one of our faves. 

On Sunday morning before tennis, Paige and I went for a walk and I snapped a pic of her in front of the house and on one of the trails nearby.

Since the daily clinics are still not being offered, Andrea arranged a green dot private lesson in the mornings for Paige and the rest of us did a group lesson together. Andrea, Connor and I had Jessie most of the days and Paige had her private lessons with Patrick. Connor has gotten to be a strong player and we were pretty worn out after our hour and a half. It would have been nice to play with other people, but it was neat that we had such a high level of tennis with just our family.

On the day of Thanksgiving, we set up our tripod and snapped a few family photos together in the house and then went to Coastal Provisions for our Thanksgiving meal reservation. 

Our reservation was for noon and we were a little nervous that we would get an outdoor table since we only eat at restaurants when we can eat outside. We planned to take the food to go if the weather was awful or if we couldn't get an outside table.  When Andrea set up the reservation she was told that they couldn't guarantee a table, but I think we were the first ones to show up on Thanksgiving. The table was in a nice covered area by the hotel pool and while we were a little disappointed that they didn't do any special decorations for Thanksgiving, the meal was amazing. 

After our meal we went back to the house and I watched football with Connor while Paige played on her computer. We had a brief video call with Grandpa, Grandma, Alex and Charlie and it was nice to see them on Thanksgiving day.

The rest of our time in South Carolina was pretty relaxed and we got to spend a lot of time outdoors. The weather was amazing and was possibly the best weather we've had over a Thanksgiving. It was cool in the mornings but not cold. In the afternoons it was perfect for biking and pickleball. Our pickleball playing has improved overall, but Paige's pickleball has gotten crazy good. We had some unbelievable points and some of the other visitors that were playing nearby commented on how well Paige was playing. It is hard for Paige being the littlest and youngest, but she played hard and won a few times with me and with Connor. Connor is probably the best player in the family at this point and is so consistent and dominant at the net. Sadly we forgot to take any pics during pickleball.

We did take some pics and videos during our bike rides and walks together.

We drove home on November 28th and while it rained the entire drive home it was one of the only times it rained throughout our visit and we made it home safely. We are thankful for so many things and for each other. We all got along well and enjoyed watching the Grinch movie, the "Princess Switch" Netflix Christmas movie, and spending time together.

On our last day as I was tucking in the kids I asked everyone what their favorite foods were on the visit and I wrote them all down so we could remember.

Paige

Pumpkin pie

Apple pie

Turkey dinner on Thanksgiving

Spaghetti from Luke and Ollie's

Pages Okra Grill meal

Connor

Turkey sandwich 

Turkey lunch

Mac and cheese from McAlister's Deli

Fruit punch from McAlister's Deli

Ice cream from market

Pumpkin pie

Andrea

Turkey Sammich from McAlister's

Pumpkin pie

Page's Okra Grill - chicken fried chicken meal

Turkey lunch on Thanksgiving

Luke and Ollie's pizza

Brookie from McAlister's

Shawn

Page's Okra Grill - chicken fried chicken meal

Turkey lunch on Thanksgiving

Turkey sammich from McAlister's

Apple pie

Happy Thanksgiving 2020!