First dip at Outer Banks

 

We took a weeklong family vacation to the Outer Banks in North Carolina at the end of June. We stayed at a beach house in Cape Hatteras, and while it’s quite a long drive down to get there, we had an enjoyable and relaxing vacation (for the most part) once we were there. The girls and I drove down with my parents and sister on Sunday, while Dan, my brother Ted, and sister-in-law Elisa joined us mid-week, arriving late Wednesday night since they didn’t want to miss as much of their work week.

 

Beach house at Cape Hatteras
The beach house – our home for the week. It was a short two minute walk away from the beach!

 

Dinner at Pop's Raw Bar
Going out to dinner at Pop’s Raw Bar the first evening.

 

Miwa enjoying the raw oysters. They were very fresh!
Miwa enjoying the raw oysters. They were very fresh!

 

My crabcake sandwich was deeelicious!
My crabcake sandwich was deeelicious!

 

Mirei and Obaachan on the patio
Mirei and Obaachan on the patio the following day

 

Unfortunately, Mio woke up in the morning throwing up, and she repeatedly threw up throughout the day and couldn’t keep anything down. We think she caught some sort of a 24 hour stomach bug, because she didn’t have an appetite and was lethargic and just rested most of the day. We ended up staying inside for most of the day because I had to take care of her and she was in no condition to go out and enjoy the surroundings.

Poor Mio was sick with the stomach bug
Poor Mio was sick with the stomach bug

 

Poor Mio was sick with the stomach bug
So listless… 🙁

 

Mirei with Ojiichan
Mirei with Ojiichan. Fortunately, Mirei was unaffected by the stomach bug.

 

Mio having an ice pop
Poor baby. I tried to keep her hydrated with what she would take, which was ice pops and some soft rice.

 

Hatteras Landing
My mom and I at Hatteras Landing.

 

Hatteras Landing
My parents after doing some shopping.

 

The next morning, Mio was feeling a lot better and was generally back to her usual self, just with a smaller appetite. Sadly, it was not all good news as I woke up with a very uneasy stomach and proceeded to spend most of the day battling the same stomach bug and resting during our third day because I was so sick. I can’t remember the last time I had a stomach flu, but this definitely made it up there among one of the most miserable days of my life.

Mio sitting in the bay window

 

Mio sitting in the bay window
At least Mio was back to her cheery self!

 

On our fourth day (Wednesday) on vacation, we were finally all feeling better and energetic enough to go to the beach and really enjoy it! It’s really unfortunate that we spent the first half of the week cooped up inside because we were so sick.

Mio ready to hit the beach!
The resident beach babe, ready to hit the beach!

 

So ready to go!
So ready to go!

 

Mio and Miwa in the water
Mio getting held by Auntie Miwa in the ocean.

 

It was a beautiful day!
It was a beautiful day to enjoy the beach.

 

Such a posh baby!
Such a posh baby!

 

Mio screamed every time a wave came in!
Mio screamed every time a wave came in!

 

Walking on the beach with Obaachan (my mom)
Walking on the beach with Obaachan (my mom)

 

We almost had the beach to ourselves!
We almost had the beach to ourselves!It was so private and nice.

 

The girls and I soaking up the sun!
The girls and I soaking up the sun!

 

It’s too bad our family vacation had a rough start, but I’m glad we could all recover in time for Dan and the rest of the family to arrive. Stay tuned for more of our adventures during the latter half of the trip! 🙂