HHI 2010

As soon as I found out I had a four day weekend for the Fourth of July I booked a flight home. I couldn't miss Hilton Head! Three days can't even begin to compare to last year's two weeks, but it was wonderful none the less. We tanned, played with sparklers, ate key lime pie, went to Mellow Mushroom, laughed and laughed at Sam and had a blast.


I try to pretend the rest of the week didn't happen without me, but I suppose it did. And I just couldn't pass up this picture. My cousins, Connor and Austin, came for the end of the week. Austin apparently tried to fit in with all the girls :)


And if you've never vacationed with the Brooks. Sam's friend, Amy, came with us this year and I have never read a more hilarious and accurate recap. From her blog:

after connecticut i headed back to georgia, to leave for hilton head with the brooks family the next day. we spent an entire week laying on the beach getting tan. i thought sam was a rare child because of her obsession with sun. it became clear to me after the week, however, that the apple did not fall far from the tree.

sam's ma, darla, is the most diehard of the whole group. the woman can tan. for hours. and hours. i was smothering on the sunscreen each morning, and reapplying during the day for fear of frying, because i knew i'd be in the sun for six straight days. the brooks family puts on spf 4 at nine in the morning, and then sits out there until four in the afternoon without ever getting pink. they are incredible. they are a different species. kristin called me out on discreetly hiding from the sun by taking lengthy lunch breaks. i spent the week playing catch up with sam and her sisters. i think i may now be as dark as they were after day one.

we did get off our beach chairs for a few hours during the week, in order to sail, jet ski, and eat. oh, and go to the bathroom. it was a running joke all week that my bladder is the size of a peanut. i don't know what these people expect. i'm purchased a 32 ounce diet coke, drink the whole thing within fifteen minutes, and logically, an hour or so later, i have to go. bad. the brooks family robots don't seem to have this physiological need. i was harped on everytime i had to pee.

on the five hour drive home, i found myself in a familiar situation. i had to go, urgently (i was given a large dr. pepper at chick-fil-a with my breakfast) and no one else had to. i begged sam to tell her dad that she needed to stop, so he wouldn't blame me once again for slowing down the team. since we wouldn't pass a restroom for at least twenty minutes, i started googling ways to hold your pee on sam's phone.

what i found was this:

- open your legs as WIDE as you can.
- allow your lower abdomen to tilt slightly forwards.
- avoid jarring or shaking your body. (car rides are perfect for this.)
- fidget, but not excessively.
- repeatedly tell yourself you do not have to go. (psychological mind tricks. caisa & sam heard a lot of this.)

and my hands down favorite:
- do not compromise yourself if not absolutely sure you want to compromise.

lucky for me, we reached a gas station just as i was about to compromise myself.