Friday, May 13, 2016

{Friday Photo Bliss}: Galveston Beach Love

On Fridays I like to post snapshots I have taken recently that make me happy. 

Last Thursday the weather was beautiful (70-80 degrees, low humidity, and sunny) and I called up my mom and asked if she wanted to drive down to Galveston and spend the night. She said yes, so we booked a room at our favorite resort (one bedroom 650 sq.ft. condo, beach view, full kitchen for $117+tax!), and headed out to spend 24 hours at the beach.

You can do that when you live only an hour or two from Galveston Island.


We got in late afternoon, checked in, and hit the beach. The boys are itching to go swimming but I made them stand for a quick photo. I am the photographer of the family and I have almost no photos of myself, so I made sure to have my mom take a quick snapshot. I didn't even bring my "real" camera this trip. These photos are all taken with my iPhone (and edited in LR).

My swimsuit bottom's elastic didn't make it even one year. As I was walking around I noticed that the the fabric was completely loose and waving around in the breeze like giant stretched-out granny panties. Thank goodness it had a skirt or I would have been arrested for indecent exposure!


Then the boys were off!

I always take a photo of the boys running out into the surf. It is a family tradition.


Oh boy, the water was cold.  We are Texans and prefer our gulf water to be warm like a bath. :-) But the boys decided to go ahead and swim for a bit. They did complain that there weren't any decent waves.


Mom and I sat in the shadow water and admired the beautiful evening. 

The boys quickly became frozen popsicles and we went inside and had a hot shower and dinner (homemade chili) and then decided to go for a walk on the beach and watch the sunset.


So many people visiting Galveston Island only go to the main beaches by the sea wall. They are crowded and you are inundated by traffic noise.

But if you drive five minutes out of the main part of town you will find gorgeous beaches that rival the beaches found on the East Coast. Heck, they are as nice as many beaches in Florida (without the white sand and clear water).

The beaches here are clean, not usually crowded, and bordered by a few hotels and luxurious beach houses. Our hotel is right next to Galveston Pocket Park 3. There are restrooms, showers, and lots of parking. I am going to come here for the day this summer with Piper the dog. He has never been to the beach.


Tonight the sky was stunning. I couldn't stop taking photos.


The boys usually don't want to walk on the beach, they prefer playing in the surf or sand. But tonight they were in awe of nature's beauty and didn't complain once.

You might notice that Duke and Imp are wearing Crocs with socks on the beach. They are weird.

It was a perfect end to the evening and we got back to our hotel after dark, tired but happy.


Our room faced the east and the boys and I woke up when it started getting light around six the next morning. The sunrise was supposed to be at 6:30, so we eagerly watched the sky. The boys had never seen a beach sunrise.

The sun suddenly popped up, right on time.


We were amazed how quickly it rose into the sky.


Wow, another perfect day. I want to buy this beach house. Too bad I can't even afford to rent it for one night! We met a group of people paying $800/night for a similar one on this beach.


We decided to have breakfast later and headed out to the beach around seven. No sunscreen necessary, yay!


I didn't even put on a bathing suit, assuming it would be too cold to swim.


So I sat on the beach and enjoyed the view. Wow, another perfect sky.


The kids hit the surf and started yelling that it was warm. I didn't believe them and waded out into the water and found they were right. The air was so cool that the water felt perfect.

Darn me for not putting on a my suit...


So I walked a short way down the beach, wading in the shallow surf, enjoying the perfect morning.


As did the boys.


We had to check out at 10, so we went up to our condo around 8:30, had a big breakfast (eggs, coconut-flour muffins, sausage, and lots of coffee) and packed up. Then we headed out to the beach one last time.  It was Friday so they were putting out the rental beach chairs for the weekend visitors.

Wow, I hated to leave. I love the beach and 24-hours was just too short... But it is better than not going to the beach at all. ;-)

Have a great weekend!

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6 comments:

  1. Absolutely love every one of these photos. I am somewhat envious of your proximity to all that loveliness.

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    Replies
    1. Thank you MRC! Galveston has nice beaches and we are so lucky to be such a short drive away. I love the beach.

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  2. Sounds like a lovely day. Thanks for sharing.

    Lisa D.

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  3. Awe looks as though y'all had a great time. Beautiful beach. Hugs and blessings, Cindy

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    Replies
    1. I already miss the beach. :-) And thank you Cindy!!!

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Rita