It was a good, long summer with lots of time in Maryland.
Over the last few weeks we had more friends come and visit, enjoyed several sunset sails, and listened to Dave’s dad band.
My family came for Pirates and Wenches Weekend again (it maybe become a tradition!).
The girls both had friends for the last weekend in August, and The Devine’s came down for Labor Day weekend. I’m always sad to leave when summer ends, but fall is also a great time down there as well 😉
The best part of our house in Rock Hall are all the friends who come and visit us throughout the summer. Over the 4th of July Don and his family came down and we did all the f things – sailing, tubing, BBQ and fireworks on the 3rd, and running in the Flat 5 Miler on the morning of the 4th, which is always a total scorcher.
Leading up to the 4th, we spend two weeks in Rock Hall while Lauren and Bella went sailing camp. The both really loved it this year. They were in the intermediate group with older kids, which I think they liked a lot. They also got to ride on the camp’s float for the 4th of July parade.
And in mid-July, Aleen, Sallie and her family came to visit us. It’s the first time we’ve gotten the full families together and it was so much fun! Lauren got along really well with Sallies boys, Lang and Wes, and everyone had fun on the boats. The weather was also perfect, which was just the cherry on top of the weekend.
The following weekend Justin and Steve came down. This was the first time they’ve been to the place and again, it was lovely. Perfect weather, a really great afternoon sail on Saturday, and after a crazy thunderstorm, a beautiful sunset on the beach.
We’ve got a few more fun filled summer weekends ahead of us. Summer always goes so fast, so I’m trying to slow down and savor every moment!
This year, instead of Ocean City, the Rainer Fam came to Rock Hall for the week. The end of the week also happened to be Pirates and Wenches weekend, which was a bonus I guess 😉
The Sharps were out of town that week, so Doug, Vicki and Nana sayed at their house, and everyone else stayed at ours.
It was a nice, pretty low key week. We did some days at the beach, some days at the pool, and some just hanging out at the house.
And we did most of the Pirates and Wenches festivities as well.
My birthday was on a Friday this year and we spent it (big surprise) in Rock Hall. The kids had spent the previous week in Va. with my family and then drove up to spend the weekend with us.
On Friday night, Dave’s dad’s band, Unknown Legends, played at Waterman’s, so we all went there for dinner and to hear them. They’re pretty good and they even sang me happy birthday!
Afterward we went back to the house for some cake.
And we celebrated again the following night with the Townsends as well.
We spent the long 4th weekend in Rock Hall. Zoe and Maddie came down for a few days and the Townsends were there as well. We enjoyed all of our typical Rock Hall activities – sailing, rafting up, swimming and a BBQ. Bonus this year – there were no broken legs!
We all gathered on our front lawn again for fireworks, which they put off on the 3rd of July.
And this year the girls got to particpate in the parade with their sailing school. They had a blast.
To celebrate her 96th birthday, Nana rented a beautiful waterfront house in Rock Hall (how convenient!) for the whole family. Between our house and the rented house we were able to have the whole group together. Some people were there for a whole week, and others just the weekend. We didn’t want to take the kids out of school (they’re far enough behind as it is), so we were part of the weekend crew.
It was a beautiful fall weekend and we spent a lot of it outside.
Lauren and Ari got a lot of time to play and love each other. The time together is never long enough for those two.
The great-grandkids also got in some good Gigi time.
We had a big Italian birthday dinner on Saturday night and I made an apple bourbon cake for dinner. It was a very happy and festive celebration!
We also got in some sailing. Dave captained two crews. On Saturday there was wind and they were able to do some sailing. Doug, Vicki, Carly, Chris, Julia, Maithili, Dad and Sophie went on that trip. And on Sunday there was little wind, but it was still beautiful, so Mom, Becky, Dan, Maithili, me and all the kids went. It was Ari’s first time on a boat and at first she was nervous, but eventually got comfortable, and event went up to the bow to sit with Sophie for a bit. We toured around the harbor and enjoyed some wine and snacks. It was lovely.
On Saturday right before the birthday dinner there was a beautiful rainbow that spanned the entire back of the house. Very fitting.
Happy 96th Birthday, Nana!!
The first weekend in October was the annual fall triathlon in Rock Hall. The event was cancelled last year, so this was the first year back since 2019. Sadly I’m still on the long road to recovery so was cheering on the sidelines this time, which was also a lot of fun.
The Morris’ came down for the weekend and Don did the race with Dave.
The start was a little different this year, with everyone lining up and jumping in one at a time. This was the first year that Dave wore a wetsuit and it was pretty terrible for him. The suit was too tight and he had trouble breathing. He didn’t swim nearly as fast as he has in past years, but fortunately made it up on the bike ride.
He ended up doing pretty well, coming in 4th in his age group. And Don did really well, placing third in the Clydesdales category.
Petunia also felt she deserved recognition, although we all know she can’t swim, and really is pretty terrible on a bike too.
It was a quick weekend, but we did manage to get in some good Rock Hall time with a walk to the beach for sunset and a sail on Sunday after the race. October is beautiful down there, and the weekend did not disappoint.
We spent a good portion of the summer in Rock Hall and while we were down there we registered the girls for sailing camp. The first week both girls were in the beginner group where they learned on Optis. After the first week Sophie was “promoted” to the intermediate group and did another 2 weeks of camp. Lauren decided she wasn’t that into it and did “grandparent” camp instead.
The intermediate camp was a little more challenging for Sophie, but by the end of it she was really happy and confident. Which is great because she’s definitely the #2 sailor on our boat vacations. (I’m definitely the #4).
Here are a few shots of Soph in her Opti.
At the end of each session the girls got an award. Lauren was “Silent but Deadly” – appropriate in more ways than one. The first session Sophie was the top “Knot Tie-er,” and the second session she was “Fiesty & Fearless.”
This 4th we spent the holiday in our NEW house in Rock Hall! Over Memorial Day weekend we closed on a house of our own on Bayside Avenue, just a few blocks from The Sharps. Dave spent the first few weekends doing some work on it. The room that’s now Sophie’s needed a lot of work, so Dave spent two full weekends fixing it up, and it turned out really nice. He’ll slowly work his way through the rest of the house pulling up carpets, painting, and generally updating.
My family came up from Virginia and stayed until Monday, so it was a good long weekend.
The first night we walked across the street to the Harbor Shack (yes, we’re across the street from our favorite restaurant!), and while we were waiting for our table got some good family pics.
We spent a lot of time at the beach. The weather was really nice all weekend. The first day we had most of the beach to ourselves, but once the weekend got going it was packed. This is definitely the town if you’re looking for a small town 4th!
Rock Hall celebrates the 4th on the 3rd of July, with a parade in the morning and fireworks that evening. The parade goes down Main Street and is mostly fire trucks, local businesses, and people with cool cars driving down the street throwing candy. Very small and very Americana.
That afternoon the Sharp’s hosted a BBQ at their house. In addition to my family, Zoe and her daughter Maddie, Ed, Dot, Crystal, John and Bella were there too.
After dinner, everyone walked down the street to our house where we set out chairs at the end of the driveway and watched the fireworks, which they shot off right across the street in the harbor.
There was one unfortunate mishap during the weekend. At the BBQ Becky brought her dog Penny and Zoe brought her dog Mo and we had Petunia. They were happy dogs, running around like happy dogs do. I made the unfortunate and mistimed decision to get a picture of Sophie and Maddie on the swing set at the exact moment that Petunia was shooting across the yard. She nailed me with her head right in the knee and I went down. Hard. I’m writing this several days later, after x-rays and a CT scan have confirmed that I have a tibial plateau fracture that will require surgery to fix. Just a moment later, or an inch to one side and it would be a different outcome. But it’s done and there’s nothing I can do now (except curse the damn dog!).
Before hobbling back to a chair I did manage to snap the picture I wanted to get. May it live in infamy!
Before my family left on Monday we had a little July birthday celebration for Mom, Becky and me. It was such a great weekend (with one low point), and I hope we can make it a tradition!
On May 15, we participated in our first regatta since 2019 with the Union League Yacht Club. Bonus: it was in Rock Hall! The Sharps have been working hard on the boat over the last year and it’s beautiful! As usual, the ULYC regatta was a low-key, family friendly affair with 5 boats. It was a beautiful day – although not a lot of wind – so the race was a slooooow one. Regardless, it was great to be out on the water.
After the race we got dressed up and headed to the after party, which was held outside at a beach club on the Chesapeake. It was the first time in well over a year we had the opportunity to get dressed up!
It was such a great weekend – mostly because it just felt “normal.” Because most adults are vaccinated, no one wore masks at the party, and it was the first time we’ve been in a group that large without masks. This whole pandemic has put a different lens on what used to be every day things – like meeting new people, making small talk, catching up with acquaintances. It’s been 14 months since I’ve just “caught up” with someone I haven’t seen in a while. Nearly all interactions have been through Zoom, which is the opposite of informal, and I didn’t realize how much I’ve missed small talk. We’re still at baby steps to “normal,” whatever that is anymore. But it was a great weekend of baby steps!