Sunset Beach Birthday weekend

We were so lucky to have good weather for our beach trip this past weekend. The destination was Sunset Beach. We stayed in a cottage with a view of the sand dunes, marsh, Inter- coastal Waterway, and a peek at the ocean. Everyone goes out on their decks and balconies to watch the sun go down.

Even the seagulls were lined up on the roof of the house across the street.

It was a great time to be with family and friends. Here we are on the deck getting ready to go out for a seafood dinner on Friday night. Dave and Emily arrived at the restaurant in time to join us.

Here is the birthday boy with our daughter-in-law, Emily.

Our grandchildren were there, too, and they had so much fun playing on the beach. It was just hard for them to understand that they could not play in the surf like they do in the summer. The water was still icy cold.

The one-lane drawbridge that provides access to the barrier island of Sunset Beach will soon be a thing of the past. The new high-span bridge is rapidly nearing completion. There have been times when it was mildly annoying to wait for the bridge to open for passing boats, but I feel we will be losing some of the charm of this little island, where you just have to move at a slower pace.

We always hate to leave the beach, but it was a wonderful weekend.