'our' nights in Rodanthe {plan b on jockey's ridge}

Hang gliding may not have been in the cards for the day, but that didn't mean we had to leave the sand...

 I don't know if it is standard for Kitty Hawk Kites to offer complimentary sandboard rentals when hang gliding lessons get cancelled or if they just felt sorry for telling six super excited kids that it wasn't going to happen, but when we turned in our harnesses and helmets and went in to rent boards, they offered us four and didn't charge us a thing.

Wolf recommend a particular ridge with a decent slope and lots of sunshine to keep the sand loose.  So armed with four sandboards we headed back out to the dunes.  And true to our 'big family' style, we had some 'big fun!'

There were races and multiple wipe outs.  

(hint, hint, kids weren't the only ones to take a tumble in the sand, but I'm nice and will keep the photo evidence to myself...)

While the sandboards were a huge hit, just the sand is enough to make some of our kiddos happy.  Give this kid a handful of sand and I'll guarantee a smile!

And those same wind gusts that tanked our dreams of flight were perfect for the stunt kite!

Just when we thought we had all perfected getting to the bottom of the hill without wipeouts, some  decided it had gotten too easy.  

So they piled up a ramp of sorts.

Because boys...

Before we knew it, several hours had passed and we had all managed to work up a pretty impressive appetite.  While the local burger joint wasn't yet open for the season, we lucked out with Kill Devil's (who literally had just opened for lunch today) and devoured burgers, 'que and hot dogs.  

Bellies too full to enjoy frozen custard from Kill Devil's just yet, we headed across the highway to the beach for a few minutes.  

It was a lovely afternoon and the sea was beckoning, but we'd already learned from experience that the Atlantic in early March is rather frigid.  That said, Daniel and I decided to have a chicken contest to see who would flinch first as the cold water approached our feet.  

I should have known better than to challenge my bull hearted son, not backing down required me to get wet up to my knees. 

We took walks, tossed the frisbee and football and played in the sand until everyone declared themselves 'custard ready.'

And then we went back to eat our feelings about not getting to hang glide.  Ice cream makes everything better...

(of course they had all done pretty well in the first place, so maybe we were getting ice cream to celebrate their flexibility to change plans on a breeze.  or maybe we were just enjoying kdc because it is so darn good)

All in all it was a near perfect day.  

And just because we could finish it with one more sunset, we did.  

What a wonderful week we've had!