This post contains commissionable links.
We got in on Saturday around 1:00 (we left home around 7:00am and luckily beat most of the traffic!) We couldn't get into our rental house yet so Kenny and I swung through Brew Thru just for fun - I hadn't been in years, I've only been one time in high school when my friend and I wanted glass bottle Cokes to try Coke and peanuts (it's gross - don't bother 😂). I got pineapple mango seltzer that was made in Virginia Beach and it was good even though I'm not a huge seltzer fan!
We changed into beach clothes and headed straight to the water!
.jpg)
.jpg) |
| PFG shirt | Sweatshorts (also love these) | Swimsuit |
I was SERIOUSLY living my best life by that point. 😍 The Outer Banks is truly my favorite place in the world.
When we got back to the house, my family had arrived! We didn't hesitate to break in the new pool. 😎
One of my mom's favorite things in the whole world is steamed blue crab with vinegar. She hadn't had any in forever, so she called in an order to Whalebone Seafood and we went to pick them up. I had never been in there before but it was immaculately clean, they had a good selection of seafood and accompaniments, and the staff were super nice!
They had cornhole in storage at our house so my brother and I played for while while my mom picked crab.
The sunset was beautiful. 😍 I always love the view of the neighbors' pool during sunset. 😂 Our house is in a great location where you can't really see the roads behind it, so you feel a lot more secluded.
 |
| Similar set: shirt, shorts | Similar sandals
|
Once we had hung out for a while and made a trip to the grocery store for some essentials, we got changed to head down the road to Fish Heads - the restaurant on the Outer Banks Fishing Pier. We went last year for the first time and fell in love! It's always packed there, so it's really nice that it's only a short walk form where we normally stay.
I was already missing Roxy at this point - the bar at Fish Heads is called the Roxy Bar!
They have a zillion coozies nailed up above the bar inside Fish Heads, and I saw more than a few James Madison University and Virginia Tech ones, my family's Alma Maters!
Kenny and I had been vegetarian for about six years, but we ended our streak on our beach trip last year to enjoy some shrimp. We now eat seafood occasionally, and we definitely took the opportunity to try lots of different things at the beach! I ordered the tuna bites at the pier and the were one of my favorite things I had all week! They were deliciously seasoned and came with sweet chili sauce.
I didn't get any good photos, but our first night there was the night of the "strawberry moon," so we watched the moon rise over the water from the pier and it was SO cool, the best way to end the night!
SUNDAY
Sunday morning my brother got up bright and early to fish. When we had arrived at our house the day before, there was yellow insulation scattered over the driveway under the house. We assumed that birds had done it, but when my brother got out that morning he was face to face with the real culprit. 😂
When my brother was fishing that morning, he somehow caught a big blue crab! He brought it back to the house to show my parents, and they drove it over the sound to release it. 😂 My parents are definitely nature nerds and my mom identified the crab as a female that had eggs, so she was very invested in making sure it stayed safe!
 |
| PFG shirt | Sweatshorts (also love these) | Swimsuit | Beach bag |
After the beach, we made our way back over to Fish Heads for happy hour - they have 20 shrimp for $4! I had 20 shrimp, and Kenny and Stuart had about 200 between the two of them. 😂
That evening we kept it low key - Kenny and I went on a crazy outing to 7/11 after everyone had gone to bed because we weren't quite ready to sleep yet. It was packed in there, probably because pretty much everything else is closed by 9:00 or 10:00 in the Outer Banks!
 |
| Stripe shirt (similar) | Similar linen pants | Flag sweater (similar) | Cowboy hat | Similar sandals | Similar bag |
MONDAY
The forecast Tuesday was mostly clouds and rain, so we didn't attempt to make it to the beach in the morning. Instead, we got ready and walked down to the pier to visit their shop (my mom wanted a tank top from there but ended up getting this one at TW's Bait & Tackle later that day).
We rode around for a while and got some groceries and tuna steaks from Whalebone to make for dinner, then headed back home to hang out while it rained. We saw some crazy lightning! I read The Blue Bistro on our trip and absolutely loved it.
The grilled tuna was amazing! We had it with cilantro rice and garlic green beans.
 |
| Similar dress | Similar bag |
After dinner the rain had cleared, so we headed to the beach to watch the sunset! We played Rummy and Farkel back at the house until bedtime.
TUESDAY
On Tuesday I woke up early with my dad and my brother so they could fish and I could watch the sunrise. I stayed out for about an hour and then went back to sleep til about 9:00. 😂
 |
| PFG shirt | Sweatshorts (also love these) | Swimsuit |
We had a fabulous beach Tuesday after a rainy Monday!
Kenny brought bocce ball into our lives a couple of years ago and it has become a staple beach activity! My dad and I always play against Kenny and Stuart and we have never once won a round. 😂 But we're better sports, so it's probably better that way.
That evening, my brother's girlfriend Carmen joined us which was so exciting! My dad and Kenny and I ran to Austin's (our favorite seafood shop) to get some shrimp for my mom's famous shrimp boil. I cannot believe I didn't get any photos, we were just having too much fun!
After dinner we hung out outside for the sunset. We were a little chilly - my dad in my brother's Busch Light hoodie is cracking me up! Once it got dark we went back inside and played Jenga, and then Kenny and Carmen and I went to the pool for a little night swim (for them - I stayed on land 😂).
WEDNESDAY
I had plenty of sea breezes on our trip - it's my favorite summer cocktail! I posted my favorite recipe here. Also, I found these sunglassess buried in the sand and rescued them. 😂 They matched my drink!
THURSDAY
Thursday started out as kind of a bummer, but turned into a really fun day! My parents and Kenny and I got up bright and early because we had reserved slots in a kayaking trip hosted by the park service down near Cape Hatteras. The weather forecast was a little iffy but looked promising when we got down there, but unfortunately the wind was too high so they canceled the trip. I was especially bummed for Kenny because he had really been looking forward to doing some kayaking!
Since we already down that way, we headed to the Cape Hatteras lighthouse, which was unfortunately covered in scaffolding. 😂 But beautiful nonetheless! They also have a little museum that talks about the history of the lighthouse. They actually moved it almost 3.000 feet back from the water in 1999 because of the risk of shoreline erosion, which was the coolest thing to read about to me!
On our way back to the house, we stopped by Island Convenience and got some breakfast! Kenny and I got biscuits and hashbrowns, and my mom got a chicken biscuit.
 |
| PFG shirt | Sweatshorts (also love these) | Sandals |
We made one last stop at Oregon Inlet which is one of our favorite places to visit. They have a brand new shop and restaurant that we were interested to check out - it's cool but I miss the old shop. 😂
Once we got back to the house, a storm started rolling in, but we walked down to the pier anyway just for something to do. A kind stranger snapped some good pics of everyone together!
We *attempted* to go down to the beach, but it started storming shortly after we got there so we had to leave. Worth a try!
The lifeguards at the Outer Banks fascinate me - I want to know everything about them! Where are they from? Where do they live? What's training like? How many of them are there? Do they get bored up there?
For dinner that night I made my favorite vodka pasta recipe, and my dad also grilled a piece of swordfish we got at Austin's because Kenny and I had never tried it and my dad said it was good - and it was!
After dinner, the storm had cleared up so we headed back down to the beach to catch the sunset. It turned out to be an absolutely gorgeous evening!
My mom had the best time sitting on the lifeguard stand - it was SO cute! There's just something about sitting surrounded by the sand and the sunset and soaking in the summertime (how's THAT for some alliteration? 😂)
ASPIRING LOCALS!
It was just an old school high school photo shoot kind of night. 😂
Carmen is such a free spirit and I freaking love it. She wanted to jump in the water in her clothes so that's exactly what she did!
My brother takes every possible opportunity he can to fish, and he caught (and released) this little guy that evening. 😂
Friday was our last full day at the beach - so sad! BUT, I'm grateful that we had beautiful weather so we got a full beach day in.
I needed another hat less than I've ever needed anything, but I couldn't resist this bright one from TW's!
My dad caught a fish!
My mom and I have SUCH a hard time leaving the beach - we hate it!!
Luckily we kept the party going at the pool! Having a pool at our house this year was a game-changer, it allowed us to all spend even more time together!
 |
| PFG shirt | Cowboy hat |
 |
| Dress | Belt | Cowboy hat |
Pre-dinner wine in these beautiful glasses Carmen brought!
.jpg)
We had to spend our final evening back at Fish Heads we always feel like locals there since we stay so close!
Of course we had to get one last beach photo shoot!
For dinner I ordered the tuna bites again - they are SO good and so are the fries! I also ordered the sangria for something fun. We had the best last night at the beach, we were having so much fun that I *almost* wasn't sad to go home!
On our final morning, we've made at tradition of getting up early to watch the sunrise on the beach. It's also good to get going, it takes me pretty much the entire time leading up to checkout to get all my stuff packed back up. 😂
Stuart and Carmen! 💗
After one last look at the beach, we reluctantly walked back to pack up and head home - so sad!!
In an attempt to extent our trip and also try to outsmart the traffic, Kenny and I headed down toward Manteo rather than going back up through Kitty Hawk. We planned on walking around a bit and trying to find our favorite town cat, Shamus, who you may remember from my previous Outer Banks posts! They had a cute farmers market going on, I loved these funky painted fish at one of the stands.
After one last pet, we officially made our way home. Our attempt to avoid traffic ended up going really well - we went through Roanoke Island and up through North Carolina rather than the "usual" way out through Coinjock. Even with our detour in Manteo we still made it home around the same time as my family did becuase they hit a bunch of traffic!
We had the best time on our trip and I miss it so much! Luckily we already have our trip for next year planned, so let the countdown begin!
xoxx, Laura
No comments