Convention at the beach

I keep my dental hygiene license active in AZ.  It is just comforting to me to know that it's there. In order to keep it current, I have to take continuing education courses.  AZ requires 54 credits every three years.  18 credits a year, if you do some each year.  But...when you're not working, it's so easy to let time slip by. And all of a sudden it's time to renew. And I don't have enough credits. And I have to fork out big bucks for whatever classes are presented right this minute. And end up paying a $100 late fee.  All for a license I don't even use!

I was convinced that I was NOT going to slack this time.  And the easiest way to rack up the CE credits is to attend conventions.  In NC, our convention happens to be every May...at Myrtle Beach.  Lucky us!

Last time we attended this convention was in 2009. Caroline was almost ONE, Whitney was five, and Brandon was close to turning eight.  None of them were great swimmers.  Andrew had quite an adventure with them while I was in classes.  He blogged about it here.  I was happy that I was the one sitting in a classroom and that HE was in charge of those kiddios.

We had quite the opposite experience this year.  The kids are so much more independent. Brandon and Whit are both good in the water and Caroline seems to know her limits pretty well.  Plus, we've found a better hotel to stay at that we love. So this year, I was stuck in classes all day while longing to be with my fun family out at the beach!

I did get one afternoon off...so I should be happy for that instead of feeling completely robbed of sun and sand.  It felt so wrong to come home from three days at the beach and have my skin whiter than it was when we got there!

Caroline forgot to pack her swimsuits.

Don't think I can blame HER for that one.

Mom should have OBVIOUSLY double-checked

the four-year-old's packing job.  

Luckily, Whit was happy to share one of her suits with her lil' sis.

It makes my heart happy that these two have finally become friends.

Fingers crossed that it lasts.

 Look at all those mussels!

 Ready to hit the waves.

Yee haw!

Brandon and Whit spent quite a bit of time in the water.

Caroline was mostly content to play in the sand.

She likes to dance to the rhythm of the waves.

Or let the surf tickle her toes.

Eventually she worked up the courage and told 

her daddy that she wanted to try boogie boarding.

Go girl!

She got water up her nose on her second wave.

That was the end of it.

One evening after my classes, I talked everyone into

letting me do a little family photo shoot down on the beach.

I LOVE beach photos!

And all of that soft sand just SCREAMS for action shots!

This one cracks me up.

 Love this one.

I think this is my favorite.

I was losing light, but I love

the blurry effect it created.

Poor Andrew's back is bothering him again.

Nooooooooo!

Between that and his still-recovering ACL,

not a lot of action shots of him.

This is about as action-packed as it gets:

gingerly stepping off a two-foot drop-off.

Oh, and we also had a great time

 in the hotel water parks.

Brandon particularly enjoyed stuffing Whit

in the basketball pool.

I ended up getting 18 hours of continuing ed, which is awesome.  Done for the year!  I learned all about dental implants, periodontal surgery, OSHA guidelines, and drug abuse. While it didn't necessarily make me want to go back to work, it did help me remember how much I love all things dental. If I ever do go back, I'll enjoy it. 

Next time we do the beach convention, though, I vote that we stay an extra day so I can play more!