We started off the year with a trip to one of my favorite places: Topsail Island. I’ve been going since I was a kid, and now I’m having so much fun taking the girls. Even though it’s not swimming weather, the beach in January is pretty awesome and we always manage to find things to entertain ourselves.
We drove down to the beach caravan style with my parents, which was wonderful for the kids because they finally had grownups in the car who would overrule me with reckless abandon. I swear these are not the same parents I road tripped with as a child. Those people were straight crazy.
The weather was mostly pleasant, we only had a couple days that were too cold and windy to spend much time at the beach. We did end up spending a whole afternoon at the Wilmington Children’s Museum one colder day. That place is an awesome way to spend a few hours, and it’s only about 45 minutes from the beach. My sisters and I ducked out of the museum for an hour to grab a delicious cup of coffee around the corner and browse the Wilmington Market, while my parents hung out with the girls.
Mostly we spent the bulk of our time sitting in the sunshine, even if it was a bit chilly. The girls don’t mind one bit, and I come prepared with a blanket and a sophisticated layering system:
Just go ahead and pin this to your style boards.
The beach here is almost completely empty in January, and I love it. The kids can run around and act like the feral animals they truly are, and I don’t have to pretend to care that they are throwing sand on innocent beachcombers.
The week was such a good opportunity to catch up my sisters and parents. My kids were loving all the one on one attention from their indulgent aunts and grandparents.
Adores her Aunt Kirsten!
January = no competition for the perfect shells
The coolest thing ever happened this week! We had one day that was so incredibly foggy on the beach, I’ve never seen anything like it!
Usually you can see all the houses and ocean!
You can barely see the ocean through all that fog!
So later that day I was walking on the beach just before sunset, and all of the sudden the sun started streaming through the fog and it felt like I was in an eerie movie scene.
Not Photoshopped!
While we were at the beach we had to hit up some of our absolute favorite spots:
Park right next to our condo
Olivia’s favorite park, the “fish” park
Lunch at Batson’s for the awesome hush puppies
Other Favorites on Topsail Island!
Hunga Bunga Java – such a cool vibe in this place!
Topsail Dolphin Cruise – I did not see any dolphins when we went, but I did see a freaking sea turtle in the wild, so I’m not complaining one bit!
Last year we made it down to the beach three times, and the year before that we spent about two weeks total on the island. In October we were lucky enough to be there for Autumn in Topsail, which is a super awesome event that has both bounce houses and food trucks and doesn’t cost a fortune. WIN.
Bounce Houses FTW
If you are looking for a great place to stay on Topsail Island, check out The Drift Inn! It’s a beautiful condo complex with a pool, private beach access, and right across the street from a park and boardwalk by the sound! I may or may not know the owner 😉 But I get zero dollars from sharing this info with you!
This trip was ended spectacularly with my epic drive home. I do not want to repeat that ever again!
I LOVE Topsail Island. It’s going to be a lot harder to go as often when Olivia starts kindergarten in the fall (how is that even possible!?!) but I will try to get back there again before the year is over!
My family has vacationed at Topsail (almost) every summer since I was 15! LOVE IT!
Yes it’s awesome!
So happy to find your post! We are head to North Topsail Beach at the end of May for our first ocean beach trip. What are some recommendations for must have items to pack on a beach vacation. I’m hoping to borrow beach chairs from a friend, sand toys of course, but what else?
And I just realized you’re a fellow Buckeye! 🙂
Yay go Bucks! If you can get your hands on a pop up tent/canopy or sun shelter that would be a great item to bring with you! A lot of people set them up and leave them all day, basically making “camp” on the beach. I also love taking an inner tube or raft to float in the ocean. Hope you have a great time!!