greetings from melbourne beach, florida! we recently headed south to visit gub’s great-aunt joanie and to also get a little R&R. we were craving some beach time and had also been meaning to visit our friend willy’s brewery for ages, so we hit the road.

it was definitely a long drive with two little ones, as you can see in clementine’s dave pirner impression below, however it was totally worth it. the beach was great and it was nice visiting gub’s family!

– ryan & gub

we recently went on a trip to our favorite getaway holden beach, nc! we heart this small beach town and its great seafood! for the first time we went to provision company, a casual seafood restaurant that overlooks the inner coastal. we tried eating there on a previous trip, however they had a private event and it didn’t work out.

we definitely enjoyed the restaurant and will be heading back on future trips! the seafood was very tasty and the views of the inner coastal were even better. we ate our dinner during sunset, so the glowing atmosphere was very romantic. provision’s is known for their shrimp burger, although we opted for various steamed and fried seafood on our visit instead.

i would say captn pete’s has a fancier menu to choose from, but provision company may be our new go-to seafood joint on holden beach! the personality, casual atmosphere and great views sealed the deal!

– ryan

provision company

1343 cedar landing road saw
holden beach, nc 28462
910-842-7205

a big staple of our holden beach trips is eating lots of seafood, especially local shrimp! we generally have a low country boil on at least one occasion and often have seafood for other meals as well.

we were very excited to discover capt’n pete’s seafood on our recent trip! it’s on the island, so you don’t have to go far, and it has a restaurant and a dockside seafood market, both of which are outstanding. it quickly became one of our new favorite places!

our meal at capt’n pete’s seafood restaurant was very nice! gub had the best shrimp & grits she’s ever had, and my fried north carolina seafood platter (shrimp, oysters & flounder) with homemade fries was superb. here is the menu!

we also bought fresh north carolina shrimp from capt’n pete’s seafood market on numerous occasions! they had all sorts of wild caught seafood available, from flounder, snapper & grouper, to pre-made goodies like crab cakes and hush puppies for baking at home. you could order entire fish or just filets and everything was very affordable. they also had various seafood spices and accessories available and a great selection of bottled sodas, including ibc root beer and mexican coke.

we will definitely be heading back on future trips! you should do the same if ever visiting holden beach.

– ryan & gub

captain pete’s seafood

103 south shore drive
holden beach, nc 28462
910-846-9988 – restaurant
910-842-6675 – market

there was an amazing handmade sign on our way into holden beach for a pro-wrestling event at the civietown fire department. we can only imagine the awesomeness we missed out on!

pro-wrestling
civietown fire depart.
sat. july 14 7pm
tickets $8
children 10 under free

– ryan & gub

although clementine was a little fearful of the ocean and sand at holden beach, she was definitely a huge fan of eating watermelon in her kiddie pool!

go figure!

– ryan & gub

we heart a-frame homes and holden beach, nc! on our recent holden adventure, we went on an outing to find the various a-frames on the island for a future beach getaway.

in the end we found one that was really amazing at the north end of the island, although it didn’t appear to be a rental. it was super cute with great nautical decor, and it was right on the beach! the other few we found weren’t anything to write home about. they had potential, but weren’t really our style.

– ryan & gub

i used a long exposure and was able to capture some night lightning in the distant clouds while at the beach. some of the photos turned out really great!

– ryan

another picturesque boardwalk & beach town to visit in maine is old orchard beach, which is just north of kennebunkport and york beach. there’s lots of kitchy places to explore along the boardwalk and pier; from clam shacks & pier fries to awesome souvenir and gelato/ice cream shops. the old wooden pier is really awesome as well, although it was raining during our visit so i didn’t get photos.

there is also an old fashioned beach amusement park called palace playland. it’s been open since 1902 and looks reminiscent of coney island!

we’d love to stay at a bed & breakfast or a beach cottage in old orchard beach some day!

– ryan & gub

old orchard beach

old orchard beach, me 04064

we took a day trip to tybee island over the thanksgiving break. somehow gub had still never been, even after all of the years we’ve been visiting savannah. a friend described tybee to us as a “down and dirty beach town.” we love that description and it is fitting. we hope to get back there in warmer times…

– ryan & gub

in october we visited one of our most favorite getaways at holden beach, north carolina. we spent a few last warm days introducing clem to the beach. she got her feet wet and enjoyed the sunshine.

– ryan & gub