Name that beach drink......!

So, there it is. My suitcase. The one that's going with me to the beach. We're leaving in 2 days.....yes, that's right.....2 days. I'm not packed. Not only am I not packed...WE are not packed. Trust me, this suitcase is only a very small part of what we pack for our annual 2 week odyssey to the beach with 24 or so of our family and friends.

Here's the thing....the days leading up to going on vacation are stressful, overwhelming and take me *THIS* close to a complete meltdown. Although this feeling happens every single year, why is that the year you are in seems the worse? So, yeah...the car needs inspected, my daughter has her senior pictures, I'm up to my eyeballs in work at the office, we are running out of deodorant, I can't forget to pick up a few gifts for parties we are going to miss while we are gone, do we have beach towels?, how many pair of shoes is too many?, dear God don't let me forget my cellphone charger or my walking shoes and holy shit....what about the laundry? The list goes on and on and on.

And then there's the food. Our group is a bunch of foodies. Good foodies. But, foodies nontheless. So, meal planning is taken to a whole new level....even before we set foot in our cars to drive down to the beach. Right now, I have several storage bags stuffed into my basement freezer filled with my home made gourmet sauces, appetizers, margaritas and mojitos. And, I have a box in my dining room filled with special spices, condiments and dressings. Then, there's the lists....foods I don't want to forget to pick up as soon as we get there. No wonder past vacations yielded upwards of 12 lbs!

But, I'm not THERE yet. No, I have more than just vacation to occupy my time and my mind right now. Like I said....the car needs inspected, Toni has her multi-wardrobe senior picture session, I have to wrap up several rather large items at work and then there's the other stuff....the day-to-day things that just need to get done! Add that all to stopping the mail, stopping the newspaper, paying the bills and finding my timer for the lights and I'm pretty sure shaving my legs will not happen in Pennsylvania (it will have to wait until I get to NC). Don't even mention a pedicure....unless someone can direct me to an all night nail salon.

Trust me, I'm not complaining. I'm whining. NOT complaining. There's a difference....I think. I know that I'm lucky. I have a fun and lovely 2 week beach vacation within my reach. I'll be spending time with some of my favorite people. Uninterrupted time with my children and my sisters. Carmen will not be on autopilot and have that dazed look on his face 24-7 (well, after a few days at least). And, hey...I'll be close to 80 lbs lighter than last year. I'd imagine getting in and out of my beach chair won't be quite the fete as it was! So...I'll have it all. But, not right now. Not yet.
In the meantime, a girl can dream.....can't she? Of the beach, my sand chair and my beach drink of the day.
Speaking of beach drinks.....that's *ONE* thing I won't have time to research this year. As much as we are foodies, we are also vacation libation lovers. Each year we try to come armed with a few new ones. There's no room on my list to do add that! When in the hell will I find the time to find yummy new beach drinks? Can you help me out? I'll give out 5 points for every beach drink recipe shared here through August 1.
Oh....and 5 more points if you have a fun story to share about that drink......!
Cheers!