Happiness During Coastal Quarantine

One family found togetherness and joy during the pandemic in a vacation rental at Cinnamon Shore.

When the Wilson family booked Spring Break at Cinnamon Shore, as usual, they had no idea how well they would get to know their favorite beach community on the Texas Coast.

During their Spring Holiday stay, things starting shutting down due to COVID-19. "Things went haywire," says Jack Wilson. The criminal defense attorney realized that with the courts closed, he could likely do his work from the coast. There was talk of the girls' school doing distance learning. Soon it was agreed: The family would look at a long-term rental situation that would allow them to spend their quarantine season at Cinnamon Shore. "We just kept extending," Wilson says. The family spent two incredible months at the community before heading back to Dallas in late May.

Needed Change

In the past, they had made the long drive from Dallas to Water Color on the Florida Panhandle year after year. "That drive beat me down," says Jack, about the long road trips he and his wife Kim would take with their three daugthers. "Once we did Cinnamon Shore, we've never been to Florida again. I'd rather invest in Texas."

The perfect vacation home for the quarantine

They chose to rent at Sea Lyin, a great house with a bunk room for the girls and a spacious master suite on the same floor. "The master was huge, with a balcony that faced East for morning sun, and in the afternoon, you’d see the sunset and dune landscapte and view toward the Gulf ," Wilson says.

Conveniently, they had already brought along a teacher from the school as a guest over Spring Break, so she was already there to help the girls, Eva, 11, Carolina, 10, and Daisy , 8, with distance learning. There were perfect arrangements for all three girls to do their lessons in their own spaces. They'd work on rigorous , ong-distance curriculum from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.--and then hit the beach!

The family hung out in the spacious main living area, chatted over the large island in the kitchen, relaxed on the deck and gathered around a fire pit. "It was great," Wilson says.

Friends joined the retreat to the Texas Coast

Wilson shared the news about the haven his family had found with friends--a cousin who lives in Telluride but has business ties in Houston and a longtime friend from high school living in Fort Worth. "We're here indefinately," he told them. "Come on down!"

Soon, both friends had booked their own long-term rental homes at Cinnamon Shore and brought their families there to enjoy a socially distant quarantine on the shore. Chris Hamm and his wife, Bunny, drove down from Colorado, arriving with a Jeep and two dirt bikes in tow. Their college son, Sawyer, and daughter, Bella, and her boyfriend joined them. Then Ryan and Amy Trott drove down from Fort Worth with children, Braden, a high school senior, and Marissa, a high school sophomore, and they brought a bay boat, too "We fished, we played at the beach, we were at Cinnamon Shore," Wilson says. "And we got to spend the past two months together, and that was the most special thing about it."

Bunny Hamm and with her daughter Bella and Bella's boyfriend and the Ryan and Amy Trott's son Braden found themselves enjoying time at Cinamon Shore during the quarantine.

A community in quarantine

There were about 10 or 12 families that stayed at Cinnamon Shore during the quarantine, and they appreciated the work of Food and Beverage Manager Matthew Lawson, who kept dinner deliveries coming nightly. All the families would meet at the Cinnamon Shore fire pit every night, practice social distancing as they visited with one another and pick up the meals Lawson prepared for them. "Matt kept the food show rolling, and that was huge," Wilson says, noting that it felt eery to go to the local IGA and many food items were sold out. "Every night we'd meet at the fire pit, and we got to know each other."

Wilson did fly back to Dallas a couple of times, and he drove back a time or two for business. His mother had joined them for Spring Break, but was eager to return home after enjoying her time at the beach. On one trip he also brought down the family's new Pomeranian puppy that had been left behind at obedience school over Spring Break week. The pup joined the fun with the Wilsons, Trotts and Hamms. The next generation of cousins and old friends got to know one another. And they'll remember the time of quarantine 2020 a little differently than many.

The Wilson spent a wonderful Easter Weekend here and stayed through Mother's Day weekend, too.

The Wilson sisters on Easter at Cinnamon Shore

Now the Wilsons have returned to North Texas, and life is slowly returning to normal. Wilson knows how hard this season has been for many across Texas, America and the world. But he's grateful he was able to work from afar and allow his family to spend a stressful and strange season in such a peaceful place. "For us, it was incredibly special," he says.

Spend your family time at Cinnamon Shore

Find the perfect vacation rental or consider your own coastal real estate investment by reaching out to Cinnamon Shore Realty. Cinnamon Shore is easy to drive to and offers upscale accommidation, from condos and townhomes to incredible beach homes perfect for large families and for sharing with friends.