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The 10 Best Beach Towns for Families

<:section class="storyIntro">By Karen Cicero from Parents Magazine

These destinations deliver all the ingredients for a magical stay with the kids: pristine ocean water, nature activities, and a boatload of inland fun.

A trip to the beach never feels like a family-vacation compromise -- the kids want to go as much as you do. But what are the shore bets? We combed thousands of beaches looking for clean water and low rates of closings. Once we narrowed the list to 100 or so, we factored in other deal-breakers, like lifeguards and restrooms, then turned our attention to the fun, low-cost attractions, nature activities, and family vibe of the rest of the town. Whether you're looking for somewhere to visit for the day or stay for the week, these picks provide the perfect combo of land and sea. Bon voyage!

The 10 Best Beach Towns

1. Hilton Head Island, South Carolina - Click HERE to read about HHI and the rest of the Top 10 Beach Towns!

Click HERE to win a trip for 5 to Hilton Head.                                      The sweeps ends on 7/5.

Gold medalist Ryan Lochte should be glad he didn't need to take an I.Q. test to qualify for the Olympics. He made an appearance on Good Day Philly on Friday (April 19th) to promote his new reality show What Would Ryan Lochte Do? and the anchors couldn't help but laugh at his less-than-intelligent responses to their questions.

When hosts Mike Jerrick and Sheinelle Jones asked him what someone could say to him to grab his attention, Ryan drew a complete blank and had no answer. At one point he begins to describe his bathroom while talking about being folloedw by a camera crew. He also revealed, "My philosophy is that if you are a man at night, you have to be a man in the morning."

Following the interview, the anchors could not keep a straight face and Jerrick even said, "How are they going to get enough material? Seriously, how are they going to put together 13 weeks of programming." Jones continued to crack up for several minutes before acknowledging that at least he is attractive to look at...

(From The Huffington Post)

ATLANTA — Reese Witherspoon is "deeply embarrassed" about what she said to police officers after she and her husband were arrested during a traffic stop in Atlanta.

The Oscar-winning actress released a statement late Sunday apologizing for her behavior to police that began when her husband, Hollywood agent Jim Toth, was arrested early Friday for driving under the influence of alcohol.

"Do you know my name?" Witherspoon is quoted as saying in a state trooper's report. She also said: "You're about to find out who I am" and "You're about to be on national news," according to the report.

"I clearly had one drink too many and I am deeply embarrassed about the things I said," Witherspoon said. "It was definitely a scary situation and I was frightened for my husband, but that is no excuse. I was disrespectful to the officer who was just doing his job. The words I used that night definitely do not reflect who I am. I have nothing but respect for the police and I'm very sorry for my behavior."

Witherspoon said she can't comment further "out of respect" for the pending case, and her publicist, Meredith O'Sullivan Wasson, offered no other details.

The 37-year-old actress was arrested on a municipal charge of disorderly conduct early Friday after a state trooper said she wouldn't stay in the car while Toth was given a field sobriety test. She was released from jail after the Friday morning arrest and was in New York on Sunday night for the premiere of her new film, "Mud." She posed for cameras on the red carpet but did not stop to talk to reporters.

The trooper noticed the car driven by her husband wasn't staying in its lane early Friday morning, so he initiated a traffic stop. He reported that Toth had droopy eyelids, watery, bloodshot eyes, and his breath smelled strongly of alcohol.

Toth told the trooper he'd had a drink, which Witherspoon said was consumed at a restaurant two hours before the traffic stop, the trooper writes.

Before the field sobriety test began, Witherspoon got out of the car, was told to get back in and obeyed, the report said. After the "Walk the Line" star got out a second time, the trooper said he warned her that she would be arrested if she left the car again.

As the test continued, "Mrs. Witherspoon began to hang out the window and say that she did not believe that I was a real police officer. I told Mrs. Witherspoon to sit on her butt and be quiet," Trooper First Class J. Pyland writes.

Toth, 42, was then placed under arrest. He was charged with driving under the influence and failure to maintain the lane.

At that point, the report says, Witherspoon got out and asked the trooper what was going on. After being told to return to the car, she "stated that she was a `US Citizen' and that she was allowed to `stand on American ground,'" the report states.

The trooper then began to arrest Witherspoon. The report says Witherspoon was resistant at first but was calmed down by her husband.

Toth and Witherspoon were then taken to jail.

News of the arrest broke shortly before Witherspoon arrived on the "Mud" red carpet.

"I can't say anything because I don't know," said director Jeff Nichols. "I literally – the first guy on the press line to say something was the first time I heard about it so I gotta go figure it out."

Matthew McConaughey, who plays the lead role in "Mud" and is represented by Toth, said "I'm not going to comment on that because it's too fresh."

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AP writers Sandy Cohen in Los Angeles and Lauri Neff in New York contributed to this report.

Congratulations, Luke Bryan! 

The country singer, songwriter and Georgia Southern Alumni took home the highest honor of the night at last night's Academy of Country Music Awards - Entertainer of the Year.

Can't say I'm surprised.  Back  when I was 7 months pregnant in 2007, I talked my husband into going with me to Jacksonville to see my favorite country artist, Gary Allan, at the Florida Theatre.  I didn't know who was opening for Gary and I really didn't care as long as I got to see and hear Gary.  Well, Pat and I were both pleasantly surprised by this guy we didn't yet know, Luke Bryan.  He knocked it out of the ballpark singing his songs and covering some country classics.  Later on is when I found out about his ties to GSU. 

Luke has had his songs turned into hits by other artists, too.  Remember "Good Directions", sung by Rincon native Billy Currington?  Luke wrote that one.

Just a few weeks shy of it being 7 years since I first enjoyed then unknown artist Luke Bryan, he upset the oddsmakers in Vegas last night with his win at the ACM's.  Way to go, Luke!  Still one of my favorites of his, and one that Pat and I heard the night Luke opened for Gary in Jacksonville, is "All My Friends Say"...

Just a few days after their "touching" duet, NBC announces Jay Leno is retiring and Jimmy Fallon will take over "The Tonight Show".  The switch will happen next spring.  Leno has hosted the show for 22 years!  (Darn!  Just shy of getting a watch...)
The show will return to New York's 30 Rock.  Johnny Carson had moved the show, which first premiered in 1954, from Manhatton to California in 1972.

According to NBC press releases:

Leno said, "Congratulations, Jimmy. I hope you're as lucky as me and hold on to the job until you're the old guy. If you need me, I'll be at the garage." (Leno has quite the classic car collection.)

Fallon responded: "I'm really excited to host a show that starts today instead of tomorrow."