The BEACH 2019

We came, we played and we got out right before a thunderstorm... 

Here we go

A was pretty skeptical of the waves for a while and couldn't decide if he liked them or not

Obligatory nail painting and a prize for M for getting hung off the roof deck - painting Uncle Kev's toes

We had to go out for ice cream 

Ice cream, hot day

She got pink... of course

Number one off the beach bucket list

Thank goodness for these cone holders

We ventured to the pier

We went to the king fishers part of the pier and it was kind of creepy

Future fisherman

The sand consumer, castle destroyer and toy taker

A beached mermaid!

Tide pool fun

The roof deck... aka the attic according to A

The trek to the beach... moms of little boys looking for rash guards to serve as the bathing suit or to use under (A sometimes wanted a suit to over over the jammers) look no further than the Nike jammers - you can get them in size 20 and fit A well and he is 3.5. 

The puzzle. That was a big deal this year for a ton of reasons. I found the one I wanted then realized it had to come from Amazon England! and would be here a day after we left for the beach - so I ordered a similar one but actually Ravensburger is the way to go in the puzzle world. Then they both showed up so we went Ravensburger. Anyways, I tracked and traced daily. Then I told Uncle Kev about the puzzle and he said last year our puzzle was 1000 pieces and so I went back and check the ye ole blog to prove myself wrong because I thought it was a 2000 piece puzzle! So we were up a creek from the start but this year's puzzle was way more colorful than last year's. To add to the dramatics, the puzzle wouldn't fit on the card table by any stretch of one's imagination so quick thinking Kevin unhinged a utility door and it fit but barely on that. And we were off. (Soon to be Aunt) Nicole and I and Gramp Joe had some last puzzle nights. E actually helped this year which was fun. We all swore Uncle Kev was holding the last piece hostage and we stayed 5 minutes over our planned departure time (and left Grammy to clean up the dinner dishes - sorry Mom!) to FINISH THE PUZZLE! It was a crazy fun team effort. But next year, no 2000 piece puzzles...

The best life

Crabby Pic 2019

Speaking of crabs... of course the only kid brave enough to hold the dead crab is the kid who brought a dead cockroach for show and tell

If E could have done this the entire beach trip I'm quite sure she would have been pleased. She was a water bug and stayed out in the water as much as she was allowed. I was out past 2 wave breaks to get this pic but I'm so glad I did. 

The final dig. We headed up from the beach for lunch, showers and to pack up right before a big, loud thunderstorm rolled through. 

The ride back was pretty uneventful except for my free rider who required that I pull over on 40 and let him out because he was hopping all over the place

Home and not without free rider number 2 hopping up as we are getting off 95 but I couldn't bear to stop when we were THAT close. 

The puzzle and all it's completed glory... how much do you think it will cost to frame???!???!

The Beach 2018

And this is how the beach trip of 2018 shook out... 

Hello everyone and welcome to me, I am the feature attraction here... 

There was lots of sand playing and consumption by C

R found a starfish (first time we had seen a starfish at the beach) in a tide pool though I am convinced it was dead

Where's the baby?

A loved the hose

Pay back

C not sure what to think

There was lots of boogie boarding made possible by adults braver than I 

A ran a ways down the beach chasing seagulls to the point where some people kept wondering where his mother was

Grammy got this great new sand set with a crab and a fish and A was obsessed except he lost the fish 

Riding the waves

There was lots of lathering up with sunscreen

Mermaid numero uno

Numero dos

Yay beach!

Where's the baby?

Nicole supervised nail painting which is a huge deal in our house because I only let them paint their nails at the beach - I don't really know why anymore but I'm good with that 

Grandpa Joe jumping in the waves

Mermaid numero tres

Fun times

Wipe out

More fun times

Not nervous about a collision at all...

A stayed very very very busy between the sand and the water he was in busyness heaven and I also love his little jammers which apparently is really good for boys to wear at the beach to prevent chaffing. #tipsformomboys

We went out for ice cream one night 

And A didn't come because he was a total wreck at dinner

Which was a bummer that not everyone went 

But the beach days are exhausting for everyone so I'm not super surprised

Where's the baby?

E had a good walk with my dad down to Bird Island one day which was neat. I'm glad she made it

There was lots of fun times netting fish in the tide pools 

I helped the girls make a big sand castle and I wanted to get a pic of them with it but A bombed it

While we were there... we did a 1000 piece puzzle (I saw one similar to this when I was in China and I finally found a good time to do it with its of help). It was really cool and I think everyone was really surprised it actually got done. I'm not surprised that the glue it came with DID NOT WORK. But next year I'm bringing a bigger puzzle and some better glue. 

A figured out how to climb out of the pack and play and loaded himself up with everyone's pillows 

I'm a Little Crabby 2018

It was also the 4th of July on our last day down there

2 along for the ride...

A had a ball on this scooter. The girls and I biked a bit and I wish we would have biked more but it is hard because E is a faster biker and M is not

Hello!

One gorgeous night

Grammy's 4th of July masterpiece... 

Waiting for the fireworks 

See that little red ball on the horizon... that was our fireworks... which was disappointing because I love fireworks and lobbied hard to leave Wednesday afternoon so we could go to fireworks back here because.... This is what they look like. 

But I lost out and we played with glow sticks 

And sparklers - that was a bust - and A touched the tip of one and got burned 

But they liked it so whatever... 

Other thoughts on the beach... 

Wow it takes a village. Lee was back home working so it was me and Grammy and Grandpa Joe and Uncle Kevin and Nicole keeping it real for the kids. Which overall went quite well but I'd be lying if I didn't say there were some nerve wracking times too - A at dinner time. But all the kids talk about from about October on is... when are we going to the beach? So it is not about vacationing, it is about making memories and with lots of sacrifice, we did just that. C was a terrible, terrible sleeper and I'm convinced she gets up a few times a night and we just don't hear her because she screams out and then goes back to sleep. We loaded up the van (which was notably weighed down) and drove home and then went (almost) straight to a swim meet. Someone recently ask me 'if I was settled back in' and my response was something like, we are constantly in flux, always moving - and I really wouldn't want it any other way.