Catch A Wave

As much as I tell Kel that we'd be better off moving out of state, I don't think I'd enjoy living so far away from the beach. A lot of my favorite childhood memories take place on the hot sand with the salty breeze blowing in my hair and the ocean a hop, skip and a jump away from my soft beach towel.

From swimming with Big Wave Dave to doing flips in the Pacific Ocean next to my dad.

From building sand castles complete with a moat to laying out on a soft towel with a good book.

 

  

From taking long walks along the shore searching for the perfect shells to chasing the pesky sea gulls away from our lunch.

The beach was the perfect place to be with family, and a place where I want my boys to make their own memories and build on my own.

  

Saturday, Kel and I started out the holiday weekend with a trip to the beach. We were supposed to meet up with friends, but it didn't pan out. So we spent a great four hours just enjoying each other and the outdoors.

From the beginning, C was making new friends. Two little boys behind us with the cool tent and sand toys, the little girl down the way putting sand into her mother's hand with the concentration of an artist creating a masterpiece, the boy to our left who shares the same exact birthday as D and also has a little brother, the woman on her cell phone two rows over who caved in and offered C his very own cup of Cheeto Puffs (which was promptly filled with sand and thrown at the sea gulls), and the older women from Europe who substitute C for her own grandson whom she was missing. It was hard to keep C near our own twelve by twelve stretch in the sand and content with the lunch that we made at home.

D's consensus was 50/50. He did not like it when Kel went out too far, but loved being chased by the waves with Daddy. Was over the minuscule particles of sand that snuck their way into his mouth, but enjoyed having it flow through his fingers and onto his legs.  Did not enjoy making new friends on his own, but when C brought them over to our spot he could not help but talk about his beloved McQueen and how awesome it was that he found someone with the same birthday.

While I spent the majority of the time chasing C, Kel braved the frigid waters to swim with the dolphins. Okay, so he didn't actually get to touch the porpoises, but they were really close to shore for the majority of the time we were there. Two paddle surfers (is that what they are called) paddled right into the middle of the pod, while the local lifeguard boat provided the entertainment for the dolphins. It was really exciting, especially to the fifteen kids surrounding us, to watch as they swam up and down the cost.
 

 We had a great four hour trip that I'm hoping will be repeated often this summer. And while the boys weren't too crazy about the water in the beginning, once their dad scooped them up in his arms and showed them how fun it could be, they were jumping up and down, excited for their next turn.

The plus side to four hours spent in the hot sun, running in sand? A quiet ride home with a passed out C and a drowsy D.