Ahhh... the beach. As a man, I dare equate it to childbirth. It is SO wonderful, it is worth the associated pain. The pain: the time drained applying a half-gallon of sunblock to yourselves and your children (not babies, I know, settle down); making sure you have extra swimmy diapers and a hat for each child; packing up a cooler full of water and snacks; making sure you have enough toys not only to play with, but to choose from; packing books to read and crossword puzzles to make you feel dumb; loading everything and everyone up in the car, driving to the beach access, unloading your stuff -- which I can't even remember how we managed, but I remember at one point having a baby carrier on my arm (with baby installed), Isaac in my other arm because he apparently couldn't recall how to walk in sand, and our "green box o' fun" in my hands, and walking like this for about 50 yards (I don't know how far it was, but it was heavy for any distance worth measuring) while Darren dragged the remaining cargo (umbrella, chairs, beach bag, etc.) from the drop zone and Rebecca stayed with the vehicle, only to have to walk back to the car and go park it somewhere legal which is usually far enough away that you actually consider just resting there until everyone is ready to be picked up... but wait, you can't... because you are the family photographer and videographer and you have work to do. But like I said in the beginning, it's worth "the pain." And over time you forget the pain, and good Lord willing, you do it all over again... just like childbirth, right? Because the truth is... it's awesome, and I am totally grateful for a change of scenery and time with my wife and children.
Ahhh, yes... the beach. Finally. And a great beach morning it was. Slightly overcast, not too hot. Good beach weather for a baby. And baby Ella seemed to have a great first experience of the beach. She chilled in her tent for a while, woke up happy, and enjoyed her first time in the ocean.
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| Ella's first trip to the beach. Worth it, am I right? |
The water was pretty calm and Isaac spent most of his time digging around in the sand while Kristen and Kaitlin wasted no time finding sea shells and living sea creatures. I don't know about you, but until this trip I had only seen the dead and bleached sand dollars people use for interior decor -- usually found in a basket on the back of a toilet along with shell-shaped soaps that no one ever uses. Well Kristen and Kaitlin found both a living sand dollar and a living, yet battle-worn, starfish!
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| Kristen with her prized sand dollar, which was released back into the wild shortly thereafter. |
The afternoon was quiet... naps, book-reading, the twins taking care of Ella and watching a movie. We rested up, and since we were all showered after a salty and sandy morning at the beach, we decided to take a ride down to Sea Pines, specifically the "Wreck of the Salty Dog" area and had some dinner at The Salty Dog Cafe. We took in some shops and face painting... well... arm painting as it turned out... and headed home. Isaac found an "Austin" plush toy (Backyardigans character) and a really cool alligator tattoo.
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| Isaac, Austin and the alligator. |
The evening was filled with another round of thunderstorms and a game of Would You Rather...? which Rebecca got for me last Christmas. Oh my... the potential for blackmail in this game is limitless. We had the cameras rolling and the pictures below are harmless, but God forbid my break-dancing and Melanie's... umm... I'm not even sure I can say it... so I won't... but God forbid those videos ever make it to YouTube. The things people will do to win a challenge in a dumb game. But man, did we laugh and have a great time.
Today's Good Read: Acts 2
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| Ever had to hold your tongue to win a challenge? |
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| Like father, like son. |
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