Tan Lines

Four miles... on a clear day, that's how far the average person can see out across the ocean while standing on the beach. However, when we arrived at the beach it was far from a clear day. Beginning at the Alabama state line and extending through the next two days, we were accompanied by a steady and, at times, intense rainfall. We were determined that our vacational bliss would not be deterred by our condominium confinement. Therefore, we ate copious amounts of Ice Cream and proceeded to play various games, some popular ones from my childhood  such as "Don't Break the Ice" and some of our own creation such as "Ball in the Bucket". By late afternoon we waited in ridiculous anticipation to leave for dinner, because the walls of a one bedroom condo shrink exponentially with each hour that ticks away as you attempt to entertain a 2 and 4 year old.

The rain didn't last forever and as soon as the Sun came out, we set forth to do what we came here for...hit the beach. We've been prepping Noah with extensive sandbox playing in the last couple months leading up to our beach trip since he can be finicky when it comes to new textures. At first we were worried because he did not seem to be a big beach fan, but once he got settled in he went to town with his sand toys.

Andrew was far less interested in sand and more excited about the waves, which because of the inclement weather early in the week were tall and powerful, at least from the four year old perspective.

 

  

  

   

Although Agnes and I could spend endless hours enjoying the beach, the boys don't seem to have the stamina for our brand of relaxation and appreciated other extracurricular activities. So we peppered frequent beach visits with mini golf, go-carts, and fine dining.

After returning from dinner early one evening, we noticed that the light was perfect and the boys had not spilled anything on themselves. Since the timing of the two are so rare, we hit the beach and decided to see just how many photos our camera's memory card would hold.

Sometimes the trip home can be almost as exciting as the trip itself. Especially when you don't know how to use your GPS and have it set to shortest distance instead of shortest time. You find yourself taking interesting  detours.

The fun, however, wasn't over once we returned home. We had one last thing do before resuming our normal, non-vacationing lives. My cousin Krista was getting married and Andrew and his cousin Ellie Kate had very serious jobs to do by serving as ring bearer and flower girl...respectively of course.

  

Finally, in keeping with my sleeping children closeout theme, I have a twofer.