Life at the Beach

I feel like our summer vacation really happens here.  We have the whole family together, with no place to go, no one needs to be at some event, no one has to be up at a certain time, no one is calling us, it is just 10 people and miles of sand.  It may be that my introvert side finds this incredibly soothing, and the extroverts in the family are dieing of boredom.  They aren't complaining, so I am going to imagine that they love it as much as I do. 

This year we had to leave Mads at home.  She got a real job this summer, and couldn't get a whole week off.  This is a very bittersweet event.  We miss her terribly, but I am so glad that she is growing up and getting responsibilities that she needs to have.  After my very ugly departure,she is probably grateful for a little time without the whole family.  I don't do getting us all off on trips gracefully.  Note to self:  Never,  never leave on a Sunday after church.  I needed most of the morning for confession of sin, not making of beds.  Mads was a trooper.  She finally told me it was time to just get out of the house, stop fussing, and let her take care of whatever mess I left.  I love that girl!

The beach always calms my soul.  It puts my life back into perspective.  The kids have a great time digging in the sand, jumping in the waves, collecting rocks and shells, walking for miles, swimming in the pool, and just being together.  Every other person asks us how many kids we have.  We are enjoying coming up with witty remarks to this question and collecting stunned answers.  Yes, we do have our hands full!  We have had several people comment on how happy the kids are, and how well they get along.  This doesn't happen at home.  Maybe it is because there is no Wii to fight over out here.  Maybe it is because I need miles of sand in my back yard for them to build forts in.  They really do work well together, and make some pretty awesome sand towns.  Even the big girls get into decorating the village with shells.  The entertainment factor at our little beach town is nil to minuscule.  There is no movie theater.  There is one pizza place that is open intermittently and never when the sign it is.  We have walked all the way in to town to find that everything is closed.  It makes me laugh every time.  Thank God the beach is always open, and it is strewn with fun things to collect.

We got a ton of sun on Monday.  We have had clouds and mist since then.  They keep the pool at about 95 degrees, so there is always that to fall back on.  Helen fell asleep while watching a movie in the afternoon.  Playing hard wears them out, and we all sleep really well.  I have finished one book, and am well into the next.  I wish we could fit these breaks in more often, but I am grateful for at least one week out of the year.  Chef Pamela keeps us fed, which is wearing her out.  It takes her a couple of days to adjust to how much we can eat at one meal.  It's a good thing Mads isn't here, she eats enough for two or three all by herself.  We have friends coming in on the weekend to hang out with us.  We are all very excited about that!

I'm sure if I were here all the time I would find it monotonous, but for now we are lucky enough to be at the beach.

#837-852

Rosemary bushes, they smell delightful

Sand castles

Walks on the beach

Beach glass

The sound of waves crashing on the shore

Suntanned boys

Little Richards donuts, WOW

Watching the sun sink into the waves every evening

Hot tubs

The triumphant yells of children finding treasures on the beach

Burying Soren in the sand

Mads calling to tell me about her new haircut

Good jobs

Fresh crab

Worn out children napping in the afternoon

Finishing a good book