First Beach Trip of 2012

It was a truly perfect day for a beach trip.  We were all sitting around watching cartoons when Todd asked which beach we should go to :).  Norrin has horrible listening skills, but when he heard the word beach come out of Da's mouth, his face lit up like a Christmas tree. In about an hour, we had gathered all necessary equipment and were on our way.  We got to Stone Harbor around noon.  We were going to try a different beach, but the location is so perfect with parking, short walk to the ocean and a playground.  The weather was hot, but there was a nice breeze that cooled us off and didn't bury our stuff in sand.  The ocean temperature was also perfect.  Cool, refreshing and not too rough.

First things first, the kids played in the sand.  I was in charge of fetching water and we only have one big bucket.  We have to get another.

 Ani Rose took to the sand like she's played in it her whole life.

 Next up, a dip in the ocean. 

 Norrin wanted to hold my hand at first and Ani needed a little conversation before she felt safe enough to dip her toes.

 Then, she just loved it.

 And Norrin didn't need to hold my hand anymore.

 Ani let the water roll in up to her belly button and laughed and laughed at each wave.  Then she took a break.

 In her Da's chair.

 Da and Norrin kept playing.

 So, it wasn't a long break before she wanted to go back in.  That hand signal is like a wave to her.  She greets us with it when we pick her up from the babysitter and its her way of trying to tell her Da and her brother that she wants to be with them.  I laugh because she grunts and squeaks whenever she does it.  She is not subtle.

When Norrin was Ani's age, the beach was approached tentatively and he needed a couple hours to adjust.  Ani threw herself right into it.  She walked around like she owned the joint.  She used every sand toy, made multiple trips to visit the ocean, snacked on all the food we brought and sat comfortably in everyone's chair.  Todd and I just had to keep up with her.  It was wonderful to watch my kids play together and enjoy the beach as much as we do.