The Promised Beach Trip Photo Dump

I warned you it was coming. That post where I got back from the beach, tired and covered with sand, kids, and kids that are covered in sand, and just decided to post a bunch of pictures from our beach trip. It was a lot of fun...after the initial sand-phobia (Jericho), and the shark week memoirs (Merrick), and the usual screeching drama-fits (Tirzah) we settled in nicely and the kiddos had a great time.

Jericho got used to the sand, and if I didn't have a hand on him he would be found running straight into the surf with his shovel, chasing seagulls, or just simply wandering off down the beach without a care in the world as to whether or not I was following him. He likes to live on the edge.

Merrick watched his older "cousins" (actually my cousins) surfing and riding boogie boards, and tried a little of it himself. He jumped in the surf and ran wild with his (second) cousin Caden. He also made sure to fuss at me when he saw an Instagram of me touching a shark some guy caught on the pier. (He did not approve of his mother's post-kiddo's-bedtime behavior, and chastised me appropriately, telling me that shark could have bit me!!! He's so sweet.

Tirzah was the least afraid of the water, and spent a lot of her time playing in the surf. This was a nice distraction from her usual favorite activities of screaming bloody murder at her brothers and pretending to be injured. She also found a lot of shells, and she and Merrick grew way too fond of "hunting" for their shell collections (read: clanking their seashells together) in their beds at 7 am every morning.

Speaking of 7 am...when do I get back to the part where you actually get to rest on vacation? I took my kindle, and I think I maybe read 2 chapters of my book. I did manage to lay out some, but that was often with a sand-encrusted child exfoliating my legs with his sandy diapered behind. I got less sleep that I do when not on vacation, I think.

BUT, as much as I sound like I'm whining, and I am a little...duh, it was SO much fun to just enjoy my kiddos. I was probably way more relaxed and laid back with my kids this week than I have been in, well, ever, and the sigh of relief that all 4 of us seemed to breath was noticeable. Billy, who was only there Sunday and came back to spend the day/pick us up on Thursday, noticed how much fun we were having together before I even told him I had been "lazy" mom this week. (By "lazy" I just mean I didn't freak out when they were covered in sand, or eating chips for lunch, or being too loud, or fighting, or spending 3,573 hours in the hot tub, etc.) I focused more on having fun with them, teaching them kindly instead of sharply out of my usual exhaustion, enjoying them and in turn just enjoying being with them.

If I take away one memory from the family beach vacay of 2013, it will be the joy of just spending time with my kids. Letting them run and play and be themselves. It may lead to a little bit (or a lot) of sleep deprivation and no time to read, but I can handle that for 18 more years. Right? ;)