Think Happy Thoughts

Before I even begin, can we just take a minute to admire this beach?  I mean, how gorgeous is that?  And that little black speck in the water?  That's a lady riding a horse.  A HORSE.  This could be the setting of a Nora Ephron movie for crying out loud!    

This was not Madeline's first trip to a beach, but her other trips have been made in cold weather.   On this visit, she really got to dig down and explore the beach for the first time.  

We took our shoes off, dug in the sand, chased some waves, let the cold water roll over our feet, and watched the surfers bobbing on the horizon like corks.   She loved it.

And while we're at it, could we take a minute to admire my daughter?  I mean, how gorgeous is she?  She's a little slice of perfection wrapped in a yellow cardigan.

Madeline had mixed feelings about the sand.  She wouldn't walk on it unless it was the hard, compact sand by the water.  The rest of the time she tottered uneasily in one spot and begged us to pick her up.  On the other hand, she really got a kick out of letting the sand slip between her fingers, and she loved sitting on her bum and digging her toes in it.

We even buried her feet, which she did not mind one bit.  

I eventually lured Madeline to the water, and let the waves wash over our feet.  Eric thought I was crazy because the water was cold.  I explained to him that at the beaches I grew up going to, that's what the water felt like in August.  It's not a problem until you stop feeling your legs.  

Madeline liked the water so much, that we spent a lot of time preventing her from running straight into it.   We showed her how to run away from the incoming waves, and she squealed like a mad woman.  

The rest of the trip was spent wandering the beach, picking up rocks, saying hi to puppies, and pretending we were the little mermaid.

 And in case you needed a reminder...