It’s no real surprise over here that we are a family that loves the beach. Some of our favorite summer weekends are spent at the shore creating amazing memories and going on some kind of adventure. Looking back, our beach days were so different without kids and even more different when we had just one. We always end up laughing because it’s funny to think how we used to say certain things were so hard with just A, or so we thought. Adding another child into the mix definitely changes the game up a bit, and of course for the better in more ways than not.
I thought it would be fun to share about what a day at the beach would look like with us.
First thing, we’d be hitting the beach pretty early because once the nuggets know we are headed there they wake up bright and early and make sure we are on the beach shortly after that. On some days we might even pick up breakfast sandwiches and enjoy them right in our beach chairs with the waves crashing in front of us.
We love having a little background music on so we turn on our Pandora to enjoy some tunes. Then I’m usually ready to try and snap a few pictures or hand things over to my amazing husband who has become really good at just capturing random moments. This should come as no surprise to anyone either because my camera is always with me #documentlife.
Then, the nuggets want to go right down by the water with their shovels, buckets, and net to try and catch some sand crabs. They freak me out a bit so I’ll sift the sand for them, but then I let them handle them and put them in their buckets. This usually ends when one of them asks for a snack because somehow when we’re at the beach they act like they’ve never eaten before. They’re always very vocal about the snack selections and will definitely let you know if it’s not to their liking. Oh goodness if I forget to pack those peanut butter crackers there maybe a tantrum or two breaking out.
You will usually find us making sandcastles but that doesn’t always last for long because one of them ends up turning into a dinosaur that has to stomp down the castles. Roarrr! The request to dig a really big hole so one of them can get in it also happens a lot, but we have yet to get little nugget on board with getting in there. I don’t blame you buddy, getting buried isn’t for me either.
It’s usually back to the water where they ask us to throw them around a million times and jump over waves. I try my best to throw them around as much as I can but after the tenth time my arms usually start to feel like jello. I manage to push through as much as I can and try to tell myself this is your cardio girl, keep it going. Plus the motivation of their laughter and saying again, again, is just too cute.
We also like to take walks up and down the beach searching for shells, or rocks, or hunt for treasures with their mini metal detector. I always get a little nervous when that thing goes off just wondering what in the world are they going to dig up. We’ve found some change but mostly they dig up bottle caps and odd findings. We’re still waiting for that buried treasure one day.
At some point we head back to our chairs and always make sure to stay hydrated. We’re probably on to our fifth snack for the day and hoping those pesky seagulls don’t try to snatch anything from us. If you’ve notice here, there isn’t much sitting down going on for Eric and I. I guess that’s to be expected with two kids at the beach. This is where those days of not having kids, or even one kid, are very different. Napping? Not happening. Laying out? Eh, maybe but usually one of them comes over and tackles me or asks me to come and play. Sure my beach days aren’t the most relaxing but these memories and seeing their excitement are what it’s all about .
The days of them napping on the beach unfortunately don’t happen anymore but both of them still very much need their naps. We usually head out in the afternoon to put them down and depending on how long they nap, we may come back down after they wake up or head to the bay side to go crabbing and watch the sunset.
I think this summer more than ever we’ve realized just how much of a beach family we are and that our happy spot is definitely by the water.
