Cousins in the Sand

We were fortunate to spend some time at my Grandmother's beach cottage, right on the sand in Capitola. The kids loved opening up the door every morning to reveal the wide, open beach, chasing sea gulls, and listening to the waves as we went to sleep each night.

Of course, we also indulged in large, cheesy slices of Pizza My Heart on the beach wall for dinner, keeping watch over any interested birds, and Polar Bear ice cream each afternoon. (I'm getting really good at passing along all my favorite habits to my kids.)

Tate, Caleb and Aunt Rach joined us for two days of cousin time in the sand. Lucie and Ryan had discovered this enormous hole on the beach. The kids spent lots of time there, running and jumping in,



playing "bad guys" and turning Lucie into a sand mermaid.


Caleb crawled around in the sand too, teasing us by trying to chew on every stray piece of seaweed he could find. With tons of smiles and an ever-cheerful attitude, we sure love that little cutie.

I'm happy Caleb knows he can always come to his Aunt Meg for a supply of Cheerios. And, with just ten days until his first birthday, he'll soon be able to join us for ice cream too...

May travels

Though we know the flight practically by heart, each trip to visit family includes new experiences for Lucie and Ryan. That's part of the fun of traveling with these two -- there's always a discovery around every corner.

With Grandma and Grandpa we visited a newly reopened zoo/amusement park, one I had fond memories visiting as a child. Lucie and Ryan surprised us by trying and loving rides they wouldn't have gone near a year ago, including their first roller coaster, and a crazy, bouncing aerial drop ride.

At the end of the first frog hopper ride, we expected the kids to run over to us clutching their stomachs or crying, but instead they raced back into the open line, ready to try again, even individually. Such bravery for our two.

Later in the week at the beach, Lucie, Ryan, Tate and Papa headed out on a fishing trip. They had been fishing with Papa several times before, though unfortunately never had caught anything. Things started slow, but after a location change to a warm spot with views of diving pelicans, the fish started biting.

On the first day, Lucie caught one fish and Ryan caught three. The next day the total went to twelve with fish coming in like crazy, even two on one line for Lucie. The kids were so excited, doing most of the reeling themselves, and helping Papa throw each one back in the ocean (Lucie wasn't so sure about the feeling of fish scales on her fingertips). They couldn't wait to call Daddy to share the news.

Before boarding our flight home, we checked out a great children's museum with Gigi. Lucie made a new friend in the make-your-own-pizza play room, and the two became fast playmates. With Ryan in tow, the kids raced around the museum together as their new friend showed her favorite exhibits, inviting L & R to her birthday party (in December -- too cute) along the way. We could have spent the entire time pulling levers and making big splashes in the water room. Mr. Ryan made good use of a dry shirt for our flight home.

More photos to come of our beach time and fun with Tate and Caleb.