We had lots of fun in the sand and sun (with the exception of two rainy afternoons), and Claire was head of the pack in pursuing all of the fun. In fact, about a week leading up to the trip, I got so weary with answering questions about when we would be going to the beach that Claire and I made a countdown paper chain as our "craft" one afternoon. That way, whenever she asked about the beach, I'd just point to the chain. It kind of worked, too.
Ta da! (what she actually said here) We're at the beach! Claire usually wakes up at 7, but she backed it up to 6 everyday at the beach. I took the first morning and had quite the task of trying to keep her marginally quiet so as not to wake up the neighborhood.
This is how Lily spent her days. Such a rough life.
Tim brought Spike Ball, which he, Brad, and Rachael played off and on. Claire wanted in on the action occasionally. My favorite part is that she wore her visor backwards like Daddy was wearing his hat.
And sometimes you just need a little lie-down.
Diggin' a hole with Takia.
Our smiley girl. And, no, I didn't get her a swimsuit for this trip. Perhaps that was a bad call, but really, she basically slept full-time on the beach. Cute onesies did the trick.
See?
But, of course, she did some of this, too.
One afternoon was perfect kite-flying weather, and Claire took it seriously (for about 3 minutes...but seriously, nonetheless).
And I got this cute shot.
Then she gave me a thumbs-up. Photo bomb by Tim.
Gran and Claire had quite a few seaside chats like this.
And Grandpa and Lily had quite a few moments like this.
Hole digging. There wasn't much actual castle-building, as Claire is also known as The Destroyer.
Except for when the neighbors sculpt really impressive sand creations each day. She knows not to mess with those. Not pictured (but should have been): the Death Star, Millennium Falcon, and pod racers.
Hard at work
Tim raced Claire in this little endeavor. His goal was to set up the sand piles faster than she could knock them down. It was hilarious. Claire kept calling the sand piles "fire," which none of us understood at first. I kept asking her questions to figure it out, and finally, I got it: there's a part in Tangled where Rapunzel is lighting a line of candles (fire) and Mother Gothel is following her and putting the candles out one by one. That's what Claire fancied herself doing.
Hiding with Grandpa behind the sand pile.
Lily being cute.
Sporting her dress that Gran and Grandpa brought her from the Caribbean.
Breanne, I thought you might appreciate this: after we finished a game of Blokus one evening, Tim and Brad (but mostly Tim) set out to make all of the pieces fit together in a perfect square. He almost did it; there's just one tiny square missing. And don't you know that drove him crazy.
Ready for a day of fun!
Lily is such a joy. Y'all. This face is her personality.
Quality time.
Enjoying a "puddle."
Commandeering Gran's water bottle. DON'T DRINK IT, BARBARA! I guarantee it's 68% sand.
Queen of the Mountain.
One morning, Brad and I went for a walk, and I found a shell that I thought Claire would like. I carried it for the better part of a mile so that I could give it to her. When I showed up with my offering, she informed me that Takia had caught a crab in her bucket. My shell = not even a little bit exciting.
Just prior to crab release. The best part of the release was watching Claire walk like crab alongside the real crab. It was great.
Her beloved turtle suit. The bottoms are too big. We have to be careful that they don't slide off. Which they do when wet or full of sand. So basically all the time.
Any Harry Potter fans out there? If so, I know you get this onesie.
Posing on her beach towel.
Matching with Ray Ray.
And one with Lily's eyes open.
Claire got up to the top level of her behavior chart, and we all got ice cream! She got her first ever Rocky Road, and she loooooooved it.
As evidenced by her very serious double-spooning method.
Outtake from a photo shoot with Gran. Please note Lily's face.
This one is much better.
With Takia. We don't get to see him very often, so we have to capitalize on picture-taking opportunities.
This trip was his first time meeting Lily. She's clearly thrilled.
With Ray Ray.
A good one with Gran.
In the spirit of their earlier game of "fire," Tim created a sprawling field of "fires" for Claire, spelling out her name. She had a blast!
"Thank you for my fires, Takia!"
And now I smash.
Taking in her surroundings with Grandpa.
Chilling on the porch to escape the rain.
She got ice cream again! And, she still doesn't know that these things will move if you put quarters in them. Be cool, guys. Don't tell.
Hanging with Ray Ray.
I adore my darling Lily, but I have to confess: she's not very photogenic. It's REALLY difficult to get a good picture of how cute she is. I don't know why. So, you should know that it was QUITE THE ORDEAL to get this shot. And, it does Lily very little justice. Brad took video of Barbara and me trying to get Lily to smile. We looked ridiculous.
One last shot with Takia before he left for Minnesota.
We had a really wonderful time. The weather was great, the food was fantastic, and spending time with the whole family for a full week was a rarity that we thoroughly enjoyed. Thank you, Bill and Barbara, for making it happen!
1 comment:
Love the Blokus square! And all of the other details!
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