Scrambled Thoughts IV: Beach Style

1.  Summer is not long enough on a year round schedule

Can you believe the kids are going back to school today?  I tried to tell the school that I'm not done playing with the kids yet... that there are still vacations, and rain puddles, and craft supplies, and pelican snowballs (that need to be eaten for lunch)...  But the school insisted, and reminded me that I'll have to save it for when they release them for fall break.

2.  Summer is a bit too long on a year round schedule

I smell it.  The routines, schedules, planners.  The blog posts to write.  Mopping the floor with my ipod stuck in my ears, pretending I'm a famous dancer while singing at the top of my lungs (ahhhh.... so much nicer than having to lock the children downstairs for 20 minutes so the floors can dry without them slipping and cracking open their heads). 

3.  Miles can pull off windblown

It's true that I have a pretty heavy hand when it comes to deleting pictures.  But Miles broke me this time.  Every single picture I took in this little session weaseled it's way into my heart and wouldn't let me delete it without crying rivers of tears.  So they stayed and got put into this collage.  How could you delete that little red halo?

4.  Carson is the Bird Whisperer, while McKenzie is the Birds Are Scary So Run Away From Them-er

 Carson's pretty much a bird-pro since they learned all about them in his kindergarten class last year.  He sat patiently (well... as patiently as Carson gets) on our beach blankets, making seagull noises until he had a flock of them surrounding him.  (The little pretzel pieces I kept secretly throwing out might have helped a bit.)  He fell in love with those birds!  And though his calls might not have attracted them initially, they really did answer him each time he called out to them.  No bond is greater than a boy and his gull.

5. If you ever get a chance to ride a bike on the beach, you should.  It's romantic.

Even if your children are zooming around you and you're mostly worried about them running over the sun-bathers.

We took a few hours out of one day and rode our bikes around the island, which was absolutely gorgeous.  Except, it took a bit of practice for me to feel comfortable on a funny-feeling bike with Miles sitting in a plastic kid seat behind my own.  He was freaked out for the first little bit, "Don't fall, Mommy!"  "Did-oo ah-most fall?"  "Whoa.  Dat a big bump."  I was freaked out for the first little bit, too, as I tried to get used to Miles throwing his weight around behind me.  Don't fall, Linds... precious cargo in back.  "Nope!  I didn't almost fall, Miles!"  Whoa, that was a huge bump.  "Isn't this fun, Miles!  Here comes a bump!"  We got the hang of it after about 30 minutes and I started relaxing my tense muscles one by one until I felt comfortable and Miles started laughing.



6.  Daddy-Daughter pictures are always beautiful

  
 7.  Wildlife has never been my favorite

I can't help it... one of my biggest fears is getting eaten by a shark.  Getting eaten by alligators is also something to avoid.  Getting tickled by starfish?  I can handle that.

But I'd rather there just be nothing alive in the water I'm swimming in. As far as birds go, I'm okay with them as long as they keep their poop away from me.  I've been pooped on before by birds.  Twice.  I don't like it.  But I LOVE how the birds make this picture...

8.  My love for my children grows when they ask me to take a picture of them in an awesome spot.

Miles won my love this day. 

9.  My name looks cool in the sand

What?  It's not a vain thing... it's just that I have a cool-looking name.  And sand is cool.  So when you put the two together...  Don't be jealous; I bet your name looks cool in the sand, too.

10.  Beaches are fun

Hopefully next year, Brian's program will pay us again for spending a weekend on the beach.  I could handle that over and over and over and over...