Beach Trip

My sincere apologies to all three people who check the blog regularly for new posts. It has been such a busy season, but I am happy to bring you this post and promise another one soon. I was sharing with my husband that I feel like the blog has suffered because my camera is nearing its death; hence, picture taking is no longer fun, but rather arduous. No pictures means no blog. I have things I could write about without pictures, but I'm fairly certain the fans would protest. Plans for a new camera are under review. Stay tuned.

Regardless, we have been here at the beach for the last four days and it has been pretty fun. Our neighbors are partial owners of an amazing house in Rockaway Beach. This past fall they mentioned that we could use it sometime. We immediately asked when it was available and this has been the first time we have made it here as a family. It has been pretty fun, despite the lack of a proper "time-out chair." Seriously. Luke has really struggled with obedience in the new environment and while we tried using a regular chair facing the corner, he hasn't been able to make the adjustment. Poor guy! I was praying about it last night and just came to the point where I needed to thank God for my son even when he disobeys. I know Jesus feels the same way about us. Anyway...

The boys have enjoyed lots of time with the sand. We brought lots of diggers, dump trucks, shovels, and buckets. The Daddy-Man has taught them how to dig deep holes that fill with water. Paul has preferred the dry sand, but Luke has been willing to get a little wet. Yesterday he got a little too wet, falling over into about three inches of water. He recovered well and was willing to change into another set of clothes which had been previously soaked in order to stay at the beach longer. That's incredible! We need to stretch his comfort zone more often. :-)

We also drove up to Seaside to visit the aquarium, which isn't much, but the boys didn't care. They loved the touch tanks and the seals the most. The octopus was also a big hit. We bought them both a pack of little plastic pinnipeds - say that five times fast - and they have made them bath time buddies. My favorite is hearing Paul say pinniped. He's SO earnest because its a big word and he knows what it means. Adorable.

Dave and Lynne were able to come out for a few days and have been warmly greeted by all. I have enjoyed escaping during nap time for espresso, which I had to drive to Garibaldi to find, but that's another story. Erik has been able to share all the exciting news from work, updating them on his current project. The boys MUCH prefer their grandparents and can often be heard saying, "I want Grandma to do it." She's so popular. :-) I'm cool with that! Less work for me.

I can hear Luke singing the "Naked" song right now. I'd video it, but he only sings it when it applies and I just can't do that to him. I want him to take care of me when I'm old.

So here are the pics!

Our first day the wind was a little too much down on the beach, so we had play dough time instead!

The boys checking out the touch tanks at the aquarium.

Looking at the octopus!

Pinnipeds!