BeachLand

We've been incredibly blessed to have spent many long weekends this summer at our house in Cherry Grove, or BeachLand, as Elle affectionately refers to it. I must admit that I am sometimes less-than-appropriately-enthusiastic about owning a beach house. Dirty rotten ingrate, I know. But I occasionally become overwhelmed with the maintenance, upkeep, projects, an inevitable things-to-do that come with home ownership. There is something not quite so vacationy about replacing filters and spraying for bugs during your stay. Not to mention the cleaning your own toilets and showers before departing for HomeLand. Let's face it, one of the highlights of my time away from home is knowing someone else is responsible for removing the hair from the shower drain. Yes, I know it's 99% mine. But still. Ew. 

However, this summer we've really made an effort to get down to the beach frequently, and minimize household tasks/projects while there. (Unfortunately I can't minimize the inevitable pre-dawn Mommy wakeup call which also seems less than vacationy). We've allowed ourselves to just relax, and be ok with doing nothing. This is not my strong point, and requires great effort. But it has changed my perspective on our beach trips, and between that and seeing our girls have an absolute blast on these mini-getaways, I've realized how incredibly blessed we are. 

It has been awesome watching Elle fully embrace the sand-digging, wave-jumping, seashell-hunting, and seagull-chasing this year. No longer my prissy little baby who screamed bloody murder protested when her tiny toes got besmirched by a grain or two of sand. I can't help but smile to see her watch diligently out of the car window for the first "Coconut Tree" so she can proclaim us officially in BeachLand. 

My heart has smiled so many times watching Elise experience the beach for the first time this year. She instantly loved wiggling in and attempting to eat the sand, splashing in the water, and playing on the porch with her sister. She had the pleasure of hanging out with her cousins during an extended-Golding-family beach trip over Labor Day.

Over the course of the summer she went from a stationary infant, barely able to sit with assistance, to a fully mobile crawler whose solitary purpose in life is to find the most dangerous object on the planet to put in her mouth. This transition is all the more conspicuous when manifest on the primary crawling surfaces of slate-floored house and sand-floored beach.

Some trips we don't even make it out to the beach. Sure we could go to Costco at home. Or Mellow Mushroom. Or Target. But there is something inherently more fun about a Costco landscaped with Coconut Trees. And now that summer is officially over, I realize one of my favorite moments has been a morning cup of coffee on the porch watching the girls play. Even if morning means the sun is barely up. And even if I have to clean my own cup.