Beach Week

Every year, my family gets together for a week on the beach. This year, my parents rented a house that not only was beach front, but also had a pool.   So here's how we spent our week:
Most mornings we spent our time by the pool.  Ela always wanted to go to the pool. when she woke up, but almost never would get in.  Note the death grip she's got on me in this shot:

She loved being near the water, though, and sat on the steps with her feet in for hours, playing with her toys.  Lily, on the other hand, was soothed by the water, as long as it wasn't too cold.  She only got in a few times, but seemed to like it when she did. 
If we weren't by the pool in the morning, we were out enjoying the perfect, post-hurricane weather.  We biked, walked the beach, hung out on the sand, or went jogging.  Those of us who managed to bike, walk/jog and swim all in one day claimed the honor of having completed our "vacation triathalon".  We took advantage of as much of the morning as we could before wandering in for a late lunch. 
After lunch, we'd put Ela down for a nap.  One of us would sit on the porch and read so she wasn't alone.  The rest of us tended to find our way out to the beach.  Things stayed quiet during the hottest part of the day, but before long Ela would be up again, and we'd all find our way out to the beach for some late afternoon games.  We played bocci ball, or just sat in the sand and tried to convince Ela that 1) the waves were not going to get her, and 2) the sand wasn't too hot to touch.  Sometimes we'd have success and Ela would play in the sand with us, or toss a ball around.  Again, Lily found the whole experience very relaxing.

In the evenings, we'd make dinner and some gormet popsicles.  When Ela started acting tired, we'd put her to bed (the clock didn't have a major role in our activities this week).  Then we'd play a card game or rock band or dominos until we were all worn out and wandered off to bed ourselves.
On our last day at the beach, we found the part that Ela enjoyed most for this year: crabbing.  Crabbing involves putting a piece of something bloody and gross (this year it was fish heads) on the end of a line and tossing it in the marshy water of the inlet, preferably at low tide.  This attracts crabs, which you lure slowly in until you can see them and catch them in a net. 

While, obviously not interested in throwing the line or standing in the murky water at the edge, Ela was fascinated by our few catches (all of whom we threw back when we were done). 

 

Ela loved watching the crabs swim frantically around the bucket and we had to keep a close watch on her to prevent her from trying to touch them.  She announced repeatedly, "Ela want to kiss crab!"  She settled for poking at them with some reeds, though. 
Obviously, I have tons more pictures, and even more good memories, from the last week.  I'll sort through them this week and may be post again with a few more.  It was an excellent vacation.