A Picture Perfect Day at the Beach

 The blog title pretty much says it all when it comes to spending time on the beach.  Perfect temperatures and few clouds, allowing one to immerse oneself into the remarkable beauty of the ocean and its surrounds.  The only annoyance was due to the next door family pulling in a 6 foot shark on their rod.

They use a special lure, hop in a sea kayak, and row out deep into the ocean before dropping the lure in the water.  You can hear the reel turning as they pull out the line.  I honestly hadn't thought much about this fishing technique when I saw them trying it earlier in the week, other than finding it amusing to watch them struggling staying in the kayak as they made what seemed like a futile effort to me.

But yesterday, the ocean was sleek and smooth, and easy to navigate, so they apparently had some success in getting the lure way out in the water. When I first heard the noise of the reel, and looked up to see the rod bowed, and everyone in the group taking turns winding it, I joked that it must have made it to Europe, as it seemed like ages that they were cranking that reel. 

Then, I noticed a huge crowd had gathered to witness the feat, and the next thing I knew, three guys were jumping into the water and pulling a rather large shark up onto the beach.

I'm just relieved that the littles weren't down near the shore yet, as this certainly would have put a damper on any near-the-water activities, for sure. 

I was actually quite annoyed by their antics, as those men had a lot of difficulty pulling the hook out of the shark's mouth in order to push him back in the ocean.  Obviously,  they weren't planning on having shark for dinner.  And I'm hoping for no repeats as I found the entire ordeal to be quite upsetting.

So, let's switch to pleasantries......breakfast was compliments of Amy:  homemade Cinnamon Rolls.

I probably need not mention that they were scrumptious!

After breakfast, there was a little fishing involved.

but no fish to reel in.  Perhaps they all swam away in fear of being shark bait? 

Time on the beach involved a LOT of digging yesterday.

as well as some entertaining gymnastics.

And these girls thought it would be quite fun to bury daddy.  Finn was eager to help as well. 

What excitement that was!

Finn spent much of the early evening helping me put together a puzzle.   I was given strict instructions last night, when he headed to bed, that I was NOT allowed to finish it. There's no way I am going to ruin his fun, for sure!  

I'll be sure to post the finished project.

After dinner, we enjoyed yet another spectacular sunset. 

Perfect...once again.

The Tides have Turned

 Yesterday offered a mix of weather patterns, beginning cloudy in the morning, heating up a bit with a peek of sun before turning grey with sprinkles that led to some rain in the mid afternoon.  Luckily, we didn't have far to go to reach the comforts of our beach house, so we relaxed while watching the rain through the window, and within a few hours, it was gone, and the skies had cleared, offering the perfect evening.   

Four of us headed down to the beach relatively early, and I sat under the canopy observing these two building their sand fort, set up to watch the tide roll in.

As you can see, there weren't many people on the beach.

But there were a LOT of pelicans flying by yesterday, nearly brushing the waves with their bellies.

I enjoyed just sitting and watching these two romping back and forth in enthusiasm, waiting for the waves to crash and fill the moat with water. 

Soon, they were joined by other eager observers.

Obviously, it took a while for the water to reach the middle, but it certainly did offer quite a bit of entertainment!

In the meantime, there were other exciting features to the day:  like fish....lots of them.

Well.....let's just say "lots" in comparison with the previous day of just three total caught.  I think there were nearly half a dozen....but who's counting? 

There were sand creations....how clever is this?

mermaid sand art 

made by some little mermaids

snacking

and relaxing. 

And, that was all before the rain!

The entertainment continued through the evening

and there was even some kite activity to keep this little one enamored.

as well as a BIG helicopter flew that flew right by our windows!

After dinner, we headed down to the shore for a photoshoot of the kids.

And it was very amusing watching Jim try to get a shot where all five actually looked at the camera at the same time.  But he certainly tried his best.

Hope those made you laugh.....I certainly did when I saw them.

And then there was this.....Gramma G leading the littles.  This couldn't make me happier!

And Dad's with their matching shirts.

After our walk, we headed back to the house for cake....of course.

The feature dessert was our famous Paul Newman cake recipe, compliments of Amy who did the baking.

Delicious! 

And we ended the evening with the sunset. 

Perfect!

Monday Fun at the Beach

My clock appears to be a bit off from the rest of the adult crew here....rising before the sun (which is about 5:00 am), but ready to hit the sack by 9:30 at night.  There are some advantages to this time schedule.  I am able to write this blog in a quiet room, with no interruptions, while watching the sunrise.

Isn't it gorgeous?  

But, yesterday morning, it was obvious to me, that I missed a whole lot of fun the night before!

Perhaps I should consider a mid-afternoon nap! 

Monday began with yet another delectable treat:  blueberry muffins ala Finn and Maddie.  Sorry...no photos...but you can take my word on it that the crew found them to be amazing.  

After breakfast, we headed to the beach to enjoy a nearly perfect weather day.  There are still yellow flags warning about the surf, but none of the littles venture in much further than the edge of the shore.

Leona enticed me to join her, once again, as she conquered her fear of the waves.  Iris, on the other hand, ran in and out of the surf as if it was her element.  It brings such a smile to my face seeing how unique they are, despite being identical twins.  

This little guy was a bit off of kilter yesterday, but still managed to enjoy his time on the sand.  

And we're lucky that his oldest cousin was on hand to help keep him entertained.

and the girls had fun with hims as well, although he was bound and determined to empty the buckets of water that they had retrieved from the ocean. 

In the meantime, there was plenty of beach activity

and Pap Pap G caught a spot! Actually, I heard that he caught a giant mullet earlier in the day, but we have to take the word of eye witnesses on the spot.  It made me laugh, when, later in the day, I was talking to my parents on FaceTime and Marty told them that the mullet was nearly as big as Parker.  Finn got to see first hand just how his PapPap can exaggerate a story and he immediately spoke up and gave his accounting of the size, which was quite a difference! 

After the beach there was some pool time, which involved some super excitement with water guns.  As you can see, the fun wasn't limited to little ones.

Then, there was evening relaxation with the girls working on making their own jeweled mermaids.

I'll be sure to get photos of the finished products. 

And there were snuggles with Gramma....always the best! 

Once again, there was a beautiful sunset...viewed from the comforts of our back deck. 

A beautiful ending to another great day.