This morning we got up a little earlier. The plan was to go home and be there a day earlier, but instead, we opted to stay one more day. The reason: the call of the ocean. Yesterday, we were exactly nine miles from the Gulf of Mexico. How could we be so close to the ocean and not go? Last summer, we remember fondly Madison's first visit to the beach. We remembered her and the crashing waves, how she giggled and carried on.
So today we left early to go to a beach. The first idea was to go to Daytona, but somewhere along the line, Ormond Beach presented itself. It is a bit further north, and therefore further away. And yet, it was possibly less crowded - at least that is what we were thinking.
I think we were ultimately right. We got there and found a little park that was just perfect. It had overhead covering, picnic tables, and even a little water park with squirting water fountains for the children to play in.
We hit the beach right away. It was so beautiful today, although certainly a bit hot. We were lathered up with sun tan lotion, of course. But Madison hit the waves quickly, and laughed loudly as each one swooped in to try and knock her down. Of course we weren't too deep - Daddy was nearby to keep her closer to shore. But the three of us got our feet wet (and in Daddy's and Madison's case, we got wet pretty much everywhere). It is such a thing of majesty, the ocean. So far away is the horizon, and beyond that even more ocean all the way to Europe and Africa, where other children laugh and play on the beaches there.
After swimming a bit in the ocean water, we next began to build our sandcastle empire. It was pretty far from the crashing waves to begin with, but Mommy soon noted that the shoreline was creeping up on us. The tide was coming inward! We dug deep a lake in the sand, and a towering castle and wall that overlooked the empire. Madison constructed a moat, as Mommy served as an artistic advisor, trickling wet sand over the top.
But soon the water actually came in further to our empire. And though it never actually toppled anything, it was soon evident our vast body of work would become as flat as the beach around it.
No matter - we had our fun. And besides, the water fountain park called Madison's name. We ran up there next to a small place that overlooked the beach and the crashing waves. Madison ran through the fountains of water shooting all over, along with the other children. Meanwhile, Mommy and Daddy sat in the shade, drying off and enjoying the sights, sounds, and even smells of the ocean.
All good things must come to an end though, and we did recognize that the heat and sun were things we weren't quite accustomed to yet. So we said our goodbyes to the ocean and hopped into the car for our drive back. We took a different path back, one lined with forests deep and filled with large trees and dangling Spanish moss.
We actually passed by Silver Springs on the way home. We didn't stop at the park there, but we did go to the Dairy Queen nearby. Mommy was craving a Dilly Bar, so the three of us had our ice cream fix once more. Daddy got his favorite blizzard, the chocolate covered cherry blizzard. There are different ways people make this blizzard - lately, it's been done wrong. Or, at least not the way it used to be made. Only one guy in Gainesville, Georgia gets it right anymore. Still, ice cream is ice cream, and it was delicious, and nice to sit together as a family.
We came home one more time, quite tired from the long afternoon trip. We still had some packing to do, but everyone went to bed a little earlier tonight. Mommy finished her puzzle, finally - this one was tough! Daddy actually tried to help out, and managed a little assistance, but was surprised at the difficulty of this one. Also, Daddy finished his book, the latest John Grisham novel. Later, he and Madison were playing "Brave Temple Run," a version of the popular game "Temple Run" that features Merida from the movie "Brave." Since we discovered you can buy her new clothing, we've been running more and more. Madison is getting better and better with this game, showing quick reflexes!
But it was soon time for her to go to bed. We tucked her in with her two manatees, and she was off to sleep pretty quickly. Mommy and Daddy followed soon after that - only after watching a few episodes of "Monk" with Nana. We'd never seen the show before, but it looks like we might be watching more in the future.
Anyway, it was a perfect sort of vacation day. We relaxed and we found ourselves at the beach. Which is much better than going home a day earlier, isn't it?
So today we left early to go to a beach. The first idea was to go to Daytona, but somewhere along the line, Ormond Beach presented itself. It is a bit further north, and therefore further away. And yet, it was possibly less crowded - at least that is what we were thinking.
I think we were ultimately right. We got there and found a little park that was just perfect. It had overhead covering, picnic tables, and even a little water park with squirting water fountains for the children to play in.
We hit the beach right away. It was so beautiful today, although certainly a bit hot. We were lathered up with sun tan lotion, of course. But Madison hit the waves quickly, and laughed loudly as each one swooped in to try and knock her down. Of course we weren't too deep - Daddy was nearby to keep her closer to shore. But the three of us got our feet wet (and in Daddy's and Madison's case, we got wet pretty much everywhere). It is such a thing of majesty, the ocean. So far away is the horizon, and beyond that even more ocean all the way to Europe and Africa, where other children laugh and play on the beaches there.
After swimming a bit in the ocean water, we next began to build our sandcastle empire. It was pretty far from the crashing waves to begin with, but Mommy soon noted that the shoreline was creeping up on us. The tide was coming inward! We dug deep a lake in the sand, and a towering castle and wall that overlooked the empire. Madison constructed a moat, as Mommy served as an artistic advisor, trickling wet sand over the top.
But soon the water actually came in further to our empire. And though it never actually toppled anything, it was soon evident our vast body of work would become as flat as the beach around it.
No matter - we had our fun. And besides, the water fountain park called Madison's name. We ran up there next to a small place that overlooked the beach and the crashing waves. Madison ran through the fountains of water shooting all over, along with the other children. Meanwhile, Mommy and Daddy sat in the shade, drying off and enjoying the sights, sounds, and even smells of the ocean.
All good things must come to an end though, and we did recognize that the heat and sun were things we weren't quite accustomed to yet. So we said our goodbyes to the ocean and hopped into the car for our drive back. We took a different path back, one lined with forests deep and filled with large trees and dangling Spanish moss.
We actually passed by Silver Springs on the way home. We didn't stop at the park there, but we did go to the Dairy Queen nearby. Mommy was craving a Dilly Bar, so the three of us had our ice cream fix once more. Daddy got his favorite blizzard, the chocolate covered cherry blizzard. There are different ways people make this blizzard - lately, it's been done wrong. Or, at least not the way it used to be made. Only one guy in Gainesville, Georgia gets it right anymore. Still, ice cream is ice cream, and it was delicious, and nice to sit together as a family.
We came home one more time, quite tired from the long afternoon trip. We still had some packing to do, but everyone went to bed a little earlier tonight. Mommy finished her puzzle, finally - this one was tough! Daddy actually tried to help out, and managed a little assistance, but was surprised at the difficulty of this one. Also, Daddy finished his book, the latest John Grisham novel. Later, he and Madison were playing "Brave Temple Run," a version of the popular game "Temple Run" that features Merida from the movie "Brave." Since we discovered you can buy her new clothing, we've been running more and more. Madison is getting better and better with this game, showing quick reflexes!
But it was soon time for her to go to bed. We tucked her in with her two manatees, and she was off to sleep pretty quickly. Mommy and Daddy followed soon after that - only after watching a few episodes of "Monk" with Nana. We'd never seen the show before, but it looks like we might be watching more in the future.
Anyway, it was a perfect sort of vacation day. We relaxed and we found ourselves at the beach. Which is much better than going home a day earlier, isn't it?
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