Honestly, I'm not sure how I let the girls con me into bringing along a friend to the pool this evening.
We almost always have an extra kid on the weekends for lunch and/or dinner each day, and that is fine. An extra kid at the pool though means an extra head to count every few seconds, an extra life to guard, and one more person who you hope doesn't crack her head open on the diving board.
We all had fun, but I'm wiped out. I will sleep hard tonight.
I give props to all the single moms out there. Your job is exhausting!
For Father's Day weekend, we decided to take a quick trip to Atlantic Beach. We told the girls that we were going to pick them up early from camp to do a fun family activity in the afternoon. On the drive to camp in the morning, they asked me what we were going to do, and I told them they would find out when we got there. Then we had this conversation:
Elise: I know what we're going to do!!
Me: What?
Elise: We're going to the pool!
Me: pool, huh? That sounds like fun. Good idea.
Nina: No, I know what we're going to do! We're going to Monkey Joe's!
Me: Monkey Joes... that's a great idea too! You guys have some really good ideas for a fun family afternoon.
Elise: Maybe we're going to the beach!
Me: The beach??? <said with a tone of "you have got to be kidding!">
Nina: Elise!!!! There's no way we're going to the beach!!!
and I left it at that. When we picked them up in a packed-full car in the afternoon, it went like this:
Addie was clearly much more interested in Elise's ice cream sandwich than the trip, but at least the big girls were excited!
We arrived at the small cozy condo we had rented late Friday afternoon, dropped off our stuff, and headed to our perennial favorite, Sanitary Fish Market, for dinner.
The girls gave me a little attitude,
and giggled a lot. I think we were all glad to be on vacation.
Then we did our part to support the economy (and Sanitary Fish Market) by buying our annual SFM t-shirts. (Elise's really is THAT bright. I'm pretty sure she could be seen from the space shuttle.)
Why did I think red was a good color for me? Must have been the peach margarita clouding my judgement. The color Nina chose is so gorgeous. Why didn't I go with that?
Saturday and Sunday, we soaked up the sun and played in the waves all day, making the most of our short trip.
Elise and Nina spent nearly every second on their boogie boards.
Addie loved playing in the waves too,
except for a few run-ins with unexpectedly large waves. (Love J.C.'s expression here... no sympathy for the poor girl, huh?)
J.C. taught the girls the very important skill of how to feed sea gulls.
Saturday night, we decided to try a new (to us) restaurant, Channel Marker in Atlantic Beach. It didn't look like much from the outside, but it ended up being so nice. There are few things I love more than outdoor dining right on the waterfront!
The food was delicious, and it was just so relaxing.
After another fun day on Sunday, it was time to say good-bye to the beach and head back home.
J.C. was out of town for the last five days. Single parenting always challenges my energy, patience, and spirit. My plan for survival this weekend was simple: swimming.
We swam Friday.
We swam Saturday.
We swam Sunday.
Basically, we spent as much time as humanly possible swimming. There were several reasons for this strategy.
1. My children don't fight at the pool. I haven't figured out the secret of the sun and water, but there is clearly magic there. They all get along. While at the pool, I can enjoy my time with my children rather than playing referee all day.
2. They can't destroy the house when they aren't in it.
3. There are no dishes to wash or meals to prepare when all meals consist of pizza or subs delivered poolside.
So, pool time we had. We planned pool playdates with friends - girl friends,...
guy friends,...
and little teeny,
tiny friends.
Overall, the weekend was a success.
We had a few scraped toes and sunburned shoulders,
but that didn't put any damper on the fun,
and most importantly, this temporarily-single mom maintained her sanity!
When I was a kid, there was no such thing as clown camp.
I want to be a kid again, so I can go to clown camp, learn to juggle, paint my face, learn magic tricks, and make balloon animals.
When I was a kid, there was no such thing as an aquatic Easter egg hunt.
I want to be a kid again, so I can swim around in floaties grabbing Easter eggs as they bob up and down in the water.
I want to be a kid again, so I can have the thrill of donning goggles and diving down to retrieve cement filled eggs.
I want to be a kid again, so I can feel complete wonderment and awe over blowing a soap bubble.
Without the luxury of a magic time machine though, I can be content to live these experiences through the eyes of my children because that is a magical experience in itself.
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