More beach adventures (August 15-22nd)

We rode our bike to the beach several times... which was about a 20 minute bike ride... but when you're traveling with an 8-month prego, it's closer to 30 minutes! Caleb had fun riding in the cart... and Josh rode a tandem with either me or Mike. My favorite was riding with Josh, because he helped me pedal!


But aside from playing in the "waves" (the term "waves" is used loosely, since it's a shallow beach, so it's not exactly white water), we also had fun playing in the sand. It was definately a family affair and we all had a part in the sand castle city! Mike was the general contractor (he had the general vision, but also dug the moats and built the outer walls)... Josh was the excavator (he cleared away the sand bulldozer style and helped with the outer walls)... Caleb was the landscaper (and dug some fabulous holes for lakes and ponds)... and I was the Interior Designer (I strategically placed all the towers). Mike's Dad said it looked like Zarahemla... although that wasn't what we were planning... I do believe it bears a slight resemblence!





Another day, we rode our bikes to South Beach, where they have a lot of shops and restaurants... and the main attraction is 3 parrots who are perched outside "The Salty Dog". They encourage you to talk and wave to them because they supposedly talk. But except for their "screaming", as Caleb put it, we weren't lucky enough to witness their extended bird vocabulary... and Caleb not being a fan of the loud shrieks didn't stick around the birds for long.




The last day we were there, we were seeing the results of Hurricane Fae (from Florida), with a lot of rain. But it was our last day, and so were determined to make one last trip to the beach. The rain seemed to be holding off, so we packed up the trailer and jumped on our bikes. By the time we got to the beach, we could see the dark clouds coming, the wind was picking up, and a few rain drops could be felt. We walked out onto the beach to find the wind whippin'...and the boys weren't too fond of the stinging sand on their legs, and we could barely hold onto the boogie boards! But it was quite a sight! Normally the water is pretty calm... but that day it had huge waves roaring in, and I have to admit, it was quite impressive! (our video and pictures just don't do it justice) But we decided it wasn't worth someone drowning, so we headed back and found a pavilion just in time to avoid a huge and sudden DOWNPOUR! I talked Mike into waiting out the rain... and we ended up hanging out with another family with 2 boys for about an hour until the rain stopped.

We went out to the beach to take a look, and although the waves were still huge, the sun was trying to peek out, so we decided to stay as long as we could before the weather turned again! Josh ended up having a great time with the other kids... and they boogie boarded and body surfed/got slammed for a little over an hour! And there was a huge stump that washed up onto the beach, and I was surprised how all the boys (including the Dads) were so fascinated by a large, gnarly piece of wood! Nevertheless, it entertained them for quite a while! And although Caleb was a little hesitant of the waves, he enjoyed being hit by the water and swept up the beach!

We were having a great time... and then, in a matter of seconds, the rain started POURING again! We grabbed all our stuff and made our way to our bikes, packed up and prepared for the 30 minute bike-ride back to the condo. Again, I tried to talk Mike into waiting out the rain, but he wanted to just get on the road. So away we went! We were literally soaked after 2 minutes... and with rain pouring down our faces and into our eyes, it was difficult to see where we were going (especially me, sporting my contact lenses!) Mike didn't say much... but I couldn't help but laugh... Caleb couldn't help but cry every once in awhile... and Josh couldn't stop shivering! But overall, it turned out to be a fun day, spent with complete strangers, in the rain! Unfortunately, it was raining too hard to get a picture of us completely drenched... so you'll have to use your imagination!

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And considering that we had an 8 hour drive home, both boys did so great! We only made 2-3 quick stops to use the restroom and get gas, they were both very patient and well-behaved travelers! Thank goodness, of course, to the DVD player, Leapster Games, and the fact that they are both experienced travelers from making multiple 12+ hour trips to Alaska! And I feel that it's worth mentioning that our potty-training Caleb didn't even have an accident the whole trip! Hallelujiah!