Family beach day in America

Last updated on July 28th, 2020 at 10:51 am

We are back at the beach, one of my favorite spots to bring the kids each summer when we travel to America. Our summers here are always packed full of seeing family and friends but also reliving all the amazing childhood memories I experienced with my own two kids in tow. This beach brings back so many of them each and every time I come here and now as the kids get older those memories are featuring them now too. 

It was great hearing them both squeal for the beach as soon as we drove up. There is so much to do at this beach, it’s worth the long drive to get there from my parents’ house. It has white sand, a huge play park, ice cream cafe, and so much at your finger tips you can spend the entire day there. It was hot when we went because it’s always hot. The water stays cold so it’s great to dip in and out of when you need to cool down. 

I sat on one of the kids little chairs and watched Grandma teaching them how to build good sandcastles and use their sand rollers to make cool prints in the sand. I think she was having as much fun as they were. I was enjoying the chill out time to relax and just take in my children’s giggles. It’s not often in the fast pace of life that we get to just stop and watch them like this. I soaked every minute of it up, snapping a few photos and videos here and there to look back on when they are older. I am sure somewhere there are photos exactly like this of me and my own brother doing this very thing. I get really emotional watching my mother play with my kids sometimes because I wish they could always be this close and have this much fun together. They love her so much and I hate that their bond has to be through a computer screen 90% of the time. It really makes family beach days like this that much more special. 

My mother and I were laughing as we chilled out and watched the kids swim. We were pondering what is so amazing about playing in sand for kids? It’s gritting and dirty and at first my two acted like they didn’t know what to do with it. It had us in fits of laughter because it’s something we never questioned because my mother and I have always grown up on beaches, lakes, and rivers. Things that are normal and everyday to us are foreign to my kids. They are still at an age where they don’t remember last year or even our last travels abroad. Once they got their hands dirty, literally, they had such a great time that they didn’t want to leave.

We broke for lunch and the kids had their beach picnic. My mother and I being on our health kicks, as we are every summer together, nibbled boiled eggs and dipped our feet in the water to cool off ourselves. I love having such a close bond with my mother. I don’t know how I would survive living so far away without these few summer months to come home and catch up with her. These few weeks we spend and the few weeks we get when she visits in winter are so important and precious to me. I love making the most of each and every moment of it. She has been the most amazing mother I could ever ask for and so supportive. I look at my own children and hope I am half the mother to them as she is to me.

I broke down and let the kids get ice cream even though they had it a few weeks ago before we came to America. But it was cotton candy and they thought the bright blue and pink color of it was so amazing they just had to have it. I know there is nothing better than having an ice cream after a hot, hot day at the beach. Both not only fell into a sugary coma but ended the day with blue faces to match. It was hilarious watching them eat it. B kept licking his lips saying, “this is so delicious Mommy”. I couldn’t stop laughing. 

It was such a great family beach day together. We will be having many more to come in the next few weeks but this one is special in my mind because it really seemed like MM got to play more this year and get involved more in building sandcastles and swimming with us. It also was time for Grandma and MM to bond closer. MM was such a shy baby and toddler it isn’t easy to get into her personal space if you aren’t Mommy or B. She really took a shine to my mother this summer and they are bonding so much since we landed. This is my new favorite photo of them together. She really has come out of her shell and having a blast this year.

There is nothing better than a great family beach day together. Time to chill out, take in the giggles and laughter from everyone around us. The kids run around and soak up the sun rays and fresh air. I wish I could bottle up how I feel on the beach and take it back to England with me to open in the dead of winter when I need the feeling to fill me. I feel so grateful for my beautiful family and our time here with my family and friends. They have grown up and changed so much each and every time we come here. Each year, holds new adventures and things we can do as they grow older. I can’t wait in a few years where we start floating down the river, going to the big water slides and so much more that is here for older kids too. 

The weather has been so great here. We are so lucky to always guarantee the weather when we visit. It helps to plan things out and make sure we do everything we want to do together as a family while we are here. Tomorrow we are off camping for the very first time ever. Wish me, luck.