our coastal solace

oh hi again. it's me. a renewed, vacationed me. one that looks a little less stressed and tired and a little more rested and beachy. kinda like this:

we're back from our little escapade to visit my parents in Southern California...we snatched up some ridiculously cheap airfare about a month ago to visit them (since M hadn't seen them since before we moved)- and the timing couldn't have been more perfect-- we needed a reason to escape our snow-ball project of a house and really rest up before M started into busy season...(which is now in full force, as he won't be coming home tonight until 10:00 pm...let the widowhood begin).

for journaling's sake (and for the day that i decide to print this sucker out) i'm going to do a couple of different posts from our trip. ok? ok.

one of our favorite parts of being down there (aside from lots of laughs from my funny parents, yummy food, and silly moments of wrong turns funny conversations) was enjoying the beautiful coastline just minutes from their home. every morning, we enjoyed a run on the coast- and can i just say, i love running on the beach.

is there anything that feels better? perfect temperature, beautiful surroundings, yummy smells, lovely sounds. ah. i heart the beach. anyway, the first night, M and i walked down and enjoyed the sunset- and we knew that Ellie would love it. so we went back the next night and took her...

...of course she was ticked when it got dark and she couldn't see her shovel anymore and realized that we were leaving...

...so we went back again before we left and let her play some more. man, she looovvveees the beach. the rest of the time, she kept saying to me, "sand? sand? sand?," as if to say, "mama, take me to the sand. i've got some serious digging to do."

now, all is never hunky dory when it comes to beach trips. and let's get real, this is ME we're talking about, so of course random stuff always happens. well, when i took Ellie down to play the second time, i pulled out some goldfish crackers about 20 minutes into playing, like any good mom would do. all of a sudden, a flock of seagulls surrounded me. well, it wasn't like i was going to share some with them, so i hid the crackers underneath my legs. a few minutes later, i pulled them out again and popped a couple in my mouth- and offered some to Ellie. now, she was in the opposite direction of one of the birds...and so naturally, i looked toward her, away from the bird. well, that nasty sucker came and nipped the bag right out of my hand! i literally screamed out loud and grabbed the fallen bag from the floor and the closest thing i could find, a small hand towel- and that thing came right back for more. it was not scared of little ole me one bit- but it shoulda been- because i started swinging that hand-towel like a banchee- and i hit the bird- 2, maybe 3 times. i looked down at my arm, and i had two large scratches. SERIOUSLY. TWO!! they are still kinda there, and i admit that i'm a little concerned that i might have rabies or something. now, you'd thing the dang bird woulda gotten a clue- but he didn't. he still lurked right there, waiting for me to mess up again and look away. what did he think i was? a ding dong? my eyes were right on that thing- and i kept saying to him, "it's a crying shame for you we're not in Utah- because there i couldn't do THIS!" and i'd throw sand on it. maybe it was a little harsh. but he ruined some perfectly good fish. plus, i could technically blame it on the rabies. just sayin.

{the rabies-infested-goldfish-stealing seagull}

and thus ends our excursion(s) to the beach.

xoxo