Beautiful Assateague Island

Two weekends ago we squeezed in a day trip to the beach before the weather turned cold . . . and all 15 1/2 hours of our crazy day were worth it. We left our house at about 5:30 am on Saturday morning, the 25th of Sept, drove 3 hours to Assateague Island, spent from about 9:45 am to about 6 pm on the beach loving life, and then drove 3 hours home arriving home at about 9 pm. 

Now, this is not to offend all my west coast friends, but truly, the sand on the east coast (or at least on Assateague Island) is the best I have ever felt between my toes. As soft as a blanket. This is, and always has been, one of my favorite places to go. It is a little Island where beautiful wild horses roam the beaches right along with the beach goers. I have never been there and not had horses walk right in front of our umbrellas and towels . . . until this day. We think it was because of how late in the season it was perhaps??  At any rate, we did see horses, just not as closely as we are used to. 

I think Rebekah agrees that the sand was as soft as a blanket. This girl was the sand queen. She didn't stop the entire day. Sand play, sand play, and more sand play. She did snack once in awhile, but all of her snacks were full of bites of sand since she couldn't resist touching it at all times. 

This is Tilly. She is my sister Kim's granddaughter, making her my ummmm, grand-niece maybe. :) She is as cute as a button. Look at those squishy leggies. 

Alex and Jayden (Tilly's brother and Alex's best buddy here) making sand castles with Joseph. Seriously Alex and Jayden play better together than any two 3 year olds I have ever seen. I guess he and Alex would be second cousins of some sort maybe?? 

My sister Kim chillin with Kaitlyn. This trip confirmed to us that Kaitlyn is not our outdoorsy girl. We have a feeling that in some years from now, Rebekah will be begging her to go outside and play in the dirt with her and Kaitlyn will decline by saying, "Noway. I need air conditioning and no sun." :) Needless to say, she didn't enjoy the beach. :) But, in her defense, it was a long day for a little one who couldn't even play in the sand. She was a trooper. 

The boys running in and out of the tides. I think they ran a marathon that day . . . and giggled the whole way through it.

 

There were some older ladies sitting near us that were cracking up at the endless amount of time Rebekah spent in the sand . . . she even had to carry it with her wherever she walked. :)

Just takin a rest 

 

Kim and I buried them like this. They loved it. 

Rebekah. The Sand Queen. 

Did I mention that Kaitlyn did not like the beach? At all. 

Once Rebekah got over her initial fear of the loud crashing waves, she looked like this every time a wave would come up to us and splash our legs. I love that girl.

And like this. Isn't she just beautiful. 

And eventually I got her to get this close to the water.

My final undertaking was actually getting her to stand in it . . . and like it! Brave girl!

And the boys . . . still running that marathon.

Don't ask me . . . I do not know why they were trying to suck sand up their straws. We'll call it creative.

Aunt Kim with the babes again. Doesn't Kaitlyn look thrilled to be there? Poor sweety. That is Dorito/sand mess all over Rebekah's face in case you were wondering. 

At about 3 or 4 in the afternoon, Alex couldn't stand it anymore and collapsed in this chair for a power nap.

Meanwhile, Rebekah was still playing in the sand. :) This time with Jayden and Uncle Joe (My sister's husband).

Still playing. 5 pm.

Uncle Joe built a turtle dinosaur. No one was allowed to touch it. Someone needs to teach Uncle Joe how to share. 

Toward the end of the day. The winds are picking up, it is getting chilly and we are searching for shells to take home. 

  

Back at that marathon . . . this time with intermittent stops to pick up a shell.

My sister Kim does digital scrap booking and put this page together from our day at the beach. I think the quote she has on it pretty much sums up our day. In case you can't read it, it says, "Sometimes life offers us moments of absolute perfection and wraps us in heavenly dust." I mean ya know, "perfection" meaning that we still thought it was a perfect day even when we were trying to leave and we had to wash an ocean of sand off of three screaming kids. They weren't screaming out of exhaustion either . . . . no, no . . . . out of sadness at the fact that the shower water was like ice water. Maybe that is why they all have colds this week??

If you are dying to see the rest of the million pictures we took that day, click on this link.
http://picasaweb.google.com/Crayon886/20100925?authkey=Gv1sRgCPLOsujtwpmLvgE#