Beach adventures

Grandma would have been proud of Clark today. We went to the beach and he collected shells. When I was little, she and Grandpa lived a few blocks from the beach. When she would take us to the beach we would take a bucket or cup to collect shells. It was like a treasure hunt looking for the best shells to add to our collection. I have a jar with some of Grandma's shells in it which I love because I think of her every time I see it. Shells were her trademark.

So here's the story. I met Michael for lunch today to quiz him on his catechism questions before he took his test tonight. After we left we ran by the bank to make a deposit and Clark fell asleep in the car. Knowing I couldn't transfer him to the pack-n-play without waking him up I decided to go to the beach since it was close by. I just rolled down the windows in the car and enjoyed the beautiful weather until Clark woke up. When he did we took a little walk on the beach. He loved it! He walked all around on the sand like he had been walking all his life (when in reality he's only been walking for about two weeks).

Clark was captivated by the shells. It was so cute! He would squat down, pick up a shell or piece of a shell, talk to me in gibberish and then hand me his shell to hold. Then, we would take a few more steps and repeat the whole routine again. Then, we found a big shell that was partially buried. I helped him dig it out and when we finally uncovered it he held it for the rest of our walk. He handed me all the other shells, but not his big one. He cried when I took it away from him because he was chewing on it when we got back to the car. I wished I had an iPhone because there were so many good picture moments, but I didn't have my camera--if anyone would like to give me an iPhone I'd love it :)


Here's a picture of our collection of shells.

He saw lots of seagulls, which he barked at. We're working on identifying the difference between cats, dogs and birds. Right now he barks at all of them. We saw a fishing boat go by and he got scared when a military helicopter flew overhead. Several people walked or biked by and he waved bye bye to them and tried to talk to them as they passed. When we got ready to go he didn't want to leave, instead he chased after a seagull.

Several thought came to mind while we were exploring the sand and shells. First, I'm so thankful to have the opportunity to live near the coast so that it's easy to take an impromptu trip to the beach. I'm thankful to be able to spend time with Clark and give him hands-on experiences. It dawned on me that Clark, although he's only 14 months old, has had more real life experiences than many of my students who were 11 or 12 years old. Of course he won't remember them for a few more years, but when we read about the ocean in a book, he will know what it feels like, how the wind blows on your face and smells like salt. He will know the feeling of soft, gritty sand between his toes and the sticky feeling of salt water dried on his skin.

God has been so good to us! Today I was praising him for his beautiful creation, his blessing us with living close to the beach and giving us the best gift we could ever imagine (apart from our salvation and each other) in our son Clark. I love being Clark's mom!