This is the first time my husband has been able to join us at the beach for the whole week. He's usually so busy with work that he can't make it down. This year, he decided no matter what he was coming with us. It's been nice having him here. I would have hated to have him miss Lila's first real trip to the beach. That being said...
It's been a much different trip this year. By the time I've gotten home from the beach in years past, I'm usually full of stories about the "crazy" things that have happened. Tim's heard them all, so he was ready for the madness that typically ensues at some time or another. But this year...nothing. It's a bit of a Catch 22 really. No one is arguing...which is good. The evenings are a little on the boring side...which is bad. The days seem to be taken up with the beach (as they should be) but a typical night consists of everyone on their respective computers/IPODS/Tablets doing whatever. Just more subdued than a typical trip.
Yesterday was a bit of a family day for us. After catching one two many rays (and forgetting to put sunscreen on my face), we decided to stay out of the sun for an afternoon. Tim and I took the baby up to a little open air pub called Castaways for lunch and a beer. Tim tried a very tasty oatmeal stout he hadn't heard of before, and Lila enjoyed snacking on daddy's chips and mommy's crab dip. After lunch, we ventured over the bridge to check out a few of the local shops. They are the typical shops you find in any beach town, full of every type of souvenir imaginable. We found a small strip that, from the looks of it, seemed to be independently owned shops and not the gigantic Wings you see everywhere. We joked about the store front of the first shop we saw. With "open", "closed" and "sale today" signs all hanging in the window, it was difficult to know which one was currently correct. We found it, closed.
The first shop we went into was a cross between a video store and a dollar store (where everything wasn't a dollar but looked like the stock had stayed put for years). It smelled pretty bad inside. I would have to be very hard pressed to actually buy anything from this one. I'm not sure anything in the store could be trusted unless highly sanitized, several times over. We walked through a surf shop next. Typical t-shirts, shorts, flops and bathing suits. Tim reminisced a bit about his Ed Hurley and Billabong band days. It would be interesting to see him wear some of that stuff again. Not a look I've ever seen on him, but I bet he could still pull it off. The last store in the strip was a little "antique" store. There were some neat older things to look at, though it was more reminiscent of a flea market booth than a traditional antique store. Some special treasures could be found, if that were the thing you were looking for. Interesting to look at none-the-less. The owner of the store was very nice. He gave Lila an otter beanie baby named Seaweed. He told us he gives one to all the kids who come in the store. He finds it keeps them occupied and quite while their parents look around. Smart man.
The rest of the evening was like the rest of them have been, pretty quite. My cousin made chili for dinner, which was good if you could get past the tears that would well up in your eyes from the spice. He was also passing around shots of some liquor called Malot (or something like that) which can only be found in Chicago. It looks, smells and tastes like Listerine. Reminded me of hanging out in my dad's dental office as a kid. Unfortunately, the taste seems to linger with you. One was more than enough for me. After dinner, Tim and I watched a movie while most everyone else went to play putt-putt. A bulb in the TV here must be going bad. While watching a movie, the screen will go from light to dark to nothing. I find it curious that it only seems to do it when a DVD is playing. Too bad it can't fade in and out like that when my grandfather is watching FOX news...haha.
So today is our last day here at the beach. Right now, I'm just waiting on Lila to wake up from her nap so we can take her to the beach one last time. Maybe she'll even let us take her in the ocean. We're at least going to try. Stay tuned to see how well that works out...
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