fun, sun...

With Camille...

We've been staying up later, sleeping in later, especially the princesses. This morning, they ate breakfast in bed while watching cartoons. They are thoroughly enjoying vacation. We headed over to Grandma's place, and sat and visited while Paul did some work online, as in Real Job Work.

Then...to the beach. Of course it's never that easy. One would think that when in Florida, it's easy to just go to the beach. Well. The parking lot was full when we finally got there, so we went to a different beach...lots of driving....and finally, we found another beach. I mean, if a town has the word "Beach" in it, and one assumes they really have a long sandy beach, yet they only have houses and communities on the coast, well, what is THAT?!

The beach we found was small...it wasn't the vast sandy wavy beach we had imagined. So I decided to play the Glad Game. You know, Pollyanna, when she wanted a doll from the missionary barrel, and got a pair of crutches instead...so she decided to be glad she didn't NEED the crutches. The beach was very pleasant. The sand was white and warm, the sun shone through the clouds, the breeze was lovely in the palm trees. Never mind that the swimming area was tiny and rocky and there were loud bratty kids...and believe me, I wasn't just being judgmental, these pre-teens had potty mouths, and I don't just mean mild swears. They were spouting inuendoes and dropping the F-bomb liberally. Anyway. The sand was nice, the water was refreshing, and we had a a cooler full of healthy snacks, and some cold drinks. Char did gymnastics, Cam and Jon dug holes, Suze and Sonja enjoyed sunbathing, and we visited with Grandma. I went in the water a few times, and it was cool and refreshing.

And honestly, when you think about it, how in the world could one possibly be unthankful to be at a beach in Florida in March, when back in New York it's cold out?!

It just goes to show how we can be, by nature.

Driving around for hours with five kids can be challenging, but they were pretty good too. If I were driving, I would have stopped for ice cream again, even though we got it yesterday. But that's just me.

We ordered subs for dinner, which was hilarious, just deciding where to order food from, then who wanted what, then actually getting them ordered....but what a treat, not making dinner....and yum, they were so good. Thank you to Grandma, who is taking such good care of us all.

We're back at the hotel again tonight, the little girls are watching Disney something or other, and Paul is taking a shower. It's so nice to be on vacation. It goes by too fast, in a way, but in another way, I start to miss my kids at home. And those stupid dogs, I miss them fiercely. When I think about Suri wagging her entire being, when we get home, she will be simply beside herself with happiness, oh I miss her. And Duke too, he'll be so dignified-ly happy to see us...

One thing about being on vacation together is that Paul gets to interact with the kids, day after day, and it's fun. Usually he sees them in fits and starts, as my mother used to say. A few hours here, a few hours there...anyway....it's been nice.

And another thing is this: Paul is a nice guy. He's not patient by nature, but oh my goodness, he works on it. He's good. He's responsible, yet he teases, and we banter, and at the end of the day, we are never mad at each other, and I am so very thankful for that. I love having him around, and spending so much time together. That alone makes vacation an excellent time.

And...goodnight.