On Saturday we had grand plans to take the kids to the beach in Capitola. Brett and I love going probably as much as Hank does so we have missed not going very often this summer. It was going to be Ruby and Charlotte's first time at the beach. It was also going to be a risky adventure seeing as we didn't have another adult to help us. But we are trying to embrace the fact that being outnumbered is our fate and we have to figure it out and not let it keep us from getting out there! (Easier said than done ha!) This had huge potential to be the worst idea ever. We were kinda late getting on the road after the girls' morning nap so by the time we got onto 17 to head south it was already packed with beach-going traffic. We had to make the decision to abort our plan and go north to Half Moon Bay to ensure we would get to the beach by lunch time. We were bummed because it meant we were headed to the cold beach instead of the sunny one.
Once we got into HMB we stopped to pick up a pizza for our picnic and once I stepped out of the car I realized just how cold it was. It was 59 degrees. Oops. I went into a Mexican hole-in-the-wall clothing store next to the pizza joint that looked like it was full of cast-offs that weren't even good enough to send to Goodwill and everything was just dumped out everywhere. The craziest store I have ever been in. I bought Hank a hoodie and the girls some socks all for a negotiated price of $8 and all of which were buried under piles of other clothes only to be found by the lone cashier. We were going to keep our kids warm! And I guess we know where to go next time we go to HMB and forget our sweaters.
In the end, we had an amazing time and loved it! We were chilly but it felt quite warm on the beach. The girls loved getting their hands in the sand. Logistically it just didn't work out to let them get their toes in the water so we'll have to let them experience the water another time. (Two crawling babies plus Hank near the water was too adventurous for us, plus the girls wanted to eat the sand so very badly.)
It was not easy getting all of our gear down the stairs to the beach and luckily a nice lady carried the pizza for us on the way down. Hank offered to carry it but that was not a good idea. We had so much fun and Brett and I were patting ourselves on the back for conquering our little fear of taking them to the beach by ourselves and we plan to go back soon. But hopefully to Capitola!
Charlotte and Ruby enjoying the sand.
They found the pizza box.
They ate pizza and ate their new socks. Not sure which one was worse.
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| The view of HMB on the drive in...the fog rolling in. |
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| The sun coming out as we were leaving...the fog burning off. |
-a
