the jump

take 1

take 2

take 3

take 4 YAY!

 

 

we wanted a rumpus

and so we lit some torches


and waited for darkness

we played with fire

and waited some more


soon we saw Captain Jack Sparrow


and made the statue of Liberty run


some of us truly believed they can parkour

the beach, the moon, and the magic that only a summer night can bring :)

just another day at the beach

grub :: seagulls :: shadows



boys jumping :: girls chatting :: umbrellas breaking


we dig holes : : we bury our legs


we play :: we hug

the beach :: we heart it :)

the journey back

Three days later, we were back at our campsite with my niece, Jin and Marc's friend, Corey.
The children were bursting with excitement, joy, and delight:

cheers of excitement to rope swing once again

of joy in hunting for more (smelly) treasures

and of delight to get on the swing that was so talked about

While Marc and Corey were setting up to sail, they were talking about how they can make it back in less than twenty minutes with favorable winds.
The drive was a little over ten miles; and with the after-work rush, drawbridges, and about a dozen traffic lights -- it would also take about twenty minutes to get back by land.
That takes about the same time...so why not race?

VAN VS BOAT-- the start line

Bring it on!
"""Team Van spotted the white sail with the blue and red stripe from every bridge they crossed, the children screamed and squealed each time. And with a little over a mile to go, driving down Ocean Blvd., they saw the sail again!"""

the finish line -- Team Van won!

Team Boat arrived cold and wet a few minutes later.

The celebration of the great race and of Miracle (Marc's boat) getting back home went on until sundown. Victory dances and victory cries were seen and heard until it was time to go home for supper and homework.

a watermelon and shark kind of weekend ;)

and here's the shark. Maku told me this morning the shark looked like it was five years old and that he would never swim in shallow waters without his mommy if he was a five year old shark.

i tried to capture the children's fascinated faces knowing my friends will take loads of pics of the shark. this is the best i could do, my camera battery wasn't cooperating.

and the shark went weee! weee! weee! all the way home. :)

my bff Marlen

my friend Marlen and I made it to the beach at 8:30 this morning, greeted by seagulls and freshly raked sand.

no toys, no trucks, no dolls and no shovels just peanut butter sandwiches and bananas in our beach bags.
i've known Marlen for two years now and she has become more like a sister to me than just a friend --or should i say more like a mom. she prepares our beach snack, she delivers black beans to my home every week, takes my avocados out of the fridge, honks my car horn for me every time a car gets in my way, and look at her here -setting up camp.

she is so proper, and fancy, and organized
she didn't get a speck of sand on her body this morning -- which explains her deep even tan while mine is ten different shades of brown
we are such complete opposites yet we get along so wonderfully

she had major trouble with our umbrella this morning, i laughed at her seriousness and determination for not wanting my help cuz "i"ll just mess things up"

we chatted, we swam, we walked. she told me about these really nice shoes on sale that were my size. yup, she even browses size 5 1/2 shoes and i know there is no way she'd fit in one.

we spent five hours together just the two of us, without the kiddos --and it felt like such a short time.
yay to friendship! and to our umbrella staying up!