Our Day at the Beach

Once again, I am so far behind on postings. Dad had mentioned taking the boys to the beach over the Labor Day weekend and I thought it would be fun to go and bring the kids. Blake has only been to Galveston twice - once when he was three and last year to take family pictures (not to really play at the beach). Sydney has never been there and of course it was Brody's first time to go to the beach. I looove the beach - watching the waves crash, the sand, the salty air (although I'm not fond of the humidity), the birds and the seashells. It's so calming and peaceful there.

After going to Destin, Florida for Spring Break many years ago, I never wanted to go back to Galveston. Destin has sugar white sandy beaches and emerald water and Galveston's sand and water are nothing close! I never wanted to go back. After our little day trip, I realized what we have been missing! I am looking forward to our next visit.

We drove in on 61st Street and it immediately brought back memories of all the trips there as kids. I'll never forget the time mom was pregnant with David. We each got to bring a friend, so there were like 6 of us kids, mom and dad and another one on the way. We went to an ice cream shop on the way home and did mom and dad get some looks!! I remember all the trips there on weekends in high school, trips to visit Tim when he went to Galveston College for a short time, the times we went for Mardi Gras and trips with Matt and Steph to hang out at the condo. I missed those days, but it was weird to now be there with my own family! Blake was super excited about getting to the beach and wanted to camp out right on the Seawall. We drove and drove and the kids kept asking the famous kid question, "Are we there yet?" You could still see damage left behind from Hurricane Ike, but not as bad as last year when we took family pictures. It was amazing the further we drove in and all you could see is these big, beautiful beach homes and it didn't even look like the hurricane hit there.

Finally, we found our spot just past Jamaica Beach. The kids went straight for the water. I was kind of shocked that the water actually looked nice. Our spot was not crowded at all. There were not a whole lot of people around which made it even better!! Brody didn't know what to think. He loved staring all around trying to take it all in.

Here's a shot of him touching sand for the first time.

The weather was perfect, it was not too hot or we would not have made it there for the entire day. Brody was really good. He loved it when dad took him in the water for the first time. Big smiles and giggles were on his face when the waves crashed all around. Blake made sand castles, Sydney found a little girl to play with (what a surprise) and they buried each other in the sand, Mo enjoyed barking at people and eating ice cream, Tim walked Brody up and down the beach, Dad loved taking the kids in the water and I sat there and just chilled, it was sooo relaxing. I only wished I had a book. After our day at the beach, we drove on the Seawall and looked at the rebuilding they are doing. The Flagship Hotel is still closed, a huge piece of concrete is still loose so you can't drive in. We ended up eating at our favorite pizza place - Mario's where we have always gone, it was really yummy.

I was so glad we decided to go. I can't wait to go back, stay overnight and go to Moody Garden's, the Strand and walk the Seawall and go to those fun little touristy gift shops when they reopen.

Thanks for the great idea dad! We had a blast! Here are some pictures of our day at the beach.

I love this one of Dad taking Brody in the water for the first time.

First time Brody's feet touch the sand.