Fun in the Sun

There is nothing better than getting together with great friends to do a 'first.' This time is was teaming up with the Blacks to take our kids to the beach for the first time. It was also my first time seeing the Atlantic Ocean.

We got our buckets, shovels, and picnic food, and started on our adventure!

It was pretty obvious that the Blacks' kids were initially much more brave than our girls.

Our girls always take a bit of time to warm up to new things. So, they made the most of the beach first, before trying out the cold ocean water.

It was fun to see Jocie and Addie pick up where they had left off a year ago with no bumps, just love!!!

Jared got in fast and got his hands dirty, trying to teach the girls proper sandcastle making techniques! Funny, but I never actually saw a proper sandcastle completed (but we'll just blame it on the girls limited attention spans;-)!

Having four adults was nice, so that one of us could stay back and guard our spot from the ruthless seagulls that literally stole 2/3 of Jared's sandwich right out of his hand. It was a pretty cool sight to see!

I was excited when Addie was a sport, letting us bury her to transform her into a beautiful mermaid!

I never knew that burying your child alive could be so fun for them!

I really loved being at the ocean with my girls; their excitement totally made the experience magical!

And they got braver and braver as the day went on, getting into deeper and deeper waters.

Jared also showed the girls how to spell in the sand.

I saw this moment coming and had to capture it, since I thought it was so precious with Kelsey giving her Mom some loves!

This pic is also precious (ha ha)! This sums up Alexia, very confident and slightly bizarre! We sure do love this spunky monkey!

This pic sums up Addie quite nicely. Even when covered in sand, she is still a total princess! We sure do love our princess, too!

And to the Blacks, thanks so much for the great memories!!!