Vacation, Part I

We went on vacation last week. No laptop! So no blogging. But there were some highlights.

- In the car on the way there, Kate kept asking, "When do we get to vacation?" And we keep saying, THIS IS IT! Vacation started when we all got home last night and started packing up the car! And then half an hour later, "Are we at vacation yet?"

- About 3 hours into the drive we stopped at a rest area. Surprisingly, it had a big picnic area with tables, some with a roof over them. We hauled out the cooler and ate sandwiches, drank juice boxes and sodas, ate chips and grapes. Saw a wild looking caterpillar. Laughed. I wanted to say to Kate, Now we're at vacation.

- Arrived at the Cape tired, hot. Picked up our pool passes and went straight to the pool. Kate was scared at first until she got used to the water wings, flotation devices she wore on her arms, something I only decided to throw into the car as an afterthought at the last minute. Once she got used to them, and the fact that she could float easily with them on, she warmed right up to the idea. "I"m swimming!" she said happily. "I'm swimming!"

- At our first meal out that night, Kate didn't eat anything, even though we ordered her shrimp, which she said she wanted. The next meal out, we ordered her macaroni and cheese, I think, and she didn't eat that either. Jack picked at a grilled cheese sandwich that had yellow cheese instead of white. We ended up eating four dinners in our condo, half cooked and half takeout. It would have been five but I gave them another chance (Kate kept asking, "Can we eat at a restaurant?" And I said, Yes! If you eat!) and they came through.

- Our first full day there, we went to the pool, and played mini-golf, and got hotdogs for lunch, and then went to the beach for the rest of the day. That night, putting Jack to bed, he said, "This was the best day. The beach, the pool, and minigolf." Pause a beat. "And hot dogs for lunch!"

- We played with water shooters I bought before the trip. They could spray water 3o feet in the air. Jack had a lot of fun with them. I kind of did too.

- High tide and low tide at Brewster is the difference between about 20 feet of beach and waist deep water a few feet from shore, and being able to walk a mile out into the ocean without the water being up to your knees. It's pretty amazing. We did both, and when the water was shallow, we crab-walked along on our elbows, or dug up shells and rocks and hermit crabs.

- At minigolf we fed goldfish in a pond near the end of the course. I believe this was the highlight for the kids. That or the plastic shark in the water near the 11th hole, I'm not sure which. It wasn't the minigolf, although Jack did get a thrill out of sinking one long putt. And dragged me back there two days later during one of Kate's only naps all week.

- The condo had a tiny yard, but we played a game of Mr. Fox anyway. It's kind of like Red Light, Green Light, I'd say. The kids had a blast, I made burgers. Nice. There was also a selection of board games; I think Pick Up Sticks was their favorite. It reminded me of a game we played as a kid, Jack Straws. I'll have to look for that next time I'm up there, or have Robin do it before she comes down.

- Fascinated by a new house with new toys and loads of knick-knacks, the kids were inspired to make up games. They played something involving these little rubbery coasters shaped like flipflops, a hide and seek sort of game. They played another with little glass objects shaped like fish and shells, which remarkably they didn't break. A third involved this big calculator, or maybe they just liked playing with it. Granted, they were just as apt to get in fights with each other over nothing of consequence, but when they did play nicely together, it was awesome.

More later.