Freezing on the beach

After going to Balboa Park in the morning we decided to spend the afternoon basking in the sun on the beach. By the time we got there the sun had hidden itself behind some gray, hazy clouds. It was fun.....for about 15 minutes, until hypothermia once again started setting in.

Now you may be asking yourself-- "Why on earth is poor little Violet sitting out in the freezing cold with no jacket or blanket on to protect her innocent self?" (I can hear your thoughts, mom)

The answer is short and concise-- "Her mother is moron."

Actually it was a balmy 70 degrees when we descended the great staircase that connects the campsites above with the sand below. And I call it the great staircase because those things are huge. Each has about 100 steps. It's not too bad going down, but coming up is a bear. Especially when you are lugging wet towels, blankets, sand toys, a cooler with the remains of lunch, and a baby.

The weather cooled quite rapidly as the sun hid it's face, that's why Violet is coat-less.

I love this picture because this was the moment she had just discovered the sticky, sandy stuff on her hands and didn't quite know what to make of the mess.

Zane got busy building and digging right away. Everybody else is in the background, trying to brave the icy surf.

While Curtis, Hallie and Hannah try digging for those elusive little guys, the sand crabs, Grace had had enough. She wrapped herself in her "Coat of Many Colors" and declared that she was done.

She also had visions of combing the sandy beach and finding beautiful shells. Being the tourist-heavy place that Carlsbad is, she didn't have much luck.


Zane relented to the cold and snuggled under his new beach towel. Within minutes the sound of the sea and surf lulled him off to sleepy-time.

I wish that Violet had also fallen asleep. Instead she was covered head to toe in sand (sadly- no picture).

We barbecued hot dogs and ate S'more's again that night. The next day we had a trip to Disneyland planned. About 9:00 Hannah announced that it was time to "turn in". We had great fun for another half hour teasing her for using old-timer talk.

It was a great end to a great day.