We Even Vacation As A Household!

The thought of 6 hours in the car with two young boys is only made tolerable by the more compelling thought of waves crashing onto the Atlantic shore, and being in the company of those you love with nothing better to do than relax in the sand or on the couch. And so we hopped in the car at 8:00 p.m. with a prayer for sleepy boys and traveling companions and prepared our minds and nerves for the drive east to Rodanthe. Philip and Betsy followed closely behind with the slightly less noisy Dietrich in the back seat. Our boys did well enough, and we'll leave it at that.

Our 3 1/2 days at the beach were the perfect antidote to the previous 5 months of busyness as we have attempted to adjust to new places and people. Although our household lives together in relative harmony, vacationing together brought out different facets of personalities and allowed us to enjoy each other in new ways apart from the bustle of everyday life. We also enjoyed our first (excepting Philip) prolonged time with Betsy, and spent many hours around the table after meals and in the living room at night discussing all manner of things metaphysical and mundane.

And then there was the shore...
It was especially exciting introducing Elliot to the beach and ocean, and he was simultaneously thrilled and perplexed by it. He loved digging in the sand and running into the surf, but was equally cowed by the vertiginous tide and cold shock of salt spray. He was most at ease with the ocean when Sylvia or I would hold him and take him into the ocean, jumping waves. Vincent mostly ate sand and looked cute in his floppy Thai hat.

Too soon, our trip to the coast had ended and we packed, re-entered the car for the trip home, refreshed and renewed from our time away together.














(September 19-22)