The Beach with the Babins

My dear Aunt Della called one day and happened to mention they’d be in Texas the next week. Yes, they’d be a 4 hour drive away, but given that they live 24 hours away, I was anxious that we meet-up, ya know?! So I loaded the boys and off we went, to see Aunt Della, Uncle Carl, my cousin Kelly and her family, and Uncle Mike (the boys’ favorite great-uncle), and Aunt Peggy.  It was a quick trip but so wonderful.
At their beautiful cabin… (Mike and Peggy)

Some of my favorite people: Kelly and Andy, Weston and Mila.

We drove up on a Thursday and headed straight for the beach.

Chance playing with Andy.

Charlie learned how to find hermit crabs. He immediately began planning how he could sell them and also have a class to teach other kids how to find hermit crabs. This boy is going to be an entrepreneur someday!

Chandler has a very active imagination (think Calvin and Hobbes) and he LOVES it when he plays with someone who will pretend along with him. Thus, he and Weston became fast friends.

Weston building sand castles with his grandma.

And Sweet Mila Jane with Grandma.

Chandler also loved doing things to make Mila smile or laugh.

Charlie and Mike playing chess on the kindle.

The next day we spent a few hours at a nearby waterslide. Afterwards we headed out for a seafood dinner…

I relished the last few minutes I had with these two. I wish they lived closer!

These guys couldn't wait for the food to come before they passed out…

Some food woke them up, and we prepared to head home. Thanks, Uncle Mike, for the photo.


Our group.

And then we headed home.
One last funny story. I decided, just after this picture was taken, to drive on the beach in my minivan (which hadn't been done before). Unbeknownst to me, the area hadn’t received rain in awhile which means the sand was very dry – not drivable. I promptly got stuck. The kids freaked out. Chance thought the tide was going to come in and we’d all drown. Chandler said he thought we might die. Oh man, it’s funny now, but my kids have no idea how to handle crisis.  Charlie, though, hopped out of the van and began brainstorming on what to do. Of course, we could have called the family to rescue us. But honestly, I was a little embarrassed.  So I dug, and dug, and dug around the wheels and kept trying to reverse. Soon a kind couple, who’d successfully parked on the beach themselves, came over and pushed the car while I floored it. It took about 5 minutes, but felt like an eternity, of pushing, and finally we were freed! Lesson learned. We did not drive on the beach after all, but quickly headed home.