Sahail AshrafBRING ON SUMMER
January 5th 2007 01:53
I love summer, even more so now I can enjoy it as a mum. For me summer encompasses visits to the beach, tantalizing barbecues and a cool beverage (or three) sitting outside on a balmy evening.
My hubby and I have an ‘in’ joke about having the good fortune of leaving near the beach. We took part in a weekend sailing course once at our local yacht club. Being a yacht club, the course attracted its share of ‘snobbish’ characters. We were setting up our dinghy on the first day when we overheard part of one couple’s conversation with another couple. They were explaining the benefits of deciding to move from the country to the coast, ending the statement with ‘it’s a lifestyle choice.’
We laughed about this comment ‘it’s a lifestyle choice’ for a long time but it’s now become our tongue in cheek motto about living in a coastal area. It seems all the more important now that we are bringing children into the equation. I love that I can take my daughter down to the beach whenever I like. She can experience the joy of running along the shore, finding little treasures and paddling in the water.
She can feel sand sift through her fingers and squish it between her toes – less desirably she occasionally still enjoys the feel of sand crunched between her teeth! She can dig holes, build sandcastles, and draw shapes in the sand. She can run up little sand dunes and feel the pleasure of sliding back down again. She can experience the softness of dry sand and the hardness of wet sand. She can find shells, cuttlefish, seaweed, coral, jellyfish and make many other delightful discoveries.
She can feel the water, squealing that it’s ‘cold’ when we go in the mornings. As I paddle out with her she can kick and blow bubble, swallowing a bit of salty water in the process. In the early evening, as the sun begins to set, she can experience a more lukewarm low tide and run along the sand bars. She can crawl along, splash mum and dad and be splashed back. Beneath her toes she can feel seaweed, squelchy sand, rocks and the hard flats.
And me? I get to reminisce at the long hours I enjoyed at the beach myself as a child. I can enjoy the heat as we head down to the shoreline and relish in the feel of cool, refreshing water. Most of all I have the added bonus of enjoying the beach through two sets of eyes. Hers and mine.
My hubby and I have an ‘in’ joke about having the good fortune of leaving near the beach. We took part in a weekend sailing course once at our local yacht club. Being a yacht club, the course attracted its share of ‘snobbish’ characters. We were setting up our dinghy on the first day when we overheard part of one couple’s conversation with another couple. They were explaining the benefits of deciding to move from the country to the coast, ending the statement with ‘it’s a lifestyle choice.’
We laughed about this comment ‘it’s a lifestyle choice’ for a long time but it’s now become our tongue in cheek motto about living in a coastal area. It seems all the more important now that we are bringing children into the equation. I love that I can take my daughter down to the beach whenever I like. She can experience the joy of running along the shore, finding little treasures and paddling in the water.
She can feel sand sift through her fingers and squish it between her toes – less desirably she occasionally still enjoys the feel of sand crunched between her teeth! She can dig holes, build sandcastles, and draw shapes in the sand. She can run up little sand dunes and feel the pleasure of sliding back down again. She can experience the softness of dry sand and the hardness of wet sand. She can find shells, cuttlefish, seaweed, coral, jellyfish and make many other delightful discoveries.
She can feel the water, squealing that it’s ‘cold’ when we go in the mornings. As I paddle out with her she can kick and blow bubble, swallowing a bit of salty water in the process. In the early evening, as the sun begins to set, she can experience a more lukewarm low tide and run along the sand bars. She can crawl along, splash mum and dad and be splashed back. Beneath her toes she can feel seaweed, squelchy sand, rocks and the hard flats.
And me? I get to reminisce at the long hours I enjoyed at the beach myself as a child. I can enjoy the heat as we head down to the shoreline and relish in the feel of cool, refreshing water. Most of all I have the added bonus of enjoying the beach through two sets of eyes. Hers and mine.
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Comment by Andrea
V8 Supercar Pitstop
I too relish the opportunity to visit the beach with my children. Don't they just love it.
So much to see, do and learn about ... until the sandwiches take their name literally and end up full of sand, anyway. Oh well, at least the children will still eat them!!
A.H.
Comment by Candice
The beach seems to have that universal appeal for kids hey?!
I know what you mean about the sandwiches though. My daughter's always end up in the sand but like your kids she'll still happily crunch away on them - Yuk!
Comment by Candice
The beach seems to have that universal appeal for kids hey?!
I know what you mean about the sandwiches though. My daughter's always end up in the sand but like your kids she'll still happily crunch away on them - Yuk!