Other than celebrating my little sister's high school graduation, there was only one other thing that NEEDED to get done while Emery and I were in sunny San Diego. Go to the beach! Emery had never been, I love the beach, and....well we are in San Diego! We don't need anymore reason than that.
We packed a bag, and we both were SO excited to go! I tried explaining to Emery what the beach was like, but knew he just had to see it to really understand.
He was pretty stoked, even if he had no idea what I was talking about.
When we got there, it was magnificent, as always. We went to La Jolla shores, a favorite of mine. You can't really go wrong with a beach in southern California, but this one has lots of fun memories. It is where I went to for bonfires, birthday celebrations, and Michael and I had our engagement party here.
As we approached the sand, Emery was skeptical. He had never felt anything like it before. It was very hot.
His auntie Ro was very helpful in discovering how cool the stuff is. He slowly became a fan.
After Emery met sand, he wanted to meet water as well. So we went, hand in hand, to discover the big, blue, Pacific Ocean.
Emery would have marveled at the majesty of the sea, but he saw a bird. Done. He must get bird.
Then he got to the water!
Then he ran away from water. Tis the great chase of the lapping waves and the feet of little ones.
And then there was this great chase...
Emery, at one point, went farther than he planned in the water and fell! A wave splashed over him and it was quite scary from his tiny persepctive. He didn't want anything to do with the water for a while after that, but he made it through.
Then his Nini (my littler sister Roxanne) and her boyfriend, Kyle, arrived to join us in our beach day. Emery was very happy to see them. He made sure to tell her all about falling in the water, and showed her the rock he found. Then he told her she was naked. She was in a bikini. Kyle was only in shorts, so he was naked too. I bet you if you ask Emery about the beach, he will still tell you that his Nini and Kyle were there, and they were naked. They were not, it just seemed that way to him.
See...totally not naked.
After the water we changed into his board shorts, shirt, and swimmer diaper. Ideally that should have been before he was wet, but oh well, it was fun.
The beach looked good on Emery! He had this salt water hair going on. He was totally adorable, as usual.
We took a walk to see all the other parts of the beach. Emery was really drawn to the mosaic art around. He liked the colors.
Then we went to the grassy area. He liked how it felt on bare feet.
He also liked the boys who were playing frisbee. He had never seen anyone do that before. They let him throw it, and he about lost it with excitement! I am so thankful that they were good sports.
Then, again, he saw a bird. That was the rest of the time on the grass. Nothing else mattered.
And the bird lead us right back to the beach.
It was snack time (for both of us), so we laid out our towels and relaxed.
Emery ate a good amount of sand with the grapes. Fiber?
He was so sweet and snuggly to me the whole day. It was blissful.
Back down by the water, Emery found a place where some kids had dug a hole and water got in. Like a mini swimming pool. This was very fun and intriguing to him.
Then we got a sweet surprise! My brother, Emery's uncle J.J. took off work to come and be with us! Happy times!
Emery loves his uncle J.J. very much...but he was not showing it this day. I am not sure what was up. He wanted to be near J.J.....but not too near.
And he absolutely wanted NO photos to show they are friends.
After a bit of warming up, Emery took J.J. on a walk to explore. It made everything better between them. Balance restored.
After the walk I could tell Emery was getting tired from the sun and the sand. He was showing his fatigue, but also, showing his cool side with his sunglasses. He refused to give in to the tired.
So what did this tired boy do? Rest? Why, of course not! More walks!
More water!
More sand!
More...well....I guess I will just lay down right here :) He thought sunbathing was just an excuse to lie down, so he gladly took it.
It was then that I called it a day. I knew he had reached his point. He was being so sweet and so well behaved, but I knew he was exhausted from all the fun. So we packed up and headed home. It was not even 5 mins into the car that I looked back and saw this:
There are few things more peaceful and rewarding than a good Beach nap (to fall asleep from being so sun soaked, happy, and tired from a beach day).
Emery and I arrived home very well rested and happy. Later that night we caught a concert in the park with my Dad, Step-mom, and little brother.
Emery had a good time, but the highlight of his night was getting a water bottle all to himself (he doesn't get to drink from them at home because he does not know how...notice the shirt).
Ah, it was SUCH a good day! We loved each little discovery, excitement, moment with family, and bird chase. Beaches are good for the soul. We went to sleep that night very fulfilled, centered, and happy. We hope you all can feel as good as we did that nigh,t very soon.
Love, peace, and beach to you all,
Team Oakley
