Monthly Archives: May 2011

Swimin’

Just as We got to the pool this evening, Beth realized she had forgotten something. So, Ella and I got in the pool and proceeded to have a grand old time. We did “monkey chase the weasel,” “watering can,” and “Ella swim to Daddy”.

Later when Beth returned, she asked what I’d done to get Ella so eager to do all the exercises she’d learned in swim class. I had no idea as I had just done all the things which Ella had asked me to do. Beth laughed and said she had never seen Ella so eager before. She figured that perhaps it was because I was not as timid with Ella as she is. Next time we go to the pool, Beth says she wants me to have five minutes alone with Ella before she gets in. ;)

Just before we left, I got this video of Ella swimming to Mommy:

Familiar Patterns

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I thought of my father as I was walking through Walmart this past Sunday morning. Whenever my family went to the beach, he often took care of our domestic needs like shopping and cooking. While Mommy and Ella were playing on the beach, I was getting groceries and other supplies. I enjoyed having the time to shop and collect my thoughts.

I love the rhythms of a beach vacation. We start the day with a little breakfast followed by a morning on the beach. Ella naps in the afternoon. Yesterday, I went to the store and also got to run. We eat around six, and then we either go to the pool or take a walk (Ella isn’t old enough yet to insist that we always go swimming).

My father has a sweet tooth which I have inherited. During a week at the beach, he’d probably bring a bag of cookies that he or my mother had baked, he might try his hand at coaxing a cake from our condo’s unfamiliar oven, and towards the end of the week he often made his family’s Tooty Fruity Ice Cream. Such inspiration hit me while I was making a supplemental grocery run yesterday.

Earlier I’d noticed the following recipe for ice cream sandwiches on the back of a box of graham crackers:

- 16 graham cracker halves
- one 3.4oz box of vanilla instant pudding
- 1 cup of milk
- 1 1/2 cups of Cool Whip

You begin by mixing the milk and pudding. Then you add the Cool Whip. This leaves you with a thick pudding that you spoon onto the graham crackers, making sandwiches. Finally, you freeze them for two or so hours.

The results were delicious, and fairly low in calories too. As you might have guessed, the photo at the top of this post is Ella enjoying one after her nap yesterday afternoon.

First Taste of the Beach

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We arrived at our place around six. Ella was such a trooper during the car ride. She only slept for an hour, but the rest of the time she played with Uncle Grizz, watched Blue’s Clues on the iPad, ate snacks or colored in her “handy dandy notebook”. All day she said, “Go beach?” or “Go sandcastle?” but she was patient nonetheless.

After dinner at IHOP (where we learned that Ella likes orange juice), we said, “Ella, we can go walk on the beach for a minute, but we can’t get in the water.” She looked Mommy in the eye and said, “Yes, beach,” completely understanding the gravity of the situation.

On the beach, she pranced as she held onto our hands. Afterwards, she calmly walked back with us. During bedtime, she gladly followed our instructions. She had her bottle, brushed here teeth, and I read her a book about Corduroy, the bear in green overalls with a missing button. She seemed to like the familiar routine in a new environment. After pointing out Mommy and Daddy’s bed and Ella’s bed, I sang her our bedtime song, laid her down, and she settled in falling asleep quickly.

Lunch at The Beacon

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On our way to Hilton Head, we stopped for lunch at The Beacon. It is the prototypical “greasy spoon”. You better have your order ready as you get to the counter, because the caller, aka JC, doesn’t want you slowing down his line.

Beth, Ella and I ordered two cheeseburgers, one “A-Plenty” served with fries and onion rings, and one child’s chicken fingers. Ella kept her head on mommy’s shoulder as we made our way down the counter for it was quite loud.

Once seated, we chowed down although we didn’t finish all of it (that would have been a lot of grease). At one point without prompting, Ella rubbed her tummy and said, “Belly ache,” but she seemed fine shortly after. I also went to the car and supplemented our meal with some fresh grapes and a banana.

All-in-all it was quite an experience for us. It brought back memories for me as the last time I was there was back in the late 1970′s with my mother and my brothers on the way to the beach.

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