Thankful for Beach Week

We got so lucky with the weather this week. Last week was rainy and cold in Southern California, but we had mostly blue skies and temperatures from 65-75 every day.

I took several early morning beach walks which are my personal favorite.

It's magical being out there before the crowds. 

There are always surfers and some dog walkers, but the beach is fairly quite for the first couple of hours and it's a great time to watch the shore birds and just enjoy being out.

It was weird seeing the pier destruction. There used to be a restuarant at the end but there was a fire earlier this year.

And then, most days, we were at the beach for several hours.

Playing lots of Mölkky which is such a fun game. It's my new favorite thing to do at the beach.

Peanut did a lot of sand sculpting.

He built some partially excavated Aztec ruins for their sandcastle contest.

I'm so glad he has gotten to know L better this past year. They spent a lot of time together all week.

We had a really big group this year--seldom that all of us were in the same place at the same time, but with up to 45 people total (8 families), depending on the day, there was usually someone around doing what you want to do.

Bean did a lot of surfing.

She's gotten pretty good. It was fun to watch her out there.

And even when we were just sitting around, it was pretty incredible. I ended up coming down with a cold by Tuesday, so sitting didn't sound so bad.

I did a fair amount of reading, poolside, at the beach, and in bed (although I didn't come close to finishing all the books I brought with me.)

I think I could spend a LOT of days on the beach before I'd get tired of it.

Bean and Peanut went kayaking in the harbor with a bunch of people from our group one afternoon.

And we caught so many sunsets.

One night we stayed on the beach until it set.

There were a few of us that were just having too much fun.

It was a lovely afternoon.

With some cool sand sculptures.

But most evenings, we were in the hot tub by late afternoon and I had to run down from to the beach for a few minutes to catch it.

It was worth it. It's so fun staying in a property right on the water.

And the tropical vibes make you feel like you're in Hawaii.

And then, after dinner, everyone met up in the game room for foosball, pool, and board games. 

Daddy-o loved all the foosball and had some good runs with a couple different partners. I tried one night, but still feel like I have NO idea what I'm doing. But I did play a lot of pool and even beat a couple of the teens who were sure they could take me (including Bean, who has gotten a lot better and depending on the game, was able to beat me, too. But after telling us how much practice she's had and how much better she is (and she's right!), she told me, "I forgot that you're good at this." Haha. I'm not consistently good, but I have my moments.) Both Daddy-o and I are looking forward to his game room in our barn that we will eventually be able to build.

The group we go down with changes a little each year depending on who is available, but it's always fun. With so many different people, it's easy to have a lot going on and people can find something fun to do at any given time. And this property with a large commons room and all the great outdoor spaces is perfect to handle so many families. We're thankful to have these people in our lives--friends who are like family are a fun thing to have. 

Happy Thanksgiving!

We missed having Bug with us this year, but always love having Thanksgiving at the beach. And we got to talk to Bug, who despite not having any sort of celebration today, is happy and well. As he said, he gets to stuff himself every day for lunch, so it kind of always feels like Thanksgiving in that way, haha. (Apparently Brazilians love to feed the missionaries and want them to take seconds, thirds. . . sometimes even fifths.)

We had an early lunch reservation at the Hunter Steakhouse--11 a.m. is a little early for Thanksgiving dinner, but it was nice to have the rest of the afternoon for the beach and hot tub.

And then a lot of us went to see Wicked 2: For Good at the theater that night. I love that there are so many restaurants and things to do within a mile of the condos so we can walk most everywhere. It was really nice walking home by the beach later that night.

Daddy-o and our kids did a late-night taco run to Tacos El Gordo with a couple other cars of people, but I like sleeping even more than tacos (and that is saying something because those are really good tacos.)

All in all, it was a day to be thankful, for sure. I don't take it for granted that we are able to have this kind of Thanksgiving every other year and have people to do it with. We are so blessed to live in a gorgeous state and be able to travel and enjoy all the variety it includes. We're blessed with good friends, family, and more than we need to take care of ourselves, and also with opportunities to share and help others who aren't so fortunate. And I hope we never forget that.

Oceanside, Day 5

Another beach day.

Bean tried surfing today,

and she was a natural!

She's tried before, but the conditions were perfect today, and we're so lucky to have amazing friends who want to share their love of surfing with our kids. She got out there with one of the men who has taught so many of these kids to surf and with just a little help from him, she was up on her first wave and rode it all the way in.

Peanut was having a lot of fun boogie boarding, too.

He's finally caught the ocean-loving fever, even when it's chilly and he doesn't have a wetsuit.

Glad these kids have had so much fun! It's been a good week.

So much fun with friends.

So many beautiful moments.

And then the evening finished off with some karaoke.

The kids had fun (and most of the adults, too.)

Peanut even got up there to sing one of his favorite songs from The Greatest Showman. 

Lots of sweet moments, and some funny ones.

Beach Day, Oceanside Day 3

Took a different route for my early morning walk on Wednesday. 

The San Luis Rey River Trail starts right by where we stay, so 4 of us went to check it out. It was a little less scenic and a little more urban than we'd hoped, but it there were a few pretty spots and it was a nice morning for a walk.

Then, it was time for a full beach day. Bug had already been out surfing, but no one else had been in the water. Plus, we had all the beach games to play as well.

Along with Spikeball, and digging in the sand, one of the families brought a new game, Mölkky, that was a lot of fun.

Bug was a little tired at this point from his early mornings. He played dead for quite awhile, haha.

The kids were having fun with that.

There was some sand castle building as well.

A little reading by the moms.

Such a fun group of teens this week.

By 4 p.m., most of the adults and younger kids were freezing and headed to the hot tub, but a few of these kids stayed down on the beach to catch the golden hour and watch the sunset.

Good times.