Friday, September 12, 2008

PEI Post Mortem: Life's a Beach

We'd been talking about it for weeks. It was pretty much the whole reason for the trip. The Boy was so excited that he could barely contain himself.

The Beach.

Tuesday afternoon, after a much-needed nap, we took off for the beach. One the big selling points of this cottage was that the dunes were just a five minute walk away. The Boy was jumping up and down with eagerness. We crested the dunes, walked down the stairs, took our our shoes. And the Boy sat down. And would go no further.

"Don't you want to play in the sand?" I exclaimed.

"No, I'll just sit here."

I think he was overwhelmed. I wouldn't call the Boy timid, but he can be somewhat reticent in unfamiliar situations. I prefer to describe him as "a thinker". He calmly weighs all the options and then decides that it's ok to participate.

As anticipated, not long after, he took off.


When he got to the ocean, he stopped again. Unsure.



And then he took the plunge.


"Let's catch the waves, Mummy!!" he shouted as the ocean licked our toes. When the water became more bold, he'd scream: "Let's get outta here!!"




He loved the feeling of the 'icky, sticky mud' between his toes. He flung mudballs into puddles. He had a ball. We had to drag him kicking and screaming when it was time for dinner, promising to come back tomorrow.

And where was the Little Guy in all this?


Eating sand, of course. (But don't worry, his beach adventure is a story for another day..)

I've never seen the Boy like this before - fearless, free. His only boundaries were ocean and dune. He was like a completely different person. Every single penny spent, and every single stress was worth it for the look of pure joy on his face. I wish I had the words to explain how my heart wanted to beat outside my chest in jubilant abandon. It was one of those moments that happen when I feel fully alive: heart, mind, body and soul. It's a feeling that no camera will ever capture to my satisfaction. But I will keep it in my heart, and take it with me every day.

I feel echoes of it sometimes when I look at this, though:



Listen. Can you hear my heart smile?



13 comments:

metro mama said...

LOVE the pics.

Oh, and yes, 90210 is great!

Jess said...

That picture of you and your glorious boy should be framed!

cinnamon gurl said...

Oh gorgeous! Swee'pea had a little freak-out when his shoes came off on the beach... took him a while to get used to the sand between his toes.

crazymumma said...

Stop it betch. Stop posting pictures of those boys. On a beach. So old crusties like me get all messed up about it.

We had superman bathingsuit bottoms that both the girls wore before they got into the girlie suit faze.

You are killing me.

Tania said...

Those pics are great! It looks and sounds like you got what you wanted and more from this trip.

the dragonfly said...

Wow your boys are cute! :)

Woman in a Window said...

Maybe a camera couldn't capture it but you did right here: "how my heart wanted to beat outside my chest in jubilant abandon." Gorgeous. And that picture of your littlest eating sand, HA, too freaken cute!

Mandy said...

My family took a three week road trip out east (I lived in Waterloo) when I was 12. It was a great holiday and I still remember the red sand beaches!

Nice photos. Love the superman sun suits!

Beck said...

Aw! Your boys are too cute, and how wonderful to let them have such wildness and freedom.

motherbumper said...

Best beaches in Canada - I'm so glad you and your super troop enjoyed the surf and sand. And could your kids be any cuter? I think not.

Mad said...

OK, those Superman suits are killing me with cuteness. I am so happy that the entire trip was worth it for that moment alone.

moplans said...

this is SO CUTE
and if my heart was not bursting enough.. up pops little guy eating sand.

bren j. said...

Goodness me, those boys are sweet! I'm so happy that all the long hours in the van were worth it for you.