A Family Beach Weekend

This weekend, thanks to the kind offer of a friend of Molly and Ian’s, we spent three days in Bethany Beach, DE, at a lovely house just steps from the beach. Somehow, all six of us—Molly and Ian, Andrew and I, Mom and Dad—managed to be free for this weekend, and we were all looking forward to it immensely.

Andrew and I planned to leave early Friday morning. In the wee hours, however, Greta threw up after nursing. Around six-thirty, she threw up again. For some reason I decided she must then be hungry, so I gave her a piece of toast, which she promptly threw up. We hadn’t showered or packed the car, and I was already covered in vomit. We knew Greta was the latest victim in the crazy bug that had already gotten Lucia, Andrew, and Robert.

Greta was falling asleep on my shoulder by nine, so we decided to set out anyway. Then our third-floor bathroom sink, which usually leaks, began to gush water, and Andrew tried to wrench a bolt, but made it worse, and it was rapidly filling a trash can, and blah blah blah Andrew managed to stop the water. It was quite a morning. Somehow we managed to get out the door. Ah, homeownership.

About halfway there, Greta woke up and began screaming bloody murder. Certain she was starving, I gave her a Mum-Mum, which she promptly threw up. We made an hour-long stop at a rest area to get her cleaned up. I called the pediatrician, who advised Gatorade until we could get Pedialyte. Greta guzzled down two ounces, and kept it down; ten minutes later, two more ounces, and then more. We set out once again.

We made it there. Greta was drinking fluids and no longer vomiting, but she was very, very tired. Andrew put her down for a nap while I collapsed on the bed and finally succumbed to my own turn with the virus. Fortunately, mine was minor, just exhaustion and chills, and I was better by morning.

Fortunately, after a really rough Friday, we had a great weekend: we walked on the beach, Lucia tried to fill up the ocean with sand, Greta put beach pebbles in a bucket over and over, we ate nice food, Andrew brought steamed crabs home (Lucia tried some and declared "I love crab!"), we played with Luca (from a distance—we felt toxic), we went out for ice cream. I took two naps on the beach while Greta napped at the house and Mom and Dad played with Lucia in the sand and water. Bliss. It was a lovely way to spend a September weekend.