Summer: Sun., 7/28 - Tues., 7/30 (Cape May)
Sunday, 7/28
First full beach day. I started the day with an early-morning (6:30 am) bike ride on the promenade, and around the neighborhood. When everyone woke up (I had to wake Lucia up, at 9am), we lugged our stuff to the beach at the end of our block and set up camp. Andrew and I made two improvements to our beach life this year. First, we got a beach wagon, so we could wheel our many chairs, towels, and bags. Second, we got a beach canopy, a 10 ft x 10 ft cover that gives enough shade for all eight of us. Setting it up the first time was a pain. It's not complicated, but it also doesn't just pop open, so it took some doing to figure it out. Worth it, though, once it was set up.
The Decatur St. beach was lovely. We got there at low tide, and there was a big sandy area by some rocks that was perfect for exploring and digging. The kids' main focus was boogie boarding, which they were able to do, but the waves here were very strong. In the afternoon, when the tide came in, they were strong enough to clobber the kids and send them spinning. Not as powerful as Bethany Beach, but still strong. We packed lunches and stayed all afternoon.
We drove to Fish & Fancy for dinner--counter-ordering seafood takeout--and ate the food at at a picnic table outside the restaurant. Then we went to Sunset Beach to look for Cape May Diamonds and watch the sun set. This was beautiful. We all found lots of the smooth, clear stones.
The low point of the day was that night, when Molly and Andrew went to park their cars in our reserved parking spots (three spots come with the house rental). Someone was parked in our third spot. If Molly just parked somewhere else, she risked being towed (parking in Cape May is scarse, and aggressively enforced). So I called the local police and we had the offending person's car towed. There was no other choice. But we felt very bad. We didn't want to tow someone's car BUT we also didn't want to waste the next day dealing with Molly's car being towed, so.
Monday, 7/29
Early morning bike ride. Had to wake Lucia up again at 9am.
We made a bold decision to try a different beach today: Cove Beach, at the very end of the promenade. I rode my bike there in the morning to check it out, and Molly and Andrew ran down, and we decided it looked calmer than the Decatur Street beach. It's about a mile away from the house--too far to lug all the heavy beach stuff (ie., the canopy, which weighs a million pounds in its carrying case). So in the morning Andrew loaded up our car with all the beach things and drove down to the beach to snag a parking spot, then set up the canopy (he somehow managed it alone) and hung out while the rest of us got ready.
Molly, the kids, and I all biked to the beach, and Mom and Dad walked. It was an ideal beach day. Cove Beach is perfect for us all--big enough waves for excellent boogie boarding, but not so strong that they can knock you over. It's shallow for a long way out, so even if you go out beyond where the waves break you're still only waist-deep. We did lots of wave jumping.
We'd packed lunches again. The seagulls were plentiful, watchful, and aggressive. Dad had a momentary lapse of attention and a seagull tried to grab the sandwich out of his hand.
Riding our bieks home while damp and sandy was not the best. Getting everyone un-sanded and showered after the beach is the hardest part of beach parenting. Truly dreadful.
Dinner Monday night was at The Blue Pig, a restaurant inside Congress Hall. Every single article and list I read about Cape May, and most of the people I talked to, recommended this restaurant. Sadly, we had a mediocre experience. The restaurant itself is very cute, and we sat outside on the terrace, but the food was not the farm-to-table spectacle we'd been expecting. Definitely didn't live up to all the hype.
We walked along the Washington St. pedestrian mall after dinner. The kids stopped in a toy store, and Mom let them each pick something out. Luca picked a stuffed shark, Lucia chose a bag of Good Luck Safari Minis, and Greta chose an adorable stuffed kitten. Then we had Kohr Brothers frozen custard for dessert, always a hit.
After the kids were in bed, the adults played Code Names.
Tuesday, 7/30
Early morning bike ride. A complicated arrangement of having Molly park her car to reserve a spot near Cove Beach. Woke Lucia up at 9:15am.
We took a Salt Marsh cruise this morning, a two-hour ride through local salt marshes, where we saw lots of different birds and some sea critters. My favorite things was the Clapper Rail, a skinny bird that hides among the grasses, and the source of the phrase "thin as a rail." The kids liked the sea life the marine biologist dredged up and put into a touch tank. Back at the dock, we saw far too many weird, large, pink jellyfish in the water.
Mom made sloppy joes for lunch at the house, then we loaded up the car and headed to Cove Beach. First, Andrew, Molly, and I drove down to switch our car into the spot Molly had saved. Then Molly drove back to the house to pick up the kids. Mom and Dad walked.
It was another beautiful beach day. Kids are obsessed with boogie boarding and wave jumping. They did a little sand digging too, but really they just want to be in the water.
For dinner we ordered Blue Moon pizza and ate in the backyard. We had a quiet evening at home. The kids played with a rubber snake Luca had brought.
More Code Names tonight.
First full beach day. I started the day with an early-morning (6:30 am) bike ride on the promenade, and around the neighborhood. When everyone woke up (I had to wake Lucia up, at 9am), we lugged our stuff to the beach at the end of our block and set up camp. Andrew and I made two improvements to our beach life this year. First, we got a beach wagon, so we could wheel our many chairs, towels, and bags. Second, we got a beach canopy, a 10 ft x 10 ft cover that gives enough shade for all eight of us. Setting it up the first time was a pain. It's not complicated, but it also doesn't just pop open, so it took some doing to figure it out. Worth it, though, once it was set up.
The Decatur St. beach was lovely. We got there at low tide, and there was a big sandy area by some rocks that was perfect for exploring and digging. The kids' main focus was boogie boarding, which they were able to do, but the waves here were very strong. In the afternoon, when the tide came in, they were strong enough to clobber the kids and send them spinning. Not as powerful as Bethany Beach, but still strong. We packed lunches and stayed all afternoon.
We drove to Fish & Fancy for dinner--counter-ordering seafood takeout--and ate the food at at a picnic table outside the restaurant. Then we went to Sunset Beach to look for Cape May Diamonds and watch the sun set. This was beautiful. We all found lots of the smooth, clear stones.
The low point of the day was that night, when Molly and Andrew went to park their cars in our reserved parking spots (three spots come with the house rental). Someone was parked in our third spot. If Molly just parked somewhere else, she risked being towed (parking in Cape May is scarse, and aggressively enforced). So I called the local police and we had the offending person's car towed. There was no other choice. But we felt very bad. We didn't want to tow someone's car BUT we also didn't want to waste the next day dealing with Molly's car being towed, so.
Monday, 7/29
Early morning bike ride. Had to wake Lucia up again at 9am.
We made a bold decision to try a different beach today: Cove Beach, at the very end of the promenade. I rode my bike there in the morning to check it out, and Molly and Andrew ran down, and we decided it looked calmer than the Decatur Street beach. It's about a mile away from the house--too far to lug all the heavy beach stuff (ie., the canopy, which weighs a million pounds in its carrying case). So in the morning Andrew loaded up our car with all the beach things and drove down to the beach to snag a parking spot, then set up the canopy (he somehow managed it alone) and hung out while the rest of us got ready.
Molly, the kids, and I all biked to the beach, and Mom and Dad walked. It was an ideal beach day. Cove Beach is perfect for us all--big enough waves for excellent boogie boarding, but not so strong that they can knock you over. It's shallow for a long way out, so even if you go out beyond where the waves break you're still only waist-deep. We did lots of wave jumping.
We'd packed lunches again. The seagulls were plentiful, watchful, and aggressive. Dad had a momentary lapse of attention and a seagull tried to grab the sandwich out of his hand.
Riding our bieks home while damp and sandy was not the best. Getting everyone un-sanded and showered after the beach is the hardest part of beach parenting. Truly dreadful.
Dinner Monday night was at The Blue Pig, a restaurant inside Congress Hall. Every single article and list I read about Cape May, and most of the people I talked to, recommended this restaurant. Sadly, we had a mediocre experience. The restaurant itself is very cute, and we sat outside on the terrace, but the food was not the farm-to-table spectacle we'd been expecting. Definitely didn't live up to all the hype.
We walked along the Washington St. pedestrian mall after dinner. The kids stopped in a toy store, and Mom let them each pick something out. Luca picked a stuffed shark, Lucia chose a bag of Good Luck Safari Minis, and Greta chose an adorable stuffed kitten. Then we had Kohr Brothers frozen custard for dessert, always a hit.
After the kids were in bed, the adults played Code Names.
Tuesday, 7/30
Early morning bike ride. A complicated arrangement of having Molly park her car to reserve a spot near Cove Beach. Woke Lucia up at 9:15am.
We took a Salt Marsh cruise this morning, a two-hour ride through local salt marshes, where we saw lots of different birds and some sea critters. My favorite things was the Clapper Rail, a skinny bird that hides among the grasses, and the source of the phrase "thin as a rail." The kids liked the sea life the marine biologist dredged up and put into a touch tank. Back at the dock, we saw far too many weird, large, pink jellyfish in the water.
Mom made sloppy joes for lunch at the house, then we loaded up the car and headed to Cove Beach. First, Andrew, Molly, and I drove down to switch our car into the spot Molly had saved. Then Molly drove back to the house to pick up the kids. Mom and Dad walked.
It was another beautiful beach day. Kids are obsessed with boogie boarding and wave jumping. They did a little sand digging too, but really they just want to be in the water.
For dinner we ordered Blue Moon pizza and ate in the backyard. We had a quiet evening at home. The kids played with a rubber snake Luca had brought.
More Code Names tonight.
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