This week we took the kids to the Texas coast for a few days to play at the beach with their cousins. It was perfect beach weather – 92 and sunny, with lots of wind to make good-sized waves in the shallow water. No panicked parents worrying the kids would drift too far out to sea, because they had plenty to do near the shore.
The cousins are triplets – two boys and a girl, age 10, the same age as our daughter and four years younger than our son. They idolize their teenaged cousin, and loved his piggy back rides and wave jumping tricks. I don’t think any of the kids appreciate yet the miraculous vastness of the ocean. But they do appreciate its capacity to thrill, and they took full advantage of it.
The two girls spent hours making sand castles. Each day the boys challenged them to a best sand castle contest, but quickly lost interest and opted to wrestle in the waves instead. The girls built complicated sand walls and moats and turrets and swimming pools and play areas, and invited a few Polly Pocket dolls to try out the fun. The best part for the boys was castle demolition at the end of the day.
Just a few hours and just a few days, but great summer memories, and stories they’ll be telling for a long time.