That time I went to the beach and it was easier...

I could remember my first beach trip as a mom. I was almost 7 months pregnant with my son and my daughter had just turned 2 years old the week prior. There was a lot of down time and there also was a lot of walking back and forth from the pool to the ocean, because she couldn't decide which she liked better. I had to carry her over the hot pavement and across the mile long sand to the ocean waters. And then, we sat in the surf, as the waves crashed around us. Thankfully, she didn't want to travel any further out.

The next year, my son was only 8 months old and cut his first tooth -of course he did... There was a lot of crying during the day and the vast majority of my night was spent walking up and down the alley of the motel, so my daughter could sleep. My son also hated the sand and cried as soon as it touched him. And he wanted nothing to do with the ocean or pool.

There was also a year when, our car's air condition broke during the 5 hour drive down to the beach, in 98 degree temperatures. 

And another year, when we attempted to play mini golf and my son tried to swim in the murky water and my daughter tried to climb the windmill.

*Don't get me wrong, there were definitely great moments. Like, when my daughter learned how to boogie board for the first time. Or when we couldn't get my son off the sand, once he loved it... But for purposes of this article, we're going with the negative ;)

As a mom, I'm guilty of looking backwards towards the nostalgia of when my children were babies. There's an odd craving to keep our children young and their need for us, strong.

And for how many times I do look back at these photos and think, wow, I miss them being so little. I'm also struck with the realization of how wonderful it is to experience each new stage with them, as they get older. That the prior beach trips were filled with tears and their attention spans of gnats. And that, with each passing year they age, they age to a cooler, more adult-like person.

This is the first trip where we didn't have any tears or short attention spans... It was effortless and dare I say, relaxing? It reminded me of one of those stories you hear from a friend's cousin's brother's uncle... Never first hand.

My children are newly 7 years old and almost 5 years old and we spent the majority of this beach trip thrashing through the waves and boogie boarding in the ocean for hours. We sat on the balcony and talked. Colored. Played cards. We walked parts of the boardwalk and window shopped. We laughed more than ever. And swam in the pool when the sun dipped below the earth.

I've written about every beach trip since 2013 on this blog (You can search them by viewing the right side column of my blog and searching the month of August under each corresponding year). And each year, I always wrote about the chaos and the stresses. Then as usual, I put a positive spin on it all. But I always concluded with saying, one day, the chaos will all be over...
... Of course, in the moment, you never think it will. In the moment, you can never imagine a time when you won't be carrying your crying child or rocking a baby to sleep or begging your child to sit 2 minutes longer in a restaurant, while you shovel food down your throat like it's the end of the world. 

In the moment, it feels like you're caught in a spin cycle and can't get out...

But then one day, you do...

And you don't realize it happened until you have something to compare it to.

Like me, with this beach trip. This was the first year that I didn't feel like I needed a vacation from my vacation. I had fun WITH my children, instead of around them. And the most monumental moment was, my children slept in until 10:30 am. One of the days, I actually woke up earlier than them and sat on the balcony with my coffee and was unsure what to do with myself.

But my main message of this post to all you mamas out there reading this and doubting the infamous family vacation is, always take the vacation... Sure, it might be hard. But, you'll also have great memories. Some good, some bad, but memories to share later in life nonetheless. Then one day, it will all click and it will be easy and fun. And each year following, it will be easier and easier until eventually, they're with their friends and you and your spouse are sitting alone on the beach. And you'll watch all those new parents with frustration written all over their faces and you'll silently reminisce to your earlier days at the beach with your little ones. And you'll miss it. You'll miss it hard. And you'll immediately want to do it all over again, even knowing the tough moments, just to be part of it one more time.

Because, you only have these short times with them. And, we're only the center of their universe for a blip in time. And, when it's over, it's over. And you can't go back...

And even though I thoroughly enjoyed this trip and look forward to the following years to come, a part of me was saddened by the lack of consistency. Like, a chapter of their lives is now over...

So, create the memories, cry with the frustration and tiredness, laugh at the awkward tantrums, and enjoy the measly 5% of good moments when they're young. But remember, it all changes so quickly... And, that might be the last tantrum you see. Or, the last inconvenient nap taken. Or, the last time you'll carry your child across the sand. Or, the last time they'll ride the baby rides on the boardwalk, that were in the hottest building ever, while they're on their 15th go around...

Enjoy it all...