Beach bound

Last night we took a spur-of-the-moment trip to the beach. (Another bucket list item...yay!) It was only the second time in her little life that we've taken Stephanie, and we weren't sure how she would react. As soon as we pulled up she started yelling "water! water!" We found a spot to dump our stuff, and she immediately ran toward the edge of the water and plunged in. As the waves lapped at her feet, she shrieked and giggled. As they crested, she ran away from them but immediately ran back to get wet again. A few times she fell in, even dunking her head under, but she came up smiling. She's a little beach bum!

She spotted the sea-gulls, and yelled "tweet tweet!" while trying to chase them. She ran through the sand, reaching down every now and then to grab handfuls and let it run through her fingers. She chased me into the water, and threw back her head in laughter when I tossed her into the air just as the waves reached her toes. (I did have to quickly pass this task along to Dan, as it was too much for my pregnant body to handle more than a few times. And with my daughter, there is no such thing as "a few times" when it's something she loves.)

Our attempt to get dinner in her was a major fail. As soon as we sat her in the beach chair and gave her her sandwich, she jumped up yelling "water!" Since the night was all about her, we didn't push it. She was just having so much fun, we couldn't deny her access to her precious water. I even let go of my sand anxiety!

As I watched my daughter run through the sand, arms splayed wide, laughing and gigggling, I took a minute to pause and commit the moment to memory. She was just so happy and free, and thrilled to be there. It warmed my heart and caused a smile to constantly be on my face. The beautiful sun was setting, framing my little girl in it's light, and I couldn't have asked for a more perfect moment.

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