Looking Forward

On a day like today when I'm home with the kids but the weather is dreary and cold, I look forward.  I look forward to warmer days when we won't be dressed in layers and I won't be worried about their cold fingers and their runny noses.  To keep things fun indoors, today we:

• Made homemade chicken soup.  We're in the last stages of a cold.
• Baked teddy bear-shaped cookies from scratch. 
• Played with flour in the dining room. (Actually, the same activity as above).
  
• Had multiple sword fights.
• More playdoh fun.

But I keep thinking about the beach and making plans for our trip this summer.  Truth be told, C and I don't travel like we used to.  Last summer was our first vacation as a family of four.  DD was still on 2 naps and BB was on 1; but of course, their naps were syncopated.  One down at 10, up at 11, the other down at 1, the first one down at 3, and the other one up at 3:30, the first one up at 4:30.  So you can see from 10 on, it was a mess.  If you plan accordingly, you can make it work and last year was really a success.  This year we're looking at 1 nap for each (or maybe even no nap for BB, who knows!).  It will be much easier now that DD is older but I certainly will miss our long strolls on the beach.  Every morning we would head to the beach EARLY with both kids after breakfast.  We played in the surf and sand, dug holes and built sand castles.  The boys would then swing on the swings right on the beach.  DD would start getting drowsy and I would then go get the stroller back at the condo and take him for a long stroll to downtown Bethany.  Sometimes I would walk the busy main street, and other times I would walk the boardwalk and feel the soothing breeze blowing on shore.  DD really enjoyed the breeze and would just sleep sleep sleep in the stroller.  At night after bathtime, we'd get the boys in their pajamas and buckle them up in the double stroller.  Tucked in with blankets (it could be cool at night), we'd take them for a nice night stroll.  We also let them sleep in the car one afternoon and drove through Dewey and OC - revisiting places where I had spent many high school and college summers partying.  All in all the trip was fantastic so you can't blame this mama for daydreaming about warm weather and hot sand on a cold January day.