My summer vacation started 10 days earlier than planned when my grandmother passed away earlier this month and I packed up the boys and headed out east to be with my family and attend her funeral. Normally before heading out of town I spend a great deal of time drafting and scheduling blog posts, taking photos and planning knitting projects to bring with me. Since I didn't get the chance to do all that pre-vacation planning and there's only so much that I'm able to do while I'm away - factor in spotty WiFi, 2 busy boys, tons of family to distract/hang out with, later bedtimes and the call of the ocean - that leaves me basically no time and, I'll be honest, almost no desire to work. And I'm totally ok with that! Don't get me wrong, I absolutely adore my work. When I'm home it's completely integrated into my everyday life and I couldn't be happier about that. But as soon as I'm removed from my home/work environment and dropped into this heavenly beachy/vacation atmosphere all of my drive and desire to be productive gets put on hold for 2 weeks and I can fully unwind. It's the only time in the year that I feel this way and it's amazing. I'm still knitting (obviously) and I'll admit to doing some daydreaming about projects that I'm looking forward to tackling when we get back home, but while we're here, I feel no pressure whatsoever to do anything more than chill out. And, you guys, I'm doing a really good job of it!
The boys are at great ages to get the most out of the beach this year. Rowan can explore the gulley's and sand bars for hours each day. It's so fun to watch. I think that I can actually remember being his age and searching for snails and hermit crabs and being utterly excited by each and every one I found. Micah is happy as a clam just toddling around the beach. He carries a tiny shovel with him and occasionally stops to dig. He's a very steady little walker and can walk and splash and get soaking wet in even the tiniest little tidal pool. It is so incredibly rewarding as a parent to get to watch my boys delight in nature, make up games and go on mini adventures all day long. Being able to bring them here every summer is probably one of the best things I'll ever do for them. It makes me feel bad about having to bring them back to the city soon... we keep joking that TFA needs to open up an east coast branch that operates out of my parents cottage shed and every year that's looking like a better idea*.
I hope you're all thoroughly enjoying your summer's as much as we are!
*Totally not realistic, logistically it would not work.
FYI :: for anyone who doesn't know this about us, we vacation at our family cottage in Nova Scotia every summer. It's our happy place!