Me + Three: The Beach!

So I woke up this morning – the sun was shining after a very rainy week – and I got the sudden urge to tote my 3 young children off to the beach! During my entire pregnancy with Leonardo I would think about how I might effectively do this and that with three kids.. for example: I would consider the best way to get our grocery shopping done… should I put the two little ones in a cart and drag a second cart along while Dante walks? No, why would I do that when I can just carry the baby in a wrap, push Stefano, and Dante can walk. Or, how will I go places that might require me to cross a busy parking lot or street if I need to bring the car seat along?… the answer to that one is to be sure that Dante looks me in the eye while I remind him that cars on the road can be dangerous, have him GENTLY hold onto his brother’s hand or sleeve and stick with our group while we cross! I would also think about how painful it might potentially be to drag them all to the beach by my lonesome.. More than once during one of my silent monologues I would just decide to not go by myself. I’ve got enough friends to spread out beach dates over the summer…And then other times when I was feeling more optimistic I’d figure that there would always be someone willing to help me carry something or someone if I went alone… which was totally true – quite a few women offered me a hand when they saw me pushing my stroller loaded with a large beach umbrella, blanket, thermal bag, sand toys, and a baby seat perched on top, a large tote full of clothes, sunscreen, towels, and diapers slung over my shoulder, and two little people following along with their buckets. But everything actually went very smoothly.

I never took D and S to the beach by myself…. I never took just D to the beach. It seemed like such a stressful thing to do. But really……………….

It was fine. Not the most relaxing beach visit I’ve ever spent… but far from the worst. The kids loved the water and found some hermit crabs. They dug in the sand and ate sandy watermelon. And for the most part they stayed right with me. The hardest part was having to not only hold Leonardo the entire time but shade him from the sun, too. And I neglected putting sunscreen on myself so I’m pretty sure the back of my arms and neck are going to be lobster-red tonight.. Dante is already asking to go back tomorrow. Not sure if we’ll go tomorrow but I do want to spend more time at the beach. Now to perfect my strategy…. Change number 1: buy a beach chair!