On the Beach

As I mentioned on an earlier post, we spent a wonderful week at the beach in Siesta Key on Florida's Gulf Coast. Sarah found a great place a hop, step and jump from the beach, and everyone had a great time.

Vacations usually involve eating out, which, with Elijah in tow, can lead to some stressful times. Fortunately Sarah booked a room with a kitchen, so meals were, if not a pleasure, at least no different from what occurs at home. With a barbecue grill right outside our door and a Publix Market a few blocks away, meals were not only cheaper, but much healthier than our normal vacation fare. (The Publix became our second home on this vacation. Each day Elijah would ask to go there as he shares his father's odd obsession with wandering through upscale grocery stores, especially if a viewing of crayon markers or a free treat is on the agenda. With the demographics of the area being elder Jews and Hispanics, each time I went there I thought I was back at a Vons in Sherman Oaks!)

Except for a day trip to the Mote Marine Laboratory and Aquarium in Sarasota, we spent almost all of our time on the beach. Although Sarah and I enjoyed the aquarium, Elijah seemed bored by the idea of looking fish that don't talk they do in the Nemo films. One of the few times he really seemed to be enjoying himself was when he was viewing a tank that contained clownfish, or "Nemo fish" (and, as I mentioned in an earlier post, when he saw the "traffic signs" in the gift shop.) But his biggest smile came when we debarked from a tour boat. "Look Daddy...over there," he said excitedly, and joyfully pointed out a basketball court someone had constructed behind one of the docks.

The beach was wonderful. The sand, like no other I've seen, stays cool to the touch and, like the tourist brochures promised, truly does feel like flour. And as one got closer to the water, the sand became home to sea shells by the thousands, prompting beachgoers to comb the area from sunup to sundown looking for the perfect shell.

Although colder than normal for this time of year, the weather, except for rain on our last day there, was great. I got a laugh when I went out to get a paper one morning wearing shorts, a T-shirt and flip flops and encountered a gentlemen out for his morning walk bundled up in a sweatshirt, jacket and gloves. I doubt he would even leave his home during winter if he lived anywhere near us. (The warmest day of the trip coincided with the day that SEVEN inches of snow fell back home.)

Our last night coincided with the traditional drum circle event on the public Siesta Key beach. Lots of congos and bongos, hula hoops and flowers, with people encouraged to join in and dance to the rhythm. Of course our little guy jumped right in and showed the crowd his best steps.

Just like we felt about our vacation, he left the crowd wanting more!