A Break from Civilization

The boys and I have been away for a bit of a vacation...or rather mental health break.  My husband told me he wanted to go to a beer brewing party on Saturday, the weather was fore casted to be amazing, and with all of the illness running through our house, I packed us up and headed to Rhode Island on Friday morning.  I even left in the middle of rush hour.  I did not care if it took me extra time to get there; this was a needed trip.

When we arrived, there was a storm coming in and the waves were absolutely massive.  They were certainly the biggest I have seen in awhile, and the boys were awestruck by the waves.  I explained why they were so big, and why the wind was so fierce.  Later that day, after a round of movies snuggled up on the couch together, the weather broke, and we were able to get outside.  Now, other than surfing, what else is an awesome activity to do while on a windy beach?  Flying a kite!  We had so much fun seeing how high up we could get our kite.  There was even a seagull that tried to attack the kite (I have never had that happen before).  Pierce actually had to use a pretty decent amount of muscle to hold onto the kite.  But he did not care.  He was having so much fun!  The best part? The rainbow that came out over the bay while we were flying.  It was almost as if the universe was telling us to smile, and that everything would be alright.

Saturday morning started with a nature walk.  And the boys even got an extra treat!  They were able to see mommy break a window to get into her car, since yet again she locked the keys inside.  Oops!  What was weird, was that I was laughing about the whole thing.  Usually I get upset over the small stuff, but I didn't this time.  While still laughing I called me insurance company, and they sent somebody out immediately to crash wrap the window and vacuum the glass.  And as of 4 pm today, I have a new window too!

Saturday we also decided to head over to the Breach Way.  I explained to the boys, just really briefly, that the direction of the Breach Way will change, depending on what the tide was doing.  They kind of brushed it off at that point, but the next day Pierce told me what the tide was after looking at the Breach Way.  While we were on the beach, we found two massive pieces of driftwood.  And I mean massive.  One of them was almost hollow enough on the inside to fit the boys (Pierce was the one to test the size), and the other was long and wide enough that we could run across the top of it.  The magic of that day, was teaching the boys how to run across the top and see who could jump the farthest.  I felt like I was doing the long jump in track again.  And we had so much fun raking the sand and seeing who would win that round.  I was being a kid with them, and there was nothing but giggles and silliness going on.  It was exactly what was needed.

Sunday was magical as well.  After we got done flying the kite on the beach in 30 degree weather (that was the boys who wanted to do it.  Not me), we got back in the car and started to drive back to the condo.  I thought I saw snow, but then again I could have been dreaming (I did actually dream about snow the night before).  All of a sudden Pierce screams from the back seat, "Mommy!  Snow!  It's snowing on the beach!"  It was perfect.  It was a little squall that lasted all of 5 minutes, but it was AWESOME!  I love snow.  I don't mind driving in it, and I am determined to be snowed in at the beach this year.  I want to play on the beach in snow.  It was nice to know that at least Pierce loves snow too.  Carter kept saying it was too cold outside.  :)  He will adjust.  He kind of has no choice.

Today was the highlight of our break.  One of the nice coast guardsman opened the gate for us so we could actually see and touch the Point Judith Lighthouse.  Pierce has been wanting to see this thing for such a long time.  Carter loves looking at it every time we go, and for me it is one of the spots that I feel the closest to my dad's spirit.  To be able to touch it, and see it, and play around near it, was just so peaceful.  Even with the wind at 20 mph, and the cold air slapping our faces, none of us wanted to leave.

While we may have traveled around and seen different sites, it was still a break from civilization.  There is no cable at the condo; this means that the boys and I have to find something to do that will occupy our minds.  Today we built towers and learned about how to build a stable tower (lay them flat, instead of going end to end).  We played games, built puzzles, and just talked.  It amazes me what comes out of the mouths of babes.  Carter specially; he has a quick wit that boy.  He can come up with the funniest stuff ever, and he knows it.

We also had nobody else to rely on but each other.  And that was rather nice.  We have been at each other's throats a bit with the boys being sick, and me being completely sleep deprived.  So cooking together, doing crafts together, building together, etc., was just the perfect bonding experience.

I need to remember to put myself in time out more often.  I need not to stress so much about what the boys are learning on paper.  I need to remember that right now they are learning about life.  Do I want them to stress about facts?  Or do I want them to build a wonderful foundation of knowledge based on real life connections?  I will go with the connections and experiences.  After all, life is all about experiences.  Love you boys, and thank you for reminding me, yet again, to relax, love, and laugh.