We’re driving to the beach now, the air’s potato chips–
so salty on my fingers, so salty on my lips.

We’re running on the beach now, the waves play with the sea.
I wonder if I’m chasing them or if they’re chasing me.

We have to leave the beach now, Good-Bye sand and sun and foam.
But in my hand I hold a shell to bring the beach back home.
~ Marilyn Singer

The Atlantic Ocean is gorgeous. North Carolina beaches are even more so. We manage to drive the two and a half hours out to Topsail Beach (pronounced TOP-sel by us North Carolinians) a few times each summer. Tatanka hates water, as a rule, unless it’s the ocean…then she can’t get enough. Although she wasn’t pleased when her kids went deeper than she could manage. Herding instincts are not to be trifled with. My munchkins were in heaven; Naomi got to take pictures with her mini-camera in its water proof case, we built a castle, and a jelly fish was poked and prodded by everyone.

Miles of soft, lucious digging material…we’re hoping she got her fix for at least a few days.

It’s fun watching my whole world wander around on the shore, getting pink and sandy. But I can prove I was there too…see above selfies. Someday I might actually be in a picture I didn’t take.

Funny thing about the Atlantic, the storms come off the land and go out to sea. Just such a storm cut our day a bit short, but it’s kind of cool to get rained on at the beach.