Samantha's first blog

pamelamyers | July 14, 2014

Tuesday morning sun was shining bright and Sam couldn’t wait to head for the beach. It takes the adults a while to get moving, what with the packing of the beach bag and all, but Sam couldn’t understand why we couldn’t go right now! Her poor forlorn little face collapsed on the stairs in frustration.

Finally, we all were there. We found a big horseshoe crab in the sand and Sam had to bring Grandmom down to see what she discovered.

On the way down to the jetty, shell bags at hand and ready to go! In case you haven’t noticed, the jetty is always the morning destination. It has been since Sam was a baby. At the time, it was the only place we could get her into the water, but now she just loves exploring.

My little fashionista, posing with her daddy.

Sam loves to show you everything she finds. She is quite the jetty expert and Grandmom got an education about clams and crabs and whatnot.

I do like helping her find interesting things, but sometimes, it is nice to just stand back and let her explore and discover on her own.

Hermit crab!

It was a bit windier and thus chillier this day than the others and Sam got a bit cold. She asked me if she could sit under a towel but this isn’t exactly what I thought she was going to do!

What did I say about the wind? Thank goodness for hat straps!

As the afternoon wears on, the tide always starts to come in and sometimes gets pretty close to our chairs. We were watching the huge hole on the left of the photo that a couple of kids dug stop the water from coming, so Rich dug a trench in front of his chair to stop the water if it came up, sort of as a joke. He was determined not to give in to the tide!

It was also pretty windy, and he held onto the umbrella to keep it from blowing away. This picture cracks me up – holding the umbrella, trench at his feet. Man vs. Nature!

Success! The trench worked! Sam had her doubts, but we showed her that her Pop Pop knows a thing or two.

She put on her daddy’s hat so that she and Pop Pop would match for the photo.

Later that night, we all relaxed in the house. Krista and Adam were arriving with Maddox and Ryder and we couldn’t wait! Sam told me, “I don’t have to play with you and Grandmom anymore!” Gee, thanks Sam. But I know what she meant. She wants us to play with her constantly and we have to tell her sometimes she needs to play on her own. Maddox will solve that problem!

While we waited, Sam and her Grandmom enjoyed some fresh air on the porch…

…and she and Pop Pop played checkers. Well, he tried to teach Sam how to play checkers. I don’t think it went all that well.

The Burke family finally arrived after Adam was done working and it really started to feel like our vacations used to. At least as much as it could without Sandi. 🙁 Sam helped Mark feed Ryder. She looks so bored! It was about 3 seconds after I took this picture that she asked Mark if he could take the bottle back.

We all walked down to Marita’s for ice cream. Boy, Sam couldn’t get there fast enough!

Time for bed. Ryder’s getting a snuggle from his Pop Pop.

It had been a long, busy day and Sam was really wired from all the activity. I had a hard time getting her to settle down to sleep. She kept goofing around, sitting up in bed, interrupting the story I was trying to read. I got very frustrated, as I tend to do, and suddenly Sam said, “Thank you, Mommy.”  I asked her, “Thank you for what? What are you talking about?” I was really confused. She replied, “For all your kisses.” When I gave her a hug, she said, “See, you calmed down. You were all loud and mad and now you calmed down.” Boy. I don’t even know what to say about that. I hate that I get “loud and mad” and am trying very hard to not be that way. Sometimes, it is hard for me to control. I am a loudish sort of person. But I don’t like being that way. And Sam doesn’t like it, obviously, and knows just what she has to do to shut it down. I am glad about that, but sad that she needed to find a way to do so. If that wasn’t a lesson to be learned…

Tomorrow is another day, Sammy. And no one will be loud or mad – just fun, fun, FUN!

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pamelamyers | July 14, 2014

Day Two at the beach was as beautiful as Day One. Lots of sun and therefore, lots of fun! Sam headed to the jetty to go looking for hermit crabs again. We saw a ton of them this day. A lot of them were actually walking around and Sam got a kick out of seeing, “hermit crab piggies” sticking out of their shells. I thought she was building another clam house, but this time she told me it was a hermit crab house.

Sam and Mark built a giant castle that took Sam forever to decorate just right. She had me trolling the beach for appropriate items.

It is funny, the little things, that make a kid happy. She could have spent all day there with her pile of sand, adding sea shells and sticks and enjoying the sun.

That night we headed into Stone Harbor for some shopping (where Sam tried desperately to convince me to buy her another mermaid – yes, she won out). It was still early when we were done, so we took a walk down Sea Isle’s promenade. My girl’s jaunty walk shows you how much fun she was having!

Sam remembered the boat where we always take pictures and she insisted we stop. She was the captain of the pirate ship! She likes pirates, I think more than most girls her age and playing pirate ship was her own idea. We had a good time looking in a few shops (and trying to keep Sam from noticing the arcade) before heading home. We had to get a lot of sleep – the beach would be beckoning to us in the morning!

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pamelamyers | July 14, 2014

Sunday was our first real beach day. Mark did take Sam down on Saturday to look for seashells, but I never manage to make it down that first day, with all the unpacking and whatnot. It is always so great that first time you head for the beach, book in hand, and look at the ocean, smelling the air, and just enjoying the view. It was a busy morning for us. There were so many things Sam wanted to do, but first things first – head for the jetty! Sam loves looking for hermit crabs, clams, minnows, and anything else we can find.

Like last year, Sam had to build clam houses for them to live in. That idea was all her own. I don’t know where she thought of it, but I think it’s so cute. A few months ago, I found seashell bags in a catalog and Sam just had to have them. I bought one for each of us, Sam’s is red and mine is green. She loves them because they have a neck strap so she doesn’t have to carry a bucket which leaves her hands are free.  We spent a lot of time picking up seashells. The shells at the Jersey shore aren’t the most exciting, they are all pretty much the same shape, but Sam loves them anyway. She picks up more broken shells than anything, but she is so excited about them, that it doesn’t really matter. I never try to get her to put them back to find better ones.

I really find the small pebbles and rocks at the beach much more interesting than the shells, which I think are kind of boring, honestly. I would definitely be the kind of person to be always looking for sea glass if I lived in the south. The pebbles are so smooth, and in so many colors, from purest white, to black, to red, to pink, to yellow, to even almost clear. I have a jar of them at home that Sam loves to look at so I promised her we’d make her one this year. Every rock I found she’d ask me, “Is that for my jar?” and when I told her yes, she was so excited.

Sand castle construction was definitely on the list this year! The house we were staying in had a lot of beach toys, including a giant castle mold. We used it pretty much every day during the week! Eventually, I found one in a store so we have one of our own for next year. The whole day was spent digging, and building, and collecting. Oh, and also eating ice cream! Boy, as soon as the ice cream cart came by, Sam saw him. I think she ate ice cream on the beach almost every day. That is one thing that she definitely learned from Mom Mom. We all really missed her this year. It just wasn’t the same. But watching Sam go running for the ice cream cart always made me think that her Mom Mom is smiling down on her and saying, “Get one for me, Samantha!”

Whew. All that playing is hard work. Time for a rest to sunbathe on the blanket.

We really wanted to make sure that we hit the Ocean City boardwalk a few times this year so we went right away that night. Sam remembered everything and went happily trotting along. She kept pointing out all the things she saw last year.

Mark saw something very exciting in front of the kite store so he took Sam to see…a pirate! Sam went to talk to him and he gave her a gold coin! She was grinning from ear to ear. I don’t know how many times she said, “I can’t believe I got a real pirate treasure!” She told me later that now all she needs is real pirate jewels. Smart girl. Go for the diamonds. 🙂 You can see in her hand the orange hair of the little plush mermaid she talked me into buying for her. She is very into mermaids right now.

I love the boardwalk and always have. Before we had Sam, Mark and I would go there so many nights and walk literally from end to end. We can’t quite do that now, and we come home a lot earlier, but there is something amazing about seeing it through my little girl’s eyes.

By the end of the night, we were ready to do some rides. Sam is always so hesitant about getting on rides, even the ones that I think are pretty mild. This year, she couldn’t wait to ride the balloon ride. I thought there was no way. It spins around in an orbit that leaves you sometimes up and sometimes down, and the individual balloons you ride also spin. Think of the earth revolving around the sun and you get it. She was very insistent and I was going with her so I thought, why not, the worst that will happen is she will cry and that’s not so bad. She LOVED this ride. LOVED it. I kept telling her that she didn’t have to spin the balloon if she didn’t want to, but she wanted to all right. The smile never left her face. She yelled to me at one point, “I just KNEW it was going to be fun!”

It definitely was fun, I will say that. I am not one for crazy rides, but this was a kid ride after all and I was so proud of her that she was willing – no, eager, to ride it.

Next ride on Sam’s list was the boats. She was so cute. She wanted to ride in the front, and I have to say, I almost had to push some poor kid out of the way to grab the last car for her without someone in the front seat. It was worth it. She loved “driving” and told us she really was driving, because there was actual water. Yup. You were driving the boat, Sam! It kills me, last year she went on this same ride with Maddox and she looked scared to death. I think it moves about 1 mph around in a circle.

After that, she wanted to ride something with both me and Mark and she loves the bears. We have ridden that before at carnivals. Oh boy. Again with the spinning…Mark’s dad took the pictures of us in there. How he got such good shots when we were flying around in circles is amazing. We commented to him about it and he responded, “Well, I do pretty well with sporting clays, I’m used to moving targets!” True, true. 🙂

One ride we insisted on was the Ferris wheel. It is Mark and my favorite, something we do every year. It is pretty hard for us to resist a Ferris wheel anywhere we go. Sam was up for it of course but Pop Pop didn’t know if he was too thrilled! Heights are not his favorite thing, but since we all were going, we talked him into it. The line was a bit long but Sam was patient, just watching it go round and round.

We finally got on and Sam couldn’t wait to take in the view. She pointed out everything she could see – the rides, the boardwalk, the ocean, the city, you name it. It must be so incredible for her to see so far when normally she is so short that it is hard to see much of anything without assistance.

Pop Pop did ok up high….although he did hang on to the center pole with a death grip!

Me and my man, enjoying the ride, just like old times.

Sam and her Grandmom, as always, cuddling up and having fun.

Kitty had come with us to the boardwalk and Sam made sure that she didn’t miss out on the sights.

Sam really wanted to ride the train, but it was getting late and we told her we only had time for the carousel. She wasn’t too upset since it is one of her favorite things to do. This particular carousel has a fun feature. There is a guy feeding “brass” rings into a chute and when you go by you can try to grab one. I managed to get one or two back in the day. Sam was on the inside, but her dad managed to grab one and passed it along.

We all rode and had a great time!

I love seeing the excitement on Sam’s face every day when we are on vacation. She looks exactly how a little girl should.

Thanks for sharing the fun with me, Sammy. You make every experience better.

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pamelamyers | July 14, 2014

After what seemed like an endless wait, at least for Sam, we finally made it to the beach! We actually vacationed early this year, but for Sam it seemed like we would never get there. For us, the weeks leading up to vacation weren’t too bad, but the ride down to the shore was horrible! We hit so much traffic. I assume it was because we chose July 4th weekend to go, but it was not what we expected. But we made it, and were just so happy to see the ocean that no one really thought about the drive after that. Sam was probably more patient than any of us in the car!

We really lucked out – the rain at home ruined our parade plans, but it also rained out the fireworks at the shore. Happily, they were postponed – to the day we got there! I myself had never seen fireworks on the beach, and neither has Sam, and Mark assured me that there is nothing like it. I brought Sam’s parade outfit with us and she couldn’t wait to get all dressed up again. We walked right from our house down the path to the beach (we were staying in the third house back) and in minutes were happily plopped on the sand waiting for dark. Sam couldn’t believe she was going to see fireworks – and on the beach nonetheless!

After what seemed an eternity, it finally started to get dark. Sam and Mark passed the time goofing around and taking pictures. Sam loves the moon so Mark took her picture with it.

And some others, with all her cute poses!

She was so funny. A lot of kids down there were wearing glow sticks and all kinds of glowing, flashing things. A few kids had some sort of red flashing things on their heads and we all kept telling Sam they were aliens. For a while, she thought we were goofing around, but then she actually started to worry. She kept saying, “Are they really aliens?” but then, she’d start trying to convince I am not sure who, us or herself, by saying, very definitely, “I don’t think they are aliens” before asking us again and again. Poor girl! The issue of whether there were really aliens on the beach went on for a few days before I felt bad and told her we were just kidding with her.

Finally, the fireworks were about to begin! Sam hates loud noises, so we thought ahead and brought her hearing protectors with us.

It was an amazing show, but of course, it was pretty late.

…and Sam didn’t quite make it. Mark tried to wake her up, but it was not going to happen. I had a feeling she’d fall asleep. After the first few fireworks she asked me, “Is it the grand finale yet?” I think she didn’t want to miss anything but she knew she was tired. Oh well. She did see a few! Maybe next year!

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pamelamyers | July 4, 2014

Sam has been anticipating the 4th of July this year more than any other year. We usually go to the parade every year in Springfield, but last year we didn’t go. Well, we for sure had to go this year, because Sam has had her whole parade ensemble picked out for months. Best laid plans and all that….we got a call from the Township that the parade was postpo0ned due to impending rain, which meant we can’t go since we’ll be on our way to the beach that day. Oh boy. Telling Sam was hard. Her whole face fell. She looked ready to cry. Mark and I promised her we’d have our own parade and that she could wear her outfit. She said, “We can’t have fireworks!” (not that they have fireworks at the parade or anything) but we promised her it would be fun. I stopped at the store the next day and bought a whole bunch of firecrackers, and sparklers and all the explosive type fun that you are legally allowed to buy in Pennsylvania. I knew I had some red, white and blue lights that I could string on the bushes to make things as festive as possible.

When Sam was all dressed up and ready to go, we took her outside to take some pictures of her gorgeous outfit! Is this girl ready for a parade, or what? Cutest little parade attendee EVER.

The day moved on and it seemed like firecracker time. We asked Sam if she’d like to invite her friend, Julia, to her very own parade. Of course she wanted to! So, Julia (who was as excited as Sam at the prospect) came over and the fun began! Sparklers for everyone!

We had some bigger fireworks that made a ton of noise and shot out a lot of pretty sparks. The kids loved those!

Well…except for the noise. The sparks were pretty and they are still smiling.

After Julia and Sam played a while and Julia left, Sam wanted to set off the rest of the fireworks we had left, so of course, we obliged. Yikes! That was a loud one!

Happy Independence Day!

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