Day 2 at the Beach

Day 2 at the beach was just as exciting to Elaina as day 1. Thankfully, the appeal of eating sand seems to have diminished.

Elaina is a social butterfly and reminds me of the stories I've heard about her cousin Joe. Any group of people nearby—especially if they have kids—has the potential to draw her attention, and once they'd caught her eye, she'd head off in that direction to go meet them. I've met more people in the last couple days than I ever met on my own at the beach.

Escorting the Little Socialite on Her Rounds

We said 'hi' to the life guards and a couple people walking by, we went over and met a group of people setting up their chairs and blankets. We talked to some older ladies who smiled and said 'hi' to Elaina, and told me that they remember their own 'relaxing' days at the beach when their kids were little. We then talked to a couple who may have otherwise been reading on the beach.... Everyone's always so nice to her, I'm not sure my attempts at get her to respect people's privacy are getting through. I steered her clear of at least three other groups, but once people see her, they usually talk to her. I can just hear her saying, "See Dad, I told you they would want to talk to us."

Even when she wasn't walking over to meet people, she was drawing attention. She had been running into the surf, having fun, but started getting cold, so I took her back up the beach, toweled her off, and put on her coverup and sunhat. She decided that she wanted my sun glasses. At first I said, "No, those are Daddy's," but she was persistent and they're cheap, so I put them on her. There she is in her coverup, big floppy sunhat, and sunglasses. She looks up and smiles—applause erupts from a group of women a few yards down the beach from us.

Into the Surf!

Elaina loved running into the surf. She's absolutely fearless. Here's a video of her running down the beach to the surf. In all cases, I have to grab her before she plunges headlong into the ocean.

Random Shots I Like

Post-Beach Crash

I'm not sure we'd even left the parking lot before Elaina was sound asleep. She'd had a big day of fun in the sun. And in a rare bonus for her mom and dad, she transferred from the car to a nap in bed without waking up.