Yesterday was the first really warm day of the summer. Since we are primarily occupied with looking after children and growing plants, we usually spend the nice days trying to get the children to help us grow plants.
Yesterday, however, we took the day off to go to the beach. It’s such a traditional summer activity, yet it has such beauty in it. This day was particularly fine, as we are fortunate enough to live within a two hour drive of Ingonish Beach which has a sandy ocean beach on one side of a rock breakwater, and a shallow sandy freshwater lake on the other side. This makes it an ideal place to go with children of different ages. The oldest can body surf with one parent while the youngest paddles in the shallows of a calm pool.
We had more small joys yesterday. We got to the beach in a new (to us) car, using half the gas of our minivan (which *I* have outgrown even if the family hasn’t… in fact, it was a compromise necessary to get us through the two years of three carseats, from which we are now blessedly freee. [sic]) My smallest son found a friend and spent the day splashing with another toddler, whose parents turned out to be interesting enough that we exchanged phone numbers. There was biology class going on courtesy of Parks Canada. We purchased our annual Parks Pass, by which we will have countless trips to the National Park, plus the Fortress of Louisbourg. (If you live in Canada, or just vacation here, this is one of the best deals going. $165 for the year for unlimited use of all the National Parks and Historic Sites. This gives us our summers. Sweet.)
I am singing the songs of summer (literally).
Wishing you small joys!