The Shore - 2011
Family and Friends - While Ocean City is a fantastic place, the best part of these summer vacations is spending time with the family. Kaden was in total agreement, he loved goofing around with his Uncle Paul, spending time exploring the beach with Gammi and Poppi, reading with Grammi Vick, and getting into all of Pop Richard's stuff. In true Shore fashion, Kaden made some new friends with whom he spent the evenings playing outside.
Teddy - Teddy was the biggest hit of the entire trip. Kaden loved playing with his cousin and, surprisingly, there were very few sharing meltdowns. Every morning, the two asked to see one another and for the rest of the day stuck together like glue. By the end of the trip, they were best buddies. To date, one of Kaden's favorite activities, is looking at photos of the two of them playing together. Watching them together made me even more wishful that we lived close to one another.
Lila - Miriam, Gabriel, and Lila drove down from New York to spend a weekend with us. The last time we saw them was in March. At that time, the kids recognized one another's presence but didn't really interact. This time, they were really into each other - summer lovin' at its absolute sweetest.
Beach - Last year it was almost too hot to leave the air conditioning, but this year we made it to the beach almost every day. Kaden had a blast jumping the waves, watching the clams dig themselves back under the sand, digging holes, and just generally exploring.
Goofing Around the House - The times we weren't at the beach, we just goofed around the house.
Rides - The Boardwalk was a favorite of Kaden's this year, the rides especially. We only went up a few nights, but each time we left he begged for more.
Junk Food - So much for the healthy eating habits I've tried to instill in Kaden. As soon as Poppi got ahold of him, it was all sorts of junk food. I guess that is what vacations at the Shore are all about though. Kaden happily enjoyed Brown's donuts (which are the VERY best donuts EVER), Italian Water Ice, and Kohr's Frozen Custard. Getting him to realize that these are special treats, and that he can't have them every day, proved to be a bit difficult.
Gammi made Kaden a photo book of his adventures at the Shore. He calls it his "Joisey" book and it is one of his favorites. Reflecting on all the fun we had makes it one of my favorites too.
