This past weekend was so jam-packed that you could have played a tune on my back, that’s how high strung I was, leading up to it. But there’s something about seeing this:
that makes a girl’s shoulders relax. I mean, who can look at Lake Tahoe in all its splendor and still be uptight? Not me. Especially after ordering a bottle of wine with dinner, and hardly having to share.
Before the arm wrestling tournament started, my mom and dad went with me and the girls to check out the lake. The water is freezing year round, because, hello, those are snow-capped mountains in the background. Luckily my dad was willing to risk losing his pinkie toes in order to allow the girls a chance to splash around, while my mom and I watched from the warm sand.
I figured we would just roll up our pant legs to play, regardless of how warm it was outside. But my girls took “splashing around” to a whole new level, and pretty soon I had to change them into their swim suits. 
Yes, they played in that frigid water without complaint – but the adults had to drag them out every few minutes so that everyone’s feet could thaw. 
I was so caught up in capturing Blythe’s first trip to the beach, I didn’t realize until later that it was also Alison’s first. 
What kind of parent am I that my 4 1/2 year old has lived her whole life in California, yet has never been to a beach of any kind? A parent with a swimming pool, that’s what. Since leaving, Alison has added about 50 things to her list of things to bring to the beach next time. On my list? Warmer water. And maybe a fruity drink with an umbrella in it.
One reply on “Serenity Now”
Papa to the rescue. I second the fruity drink request.