Beach Bits,  Bug

April is the new August

April 21, 2009 /

We declare it National Pink Parasol Day!

Since it’s been about 98 degrees in the shade around here, Bug and I decided to be like the rest of the tourist fools and spend the day at the beach. Not an hour here and there like we usually do but a huge chunk of the day. I’d say the whole day but I had to cut it off at naptime. I suppose one could nap under the shade of a huge beach umbrella but I was missing my laptop and you guys. (Hi!)

We declared it National Pink Parasol Day. You didn’t get the memo? Sorry. Well it can be National Pink Parasol Day tomorrow too. I think the hot weather plans on holding. Who knew a pink parasol would be so fun at the beach?!!

sunny shade

Normally, I would forbid such a fragile plaything at the beach but Bug already broke it at home so I figured we couldn’t really make it that much worse. Plus it only cost about $13 at the Asian market. It was a bit of a challenge to stop Bug from carrying it off and poking other kids in the eye but other than her gregariousness and tendency to be a little over-zealous while sharing, the umbrella was a huge hit.

too cool for school

It was also quite effective in shading small areas! Who knew!

wonkey pink parasol!

It was very hot. I’m so glad that I brought my own very large beach umbrella. You’d think for someone who lives at the beach, I’d have the beach gear down pat but I don’t. I hardly ever take an umbrella with us. It’s too wonky to carry. We’re always on our way to somewhere else too when we go to the beach, like the grocery store or Starbucks. Carrying around a full day’s worth of gear is just not my speed. But today we had everything and I have to admit it was nice.

camp

I set up camp with the giant umbrella resting against the jogging stroller. I love that stroller. It’s the best free cast-off thing I’ve ever gotten. It might be rusty and worn but it works. It hauls us and all our stuff to the beach with nary a groan. We leave it outside all year ’round and it never breaks down. It might host a spider or two and the color is a little bleached out but that thing works better than any fancy-dancy stroller I’ve ever seen.

toques are for all seasons

While Bug terrorized our neighbors nearby with her outgoing friendliness, I tucked myself into a book and read right through five chapters. That’s more than I’ve read in almost a year! I never read books anymore. I can only blame the internet. I think I might have to plan a day at the beach every week so I can finally get through the mile high stack of books I have on my dresser. Reading is good.

trotting off

Don't ask.

Letting your kid run her wiggles out at the beach is good too. She’s napping right now and I have a feeling that if I don’t wake her up soon she might nap right through dinner. She is one tired girl. I’d probably be wiped out too but I had a great big iced coffee…’tis the season!

The Evil Smurf enjoys green ice cream.

If this is what the weather is going to be like until October, I think we might have to play ‘tourist’ more often.

37 Comments

  • Annika

    April 21, 2009 at 5:09 pm

    I feel the same way about the jogging stroller I got for $25 on Craigslist. Who wants a Bob? Not me!

    I only have a green parasol but I bet Bug would approve so I will play along tomorrow (if I can find it).

  • Clover

    April 21, 2009 at 5:41 pm

    I’ve just discovered reading again! (Until I got on a blog roll tonight and keep finding fascinating new blogs to check out!) I found out that my kids will let me read without bugging me more than they will let me sit on the computer. So, I can let them play on our deck (even though it’s in the 60s here!) and I can read whole chapters at a time. It doesn’t even take me three weeks to read a book anymore!

    I would SO like swimsuit fashion shows if they all looked like Bug. I love the parasol, too!

  • Melissa

    April 21, 2009 at 6:50 pm

    The pic of Bug laying under the parasol with her shades is hilarious – she’s such a glam Cali girl! What lucky girls to get to hang at the beach. It was cold and rainy in my neck of the woods today – I’m wondering who I need to speak too to get this unfair situation straightened out? ;-)

  • beyond

    April 21, 2009 at 8:12 pm

    i love the photo of bug under her parasol, she looks like a little diva. i can’t believe she let you read five chapters… looks like you had a wonderful day.

  • ioi

    April 21, 2009 at 10:38 pm

    I read about that heat wave, but they also had hypothermia warnings out because the water in the rivers and lakes is still snow-melt runoff. I totally wouldn’t have thought of that with hot temps scorching us, so I can see how easy it would be to run right into that. I guess the ocean is probably not quite as cold or a temp difference though.

  • Jennifer

    April 22, 2009 at 12:27 am

    That looked like a lot of fun! You guys are lucky you have the beach. I had to take the littles out back and spray them with the hose a few times. HA!

    The shades pic killed me.

  • Sebla

    April 22, 2009 at 2:47 am

    Such a nice photos!!! In Istanbul, it is rainy and dark so i enjoy this sunny photos:) I also like the umbrella so much! Have a nice day!

  • gingermog

    April 22, 2009 at 2:53 am

    Strangly enough were having heat wave in London too. Even at eight in the morning its too warm for a jacket??? Your beautiful photos are making me really miss the water. I remember when I was Bugs age my mother used to take me down to the beach were we’d play for hours and she probably caught up with her reading too :) Does Bug collect other peoples spades because I had a bad habit of returning home with more than I’d set out with :)

    SAJ says: She does! Not so much steal them but people leave their toys at the beach often and we tend to come home with them. We lose ours often too. So I guess it’s a rotating co-op of sorts.

  • Loukia

    April 22, 2009 at 5:33 am

    How gorgeous are these picture? Excuse my ignorance, but where do you live? I wish the weather was as nice here – Ottawa, Canada – but apparently, we’re going to have a hot and sunny weekend, so yay for that!

    SAJ says: We live in Southern California. :) We’ve had a bit of a heat wave lately.

  • nis

    April 22, 2009 at 5:51 am

    She is just so adorable! I love reading about your adventures and laughing at how cute Bug is. My little one is just shy of 4 but I can tell that she and Bug would get along great…something about the look in her eyes and the grin on her adorable face matches the personality that I live with! :) Hope it cools down a bit for you soon.

  • Becca

    April 22, 2009 at 12:13 pm

    We got to enjoy the west coast heat wave too – Aloha, Or – but unfortunately not at the beach :(

    I love her smile in that last picture, so happy to have some ice cream :)

  • Uncle George

    April 22, 2009 at 2:21 pm

    BB, you just keep being outgoing and gregarious for old Uncle George. NO ONE ELSE IN THE FAMILY IS!! (Except your crazy Uncle, and he needs company and to know he’s not nuts, even though the rest of the family thinks he is. We rock, my dear BB, we do!

  • patty m

    April 22, 2009 at 2:35 pm

    Not to sound all stalkery, but maybe we will bump into you this summer during our Beach Fridays. Self-imposed beach days are excellent for whatever ails you, we’ve found.

  • BeachMama

    April 22, 2009 at 4:51 pm

    We are expecting a heat wave here this weekend too! Unfortunately our beaches are nowhere near ready for swimming, but I may break out the sprinkler for fun.

    I love the pink parasol, makes for some great photos at the beach.

  • Abby

    April 22, 2009 at 7:02 pm

    PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE tell me where you got Bug’s suit. My daughter would LOVE it!!

    SAJ says: My mom bought it for her at Mervyn’s (I think) for super cheap. My whole family knows I love Paul Frank as an illustrator so they snatch up the Small Paul clothing for me when it comes on sale.

  • lala

    April 22, 2009 at 9:58 pm

    she is really is SOOOOOOOOOO cute!
    we live by the beach too but the Pacific Northwest beaches are not so glorious as yours! nor as half warm! I am envious!

  • Jennifer

    April 23, 2009 at 8:29 pm

    Thanks for sending the heat wave this-a-way. Some parts of Minnesota were 90+ degrees, and we haven’t even had spring yet!

    Your photos make me want to go swimming (and have a pink parasol). Alas, I’ll have to wait until August when the lakes have warmed up enough (for the swimming, not the parasol)!