Sandy Imprints

We had everything we needed: beach umbrella check, beach chairs check, cooler filled with yummy necessities check, beach towels, block and sunglasses, check, check and check plus. With our proverbial checklist complete we put the car in gear and headed for Coligny Beach. Pierce was charged with energy provided by the sandy shorelines, the calm breeze, the warm waters and the feel good vibe of the surrounding beach goers.

After I clumsily staked our umbrella and Ashleigh unfolded the chairs, Pierce and I headed for the water. As it turns out, Pierce seems to have a natural affinity for water. He took to his swim "lessons" earlier this year well and I was excited to see his fearlessness applied to this more formidable swimming pool. The only words he says with regularity are Ma and Da but he does have an impressive grasp of the "babble." Pierce babbled as we splashed and kicked our way along the edge of the breaking water. When he got tired of walking or curious at the sand beneath our toes, he sat down and I followed suit.

Pierce sat between my legs for what seemed like an hour but was probably only 15 minutes. We played in the soupy sand, the salt water surged past us momentarily but was pulled back seconds later by the under current, sucking the sand around our legs and thighs. I would reach around and kiss him on his torso and cheeks until he giggled the way only your child can. The most challenging task I found myself dealing with was preventing him from eating the sand.

After we cleaned up and Mamma gave us a snack under a blanket of shade provided by our umbrella, it was time for Ma and P to construct their first sand castle. Pierce carried over his excitement for knocking things over (learned I'm sure from Nana and her block towers), to toppling Ash's walls. If she constructed one, she constructed ten. Two perpendicular walls and a moat (from Pierce) strategically placed inside the two walls were all that was achieved. The three of us walked and played in the serf after Pierce's apprenticeship concluded.

I hope I always remember picking up my one year old Pierce after he licked a palm full of sand and then looking down at the outline of our tookuses just before the ocean covered them up. Like many other families, we left our imprints in the sand today and the waves quickly washed them away. What cannot be washed away is the time that we spent together, the laughs that we shared and the adventures we had on our first family vacation.

My experiences are new to me, the lessons learned are probably not new to you. Most of the time, I'm just working out in my head, what the Silver and Black Lining is.

Savannah

Savannah is a 45 minute drive from Hilton Head and was an unexpected bonus for our trip. The Georgia Highways were lined with beautiful Live Oak Trees accented with Spanish Moss, they served as Savannah's red carpet.

The one "must see/do" on our short list was to experience Lady Paula Dean's restaurant. Lady and Sons offered a glimpse in to fine southern cuisine. We couldn't leave without trying fried green tomatoes which were delicious. Ashleigh ordered a chicken salad sandwich and I enjoyed Paula's crab cakes. The quote of the day had to be "yes, mac n chz is a vegetable.", Pierce loved the "vegetables."

With our bellies full and our arteries a bit more firm we decided to jaunt on over to the newly restored River Walk. You can imagine the history that rests there. Slaves bought and traded and cash crops being exported back to the King. With so many Historical squares and House Museums, it wasn't hard to immerse ourselves into Savannah's roots.

One vehicle that we chose to take advantage of was the home of Isaiah Davenport. A master builder in the 1820s, he left his fingerprint on the architecture of the city and it is still prevalent today.

The tour lasted 30 minutes, Pierce had a bottle to occupy him for the first ten and after that, Ashleigh and I did a good job of taking turns entertaining little P, while not disturbing the other four members of the tour. At one point when it was my turn, we were in the hall while the rest of the group was in one of the bedrooms. I was feeding him yogurt bites and he began to babble loud enough that it echoed which earned him a large laughter. The group went on, Ash and I stole a glimpse of each other and as they went in to the next room, I quickly scooped up what came out of his mouth when he began his babble. The tour ended, the group complimented us on his behavior and I remember thinking, I wouldn't have dreamt of attempting that ten months ago, it's all about adjustments.

We spent a couple more hours in the City Market and the Historical District before grabbing one more Georgia meal and heading back across the Savannah River. When I reminisce about our trip to Savannah, I'll think of three things: how filling the food is (because it's all fried), the 200 year old pine heart floor boards that probably still have Pierce's snacks smashed between and lastly how nice the locals were.

I don't care which restaurant or diner you go to in New York, Chicago or San Francisco, you won't get any member of their staff come up to your kid and have a sincere conversation with him about what he should try on the menu and offer (almost beg) to feed the baby. It was more than a token, generic salutation delivered in high pitch baby speak. It was Southern Hospitality!


My experiences are new to me, the lessons learned are probably not new to you. Most of the time, I'm just working out in my head, what the Silver and Black Lining is.

Helmets. Check!

Adjustment is a term any new parent should get familiar with. Ashleigh and I are good at enough but if there is one thing that we are great at, it's squeezing every last second out of a vacation day. The last time we were in SC was 10 years ago. We walked the shore line of Myrtle Beach just after Ash graduated High School. Fast forward to present day and we're walking a SC shore once again, only this time we're each holding the hand of our one year old blessing.

We knew that this vacation wasn't going to be like previous ones. But we also knew that we would make the necessary adjustments. This trip is where we begin to splice our old modus operandi with our new one. Whether it's an international city or a beach in the low country the goal is always the same. Immerse yourself in to the culture as best as you can using all five of your senses (especially taste), all while having an unforgettable time and not letting your head hit your pillow without a thought of accomplishment floating through your mind as you pass into your dream world.

Today was no different, we get a little later start than we used to but the ideal time to start our adventure is after Pierce's first nap. We checked out our bikes and strapped Pierce in to his baby seat with a five point harness and helmet. A mile later, we were pushing our pedals along the sandy shorelines, watching children play in the early tide and older couples turn the pages of number one best sellers. We soaked it all in for a couple of miles before turning on Lighthouse Rd. Pierce was grabbing at my shirt and making sounds of contentment, this continued for the remaining four miles before we locked up our cycles and grabbed a bite to eat.

The three of us walked down the pier and enjoyed the view that it offered as well as the lighthouse which was the catalyst for this particular bike path. The 2pm nap time approached, so we saddled up and Pierce zonked out. Six miles later we turned in our bikes and headed for the beach. After changing into the appropriate attire, it wasn't long before we were the ones playing in the surf.

Maximizing a day's potential should always be a high priority but as long as you can say you had a good time, "who gives a rip?"

An Hour at The Ocean

So, if we've achieved one thing on our first family vacation it is that Pierce now loathes his car seat. After a cumulative of 13 hours riding in the car we finally arrived to our home for the week in Hilton Head, SC. We considered our first day a "travel" day. Everyone has been there: seven hours of driving, packing, loading, unloading, unpacking. At the end of the day all you want to do is grab a quick bite, some rest and a good night's sleep so that you can hit the ground running the next day.

After unpacking, Daddy took a gamble. I decided that we couldn't come all this way without at least accomplishing putting our toes in the sand on the first day. The only hurdle was strapping our boy back into the car seat. It took both arms from both parents and a foot to cram him in and he wasn't quiet about it. I couldn't blame him. For all he knew, we were buckling in for another few hours.

Ten minutes later (well past Pierce's bedtime,) we were walking down the winding boardwalk. The residual winds from Hurricane Katia and Tropical storm Lee were whipping through Mamma's hair. The water fowl were squawking and gliding across the aforementioned wind, the palm trees' branches were swaying, the salt water smell started to become palatable and the sound of the oceans relentless siege upon the beaches of South Carolina were all coming to a crescendo. The view to the Atlantic was not a straight shot, rather was guarded by several of the boardwalks' bends. With Pierce on my hip and Momma close by, we cut through the anticipation with each step.

Seeing Pierce's dimples as I held him, while standing on the sand, is a moment I hope I don't soon forget. I introduced him to the ocean (it's the subject of one of his favorite pop up books "A Day in The Ocean",) and stood him on his feet. Together we walked toward the Atlantic. He didn't know what to make of the new carpet squishing between his tiny toes or of the water that surged suddenly over top of them for only a moment before receding back into the horizon.

After the initial excitement ran its course, Pierce wanted to walk. We walked along Driesson Beach and I can say that, outside of his Momma and Daddy and grandparents, the atmosphere that I described elicited the most prolonged smile that I have ever seen him wear. I'm looking forward to the rest of our trip. Hopefully we elicit a few more smiles.

5K - 25 minutes

I'm coming for you Marathon!

Picture This

No longer are we content to sit on the floor and play with objects, I say objects and not toys because PZ would just assume fiddle with a travel wipes bag as opposed to any one of his 77 toys.

I like this picture because it outlines Pierce's progression over the past 30 days. Lately, his curiosity o'meter's needle is leaning hard right. About four weeks ago he started walking using his push toy (to the right in this picture.) He's progressed to walking (at a snail's pace,) along the side of furniture and around some of his toy tables.

I've come to appreciate photography on a deeper level over the last seven years. The single biggest reason being, it's the passion of the most beautiful woman on God's Earth and she happens to be my wife. My son is eleven months old today and I have taken 1100 pictures of him, his momma has easily doubled that. Those numbers are not exaggerated for effect.

I bring this up because typically when anyone flips through a series of pictures they pause for a second on each one and move on to the next. Who has time to dissect every detail of a picture? It's not even a question of time, unless it's your own kid, who wants to spend more than a second on a photo?

Just so we're on the same page, the type of photos that I am referring to aren't sailors proposing to nurses in the middle of Times Square or of ash covered first responders. Those carry a different weight and deserve different attention. You look at those pictures and try to imagine what the the scene was like in the moments before the flash and the seconds after.

I have 1100 points in time that I can warp back through, replay the scene and smile 1100 more times. In the above photo, Ash was blow drying her hair off through the door on the left. Little man and I were walking all over the house, pushing the animal farm walker, listening to roosters and cows. Pierce pushed ahead while I watched from behind. He parked his walker and used the wicker hamper to make his way over to the taller more formidable plastic hamper. This all took some time, he is getting more brave but I wouldn't put any money on him in a foot race just yet. He eventually made it to what I assume was his destination. He must have opened and shut the lid 33 times and he must have giggled oh, about.....33 times.

If I had some vino in me, this is the point where I would trail off on a tangent for a couple of paragraphs about the importance of appreciating the here and now and yadda yadda blah blah. Fortunately, I have only an Ale, so all I'll say is, take some pictures people!

My experiences are new to me, the lessons learned are probably not new to you. Most of the time, I'm just working out in my head, what the Silver and Black Lining is.

50 Meters

A while back I promised to write about fun family events, I couldn't think of a more appropriate day to chronicle than our first family trip to the pool.

When I reminisce about going to the pool as a child, I naturally associate it with freedom. Why? Pools open during the summer and you aren't in school in the summer. Sun screen, floaties, and cannon balls are symbolic of the type of fun that we as adults can rarely re-capture and if we do manage to grasp it for a fleeting moment it doesn't come with the child like giggle that strums a parents' heart chords.

After putting on his shorts and rash guard shirt, after applying the block and squeezing his curled toes in to his shark shoes and the hat was pulled down, it was time to venture off in to the giant bath tub. Armed with both apprehension and fascination, Pierce put one foot in front of the other until the water was just above his knees.

When he could no longer put his foot to the bottom of the pool and he became perplexed as to how his leg was floating, he became uneasy and started to vocalize his concerns it was time for Daddy to wrap his arms around his little cub and convey to him, "It's Okay. Daddy's Here."

Bouncing on my knee while in the water elicited not just a smile but a smile accompanied with a little tongue sticking out the edge of his lips, it reminded me of a puppy wagging its tail. Splashing the water and playing with the his strings made for a content little baby.

After lunch under a shady tree and a nap in Daddy's arms it was time for a shot at the big boy pool. In the interest of full disclosure, this wasn't technically our first trip to the pool. Last summer, the pool proved to be a therapeutic time for Momma while Pierce was inside her womb.

Up and down, 50 meters at a time we all three went taking the pressure off Momma's back and thinking about the upcoming summer when we would take Pierce to the pool for the first time. That is what I thought about as Ashleigh floated and kicked her way around the pool with Pierce sitting comfortably on her chest. I like to think that while they were nuzzling noses and kissing and smiling, Pierce felt a familiarity with the experience.

Pierce giggled as I joined them and we continued to chase each other back and forth 50 meters at a time.