Monday, August 11, 2008

One of the best nights of my life

August 6th was one of those evenings that I never want to forget. After we unloaded all of our stuff into our hotel room we headed to the beach.


The delight on Christian's face was priceless. It had been a little over a year since Christian had been to a real beach. I think he was expecting to see a beach like the one at the lake. He was so overwhelmed with the grandeur of it all. He couldn't stop running and jumping. So fun to sit and watch and enjoy it through his eyes.

He LOVED the ocean. He squealed and giggled every time a new wave would get his feet.

The best part of the evening was watching Ryan with our kids. He's such a great father and most of the time I'm too busy to see it. He's so patient and kind with them. They trust him completely. And he knows how to play, not just supervise. He and Christian have so much fun together. I love it that Ryan enjoys Christian. It's not work for him to spend time with him. Ryan really is Christian's best friend, although Christian will tell you that Nate is.

McKenna's eyes were so big, just taking it all in.
Ryan loves his little girl.

Christian's first dip in the ocean. The waves were rather calm, so the boys went out pretty far and Christian became confident in the water. And that was it. The rest of our stay he could care less about the pool. He wanted to go in the waves with daddy.

As the sun was setting over the dunes I walked McKenna down the beach in her stroller and just drank in the moment. The only people that were around were my three favorite people in the whole world. Sea gulls called to one another, shells and jellyfish were washing up on the shore and I kept thinking of this verse..."God saw all that he had made, and it was very good." Genesis 1:31 McKenna fell asleep to the lull of the waves and the boys laughed and chased each other (and some poor birds) for the next hour.

"The seas have lifted up, O Lord, the seas have lifted up their voice; the seas have lifted up their pounding waves. Mightier than the thunder of the great waters, mightier than the breakers of the sea - the Lord on high is mighty." Psalm 93:3-4

6 comments:

Aggiema (Michelle) said...

Isn't the beach great! My daughter can sit and play in the sand on the beach for hours and has been that way since she was a toddler. We have to drag her away to eat and reapply sunscreen occasionally! Great pictures and great memories for you. I am praying for your niece, I hope they can find out what is causing these seizures and fix them pronto!

Anonymous said...

Judy,
I am glad you had a time of refreshing and was able to spend time with just Ryan, Christian and McKenna. What wonderful memories!! We've have been trying to spend time with Cait and Rob before they both head off to college in a couple of weeks. Treasure all those moments because they go by so quickly. Glad to have you back and blogging!
Laurie

Kristi said...

I know isn't the beach awesome. I know how special it must have been for you to have some quiet time time with the family. I remember everyone was sick for so long before. totally praying for your niece.

the mccollums... said...

Judy,
I loved this post and your writings and verses...awesome. My favorite part was the section on your praise for Ryan and his fatherly ways! You and your children are blessed! I can't wait to see Daniel in this role one day!

Katy said...

Isn't it so refreshing to be at the beach? Something about the beauty and majesty of it all...the sounds of the waves...oh I just love it! So glad you were able to just ENJOY your family that week!!!

Anonymous said...

I'm so glad you all had such a great time. Your pictures are awesome!
GRandmom