Tonight=Happy

Tonight we went to Siesta Key Beach to scout out a spot for Tallulah's upcoming fifth birthday festivities. We left the house late to go to the beach-- 7pm!-- and the sun was setting as we got there. The night was perfect, truly. Big fluffy clouds glowed pink in the sunset and a breeze blew in from the water, cooling everything down until it almost felt like fall. Or summer in a much more northern climate.

Tallulah immediately ran off to the playground. She's always had tricks for making friends immediately in new situations. When she was younger, she would run in circles. Literally. She would run up to, and then around, any child who struck her fancy while laughing hysterically. Have you ever tried to not respond to someone who is running and laughing and circling you? Impossible! Tallulah's new, more sophisticated tactic is to play near the children she fancies and do stuff. Loudly. Tonight she climbed the monkey bars and attempted to flip off. When the first attempt failed because she slipped sideways off the bars, she tried once more then started doing a crazy dance. The crazy dance clinched it and then she was climbing the slide with a couple of older girls.

Moxie tried out the baby swings and spent most of the time leaning back in the seat and staring up as the clouds rocked back and forth. Then out of the corner of her eye she spotted me behind the swing and sat up and forward, her long legs dangling like an airborne frog.

Maybe it was the fresh air or the sand or the pink and orange sunset, but I was struck by the vibrancy of my family. So glowy and happy with their sparkly eyes. We walked down to the water with Tallulah chattering all the way about her new friends and Moxie humming a happy little song, then Tallulah and I went for a short swim while daddy and Moxie played in the sand.

"Let's catch the wave, Mommy!" Tallulah encouraged in waist deep water. We jumped when the miniscule bump of a wave hit us and pretended they were huge and overpowering. "Whoa! That one almost knocked us over!" It quickly grew dark and we started out of the water at preschool speed. Tallulah had to examine every step in the sand, every piece of seaweed, every shell crunched beneath her foot. "Let's run to daddy!" I suggested, wanting to speed her up. And of course it did. She ran, head down, elbows in, fists clenched to daddy and tagged him first. "Let's play in the sand!" And she plopped her wet butt down in the sand. "Noo!" Kent and I said simultaneously. Tallulah and I headed back to the water to wash off the sand. Quick dip and back to daddy, racing. But just as we got to him, he darted off to avoid the tag and Tallulah tripped and landed-- again-- in the sand. Back in the water, then back to daddy and Tallulah threw herself down on the sand to put on her shoes. "Noo!" Kent and I said simultaneously, laughing. Another trip back to the water, and finally we were ready to walk to the playground and parking lot.

Looking up, Kent pointed out the stars beginning to show in the night sky. "Look, there's one," Tallulah pointed. I recited the poem ending in "wish I may, wish I might, have the wish I wish tonight." When asked, Tallulah's wish was, "Candy! And being able to fly!" Moxie agreed by leaning in to my chest and biting me hard on the clavicle with her puppy teeth.