Weekend at the Shore

Thanks to all kinds of craziness..this was a lame jersey shore summer for us. But, we did finally make it down to the beach! It was our anniversary on the 19th (11 years!) and we took the kids to Aunt Bette and Uncle Jim's house on LBI. The first day was fun but the kids were tired and hungry and we didn't last long on the beach. Well, and let's face it, Rob couldn't get Chicken or The Egg wings out of his head. He looks forward to them every summer. So, he was eager to return to the house too! That night we went to dinner for our anniversary and then to Fantasy Island to enjoy some games and rides.
Sunday we headed back to the beach! The threesome had a blast jumping in a big hole and sliding down it (ewww, the sandy diapers...I think Logan gained 10 lbs!)...The water was way too cold to enjoy but Delaney got her shells, Logan threw some sand, and Aidan got to dig to China!

The one story of that weekend that touched me was when we went to Tucker's for our anniversary dinner. The children were with us. This sweet sweet older man, maybe late 80s, came up to us as he was leaving and told us how much he enjoyed watching our children. He said that he is very impressed by how well behaved they are (my kids?LOL) and that Logan reminded him of his son. He said that he has been watching Logan and he has the same personality as his son and that Logan was going to go places, just like his son (I told you, people are drawn to Logan!). I thanked him and figured he wanted to talk about his son. So I asked him how old his son was now and what he did. The man's face changed and he told me he lost his son on 9/11. My heart just sank. I couldn't get this man out of my mind. This sweet old man who lost his son. It is bittersweet to think that here he is watching my son and remembering his own. I hope it brought him back to happier times, which I think it did.

You never know what tomorrow brings, so I guess I need to cherish everything - even those 10lbs of sandy diapers.....

Our new pool

We did it. We decided to get an Intex pool for our little wanna be fishies. It fits perfectly in our space and the kids are having so much fun. It was time to ditch the kiddie pool. As much as mom wants to stay in denial, the fact is, the Merritt kids are KIDS not babies and it was time to go bigger. Delaney says she is a mermaid and Logan is a beach bum..he prefers to just chill in a tube. Aidan is impossible to get out of the pool and is very proud of all his new skills he is learning this year in camp.
Who needs a grassy spot when you can have smiles like these?

All Aboard! Aidan drives a train!

For those who don’t know, Rob is now working in the City at WebMD. He went today to get his train tickets and brought Aidan. They ended up going to New Brunswick on the train- just for fun. They walked around, grabbed lunch, and went to the Rutgers book store. On the way home, they let Aidan drive the train! They brought him to the front and let him drive the train, blow the horns, be the man in charge. He was going about 85 mph. Rob said he loved it! What a lucky day for Aidan!

Happy 4th of July

Happy Fourth of July! We went next door to the Hanuscin’s for Jake’s first birthday/4th of July party. The Merritt kids had a blast in the bouncy house. I think they bounced almost the entire 5 hours it was up. I wish I had half their energy. They slept well the next day. Hope you had a good holiday!