a sunny 5th

when we woke to realize that the rain had indeed moved north we declared it to be a beach day.  we packed our cooler with fruit, sandwiches, chips, and granola bars and gathered our towels, books, camera, and chairs and we were off to the beach.  we chose our favorite: nahant beach. (it is now $5 to park... they have done a lot of work on the parking lot and trail system, so it is totally worth it.)

it was as gorgeous as ever, i mean look at those views! i love this beach.  we took naps in the sun, ate our packed goods, and chatted about this and that.  we mostly chatted about the future, one of my favorite topics.  it was also really windy.  we had to strategically position ourselves for maximum comfort (backs to the wind so that sand wasn't flying into our faces). 

while i was shaking out my sandy towel, or just holding my sandy towel as it whipped around in the wind, i was reminded of a picture of me on the banks of colter bay, just outside of jackson hole, wyoming.  (we also watched man of steel the night before, so i must have had super heros on the brain.)  i tried to recreate the heroic picture and then managed to track down the original:

i have no idea what year the picture is from.  i'm guessing i was 10 so it might be from summer of 1999, but i really don't know.  we went to colter bay every summer for a while, so it's hard to say.

after we had our fill of the sun and sand, we headed home with the windows down and the music blaring.  oh how i love summer time!  we de-sanded ourselves and ventured to middleton for a round of mini-golf at one of our favorite places.  we were all sorts of patriotic with our wardrobe and golf ball color choices... i had to document it.

we had quite a rousing game.  we forgot to grab a scorecard so we just keep track of who won the hole rather than by keeping track of the strokes.  i found that way to be less stressful... i tend to get competitive. at one point jeremy was up five holes and i was able to pull myself together and win a bunch of holes, so we ended with a tie.  i also had two hole in ones (woot woot!) and he declared me the winner anyway - he's really nice to me. we had such a great time.

after golfing, we ventured to find a place to eat.  my sweet "find me gluten free" app found Pete's A Place close by.  we hung out in the little place, watched the locals trail in and out for take out (everybody seemed to know each other), and witnessed the penalty kicks of the netherlands and costa rica game.  the place had numerous gluten free options.  we shared a caesar salad and gf pepperoni pizza. jeremy did a great job of tolerating the gluten free crust, while it seems that i have forgotten what i am missing on the glutenous front.  what a blessing!  

then we wandered through the neighborhoods to the danvers family festival.  we needed to see some fireworks and the lovely town of danvers (just north of us) postponed their show for the 5th, so we jumped in on their party.  it was just what you would expect and want in a "4th of july" festival: stars and stripes apparel everywhere, running children, cliques of high schoolers, live music, and food trucks, complete with the loveliest weather.  it rocked.

do you see that ice cream in the middle there?  do i have a story for you!!  jeremy and i didn't plan very well on the cash front.  together we had $3.00 and we really needed some ice cream, since the commodity is a basic human need in the summer time.  well, the cheapest ice cream i could find was $3.50 for a small and they didn't take card.  jeremy was camped out on our blanket, so i called him to tell him the devastating news. he seemed to take it in stride, i on the other hand was not having it.

i sauntered around looking for quarters, while i longingly watched others flaunt their one dollar bills.  i couldn't help but think, "they have no idea how good they have it." dramatic, much? ha. i decided i would have to ask someone for money.  something i was certainly willing to do when ice cream is on the line.  and that was when i found him.  the perfect person to ask.

a shy looking high school boy.  he was selling light-up swords, so i knew he would have the cash, but i just wasn't entirely sure it was his money to distribute as he pleased.  and then again it was only 50 cents... so i went for it. i told him i had an odd question and then asked for 50 cents.  he asked why i needed it.  i explained my dilemma. and he said yeah i can give you 50 cents for ice cream.  i told him thank you thank you! and to have a great night and that was that.  he was such a sweetie!

i speed walked to the goodies window (an ice cream shop we may very well need to visit again), ordered a small mint chip for jeremy and i to share, and practically ran to the blanket with our ice cream feeling quite triumphant.  jeremy was sure i kissed someone for the extra 50 cents with the way i started the story and was quite relieved that i had only asked nicely for it. 

we listened to the music, chatted, and people watched while we waited for the sun to set. we saw far too many belly buttons (why are belly shirts making a come back?) and relived our own high school days as the high schoolers swarmed around us. it was so weird... one group sat behind us and suddenly all of these high schoolers followed suit and we found ourselves surrounded.  it was quite entertaining.

finally the sky was dark, the national anthem was sung, and the show began.
(disclaimer: i love blurry firework shots.)

we loved it.  well, who doesn't love fireworks? it was a perfect ending to a lovely summer day.  just me and jeremy, doing whatever we wanted - being an adult is so cool sometimes.  summer time is the best time.  happy belated birthday america!  the sunny 5th surely redeemed the soggy 4th.