The Cape

We spent a week playing on Cape Cod (July 3-10). We have been planning this trip for nearly a year. After spending the last fourth of July weekend miscarrying, I was determined to make better memories this year. Mission accomplished. As a matter of fact, Izzy exclaimed: "I want to move to Cape Cod!"

Jill and Rob were incredible hosts! They were so gracious to let us stay in their charming home. There were peanut butter cups from a local shop waiting for me. I devoured the entire box within hours. We managed to all share one bathroom with only 1 close call. My kids loved having Daisy as a constant buddy. Izzy said her favorite part of the trip was Jill's house. Jill's style is stunning. It is colorful, vintage, and absolutely charming. She has ideas that never would have crossed my mind. (using a quilt for curtains, stools as nightstands, and striped paint). Jill and Rob had many excellent ideas for things to do and really helped us cater the trip to what we wanted. Here are some highlights:

• Fourth of July boat parade. In one of the boats, someone was dressed in full costume as George Washington. The fire department boat with flashing lights was cute too. As soon as the parade ended, it started pouring rain. On our walk home, we got absolutely drenched. My phone was in my pocket and wouldn't charge because it said it was too wet. Fortunately, after a night indoors, my phone was salvaged. 

• Beach. We went to a few beaches and they all had a lot to offer. Kingsbury Beach was a private beach with calm water that is walking distance from Rob's parent's house. Veterans Beach had a playground for the kids. Kalmus Beach had a snack shack and sold fresh seafood. The water at all the beaches was warm which is the best. The beach reading was pretty great too. James could dig and build moats and sandcastles for days. Izzy made a friend at every beach. We spent hours at the beach and it was perfect. Jill even thought to bring paint for seashells. How clever. We ate lunch at the beach and Andrew ordered fresh fish and chips. Yuck. We also did a short hike on Kalmus Beach and walked on the jetty. The kids loved walking on the rocks on the water. An easy indicator that the kids enjoyed themselves were the tears that accompanied the dreaded words: "It's time to leave." The mornings were sometimes foggy and cloudy, but the sun always came out in the afternoons and had ideal beach weather. We also managed to avoid bad sunburns and all came home tan, especially Isabelle and Andrew.

• Relaxation. Andrew's favorite spot was the hammock in Jill and Rob's backyard. He was out there often. We also utilized the quaint front porch with its rocking chairs and swing. I got in some good reading time and read 3 books this trip: 1) "The Magic of Lemon Drop Pie 2) "Mad Honey" 3) "The Housemaid's Secret" and started "The Inmate." Andrew sped through his book so he could begin Brandon Sanderson's newest release. 

The backyard tire swing got lots of use too

• Food. We had Mike's pizza, Chinese takeout, authentic Mexican food, a local bagel place, homemade pasta sauce thanks to Rob and his grandma, Rob's juicy burgers which Andrew stated are "better than our favorite burger joint," and more. (yes, there is a Chick-Fil-A there in case you're wondering). We got ice cream more often than I should admit. Okay okay, I guess you don't have to drag it out of me. We got ice cream 5 plus times. It was disappointing that Katie's ice cream didn't have the S'moreo flavor, but Reese's ice cream nearly made up for it. We ate many meals on Jill and Rob's back deck. It was dreamy. One night, we made s'mores over the fire.

• Fun. We crossed off a few of my summer bucket list items! We went mini golfing! I could say James got a hole in 1 (which is true) and that we had a grand time (lie), but that isn't what happened. It was boiling hot outside, one child continued to have fit after fit, and we gave up halfway through the course (at 9 holes instead of all 18). We learned our kids are still a bit young for this. The crunch coat ice cream cones nearly made up for it at the end. Jill captured one of my favorite pics of the trip while Izzy was eating hers. The fun continued--we also went to a baseball game, a drive-in movie, a carousel, and a park/splash pad.

Baseball game. James found a baseball in the field and brought it home as a souvenir. He was ecstatic. This baseball experience made me yearn for another, so SLC Bees baseball team here we come!

Unlimited carousel rides at Heritage Gardens. The kids rode at least 5 times.

Drive-in. Totally worth the late night. "Elemental" was liked by all.

We picked out popcorn from a local shop and had over 7 scrumptious flavors to chow on.

• Tubing in a river! Talk about peaceful. This made my pregnant body feel weightless which was so refreshing. I think we floated this river 4x. It led right into the ocean. You had to be vigilant near the end to avoid being swept out to sea. Andrew thrived with the thrill of the tide and tried to be pushed far out. We were lucky we were able to tube at all. The parking lot was full and we had to wait in a lengthy car line to enter. Big thanks to Rob's parents for shuttling us and providing tubes. There was an ice cream truck in the parking lot so obviously the kids got some.

Izzy had just been bitten by a bug.  The bugs liked me too.

• Adults only hike. Rob's parents generously offered to babysit the kids while we went hiking. The hike we went on was in the small town of Truro. The hike was called Pamet Road. It was picturesque. There were wild blueberries growing on the trail, the ocean views were unbelievable, we saw seals up close, and I nearly stepped on a mouse. I did a lot of squealing in shock and panic. The hike was unreal and maybe the most surprising part was that we didn't see any other people along the path.  I guess this stunning hike is part of a national park. 

• Main Street. Jill and Rob's home is within walking distance of many restaurants, shops, and the beach.  One day while walking the short distance to Main Street, Jill pitched the brilliant idea to let the kids pick up trash along the way with grabbers. Who knew this would be so exciting? James usually picks up garbage when we go to parks with his bare hands (love my earth-saving boy) and his hands get filthy. The grabbers avoided that. James has since requested a trash grabber for Christmas. You've got it, dude! One night a month, Main Street has live music and games. The kids had a blast.  In one shop, we let the children pick out $0.05 candy. In another, they chose souvenirs. Much to my chagrin, they picked out stuffed animals. I guess I wasn't persuasive enough when I tried to sell them on getting Cape Cod t-shirts. When asked what his favorite part of the trip was, James said, "My souvenir." He later retracted that and said, "Everything." Amen to that. 

Cleaning crew

• Travel. We took a redeye flight to Boston. The kids were terrific. They did sticker books, watched TV and both slept for over 2 hours. I couldn't sleep a wink on the plane which is typical. We rented a car and drove the 2 hours to Jill and Rob's place. The flight home was not as smooth. Izzy peed her pants in the car, 1 mile from the airport. She also had to use the bathroom over 8 times while we were traveling and peed her pants again on the plane. She did some shrieking and screaming. What on earth was going on?  Seems like Izzy might have had some flying anxiety? Or maybe getting her a smoothie was a giant mistake? She was giddy to be on a plane for the first time when we left Salt Lake and had no trouble then. I don't know what happened, but it was a journey. Jill and Daisy flew back to Utah with us, so we will get to continue hanging out with them for the next month. Yipee! 

Yes, I'm already scheming and planning a time we can return to the Cape. We used every second we could while we were there and got many steps in every day. We played Skull King, Sushi Go, and Bocce Ball in the evenings. Hearing James telling some friends about the vacation made me grin. Yes, that amazing trip actually happened and our 4th of July memories are now pleasant instead of traumatizing.

The pic Andrew sent his coworkers to make them jealous