A great evening at the beach

My dear wife spontaneously called some friends this week and suggested a picnic on the beach last night. I was a little surprised: not that my wife suggested the outing, but that we picnicked. We didn't picnic often in South Dakota--I was probably the road block most often. Spring doesn't last long in South Dakota (give or take 2 weeks), and by the time the summer roars in, it's usually too hot, too humid and too windy for the lack of water close by. With no air conditioning or fans in our new residence, my body temperature approached uncomfortable at 80 degrees outdoors (though by no means suffering), but merely planting my feet in a stream running to the Puget Sound set my body right. The sunshine and the light breeze off the sound set me at a temperature I have not experienced in 20 years. I was comfortable, as was my dear wife. To have both of us enjoy the temperature was a small miracle, and deeply appreciated.

Our daughters can't get enough of the Sound--with a relatively sparse crowd and lots of places to explore, they easily stayed occupied for over two hours. I am amazed how children don't seem to care about where the sand goes--they even seem willing to eat it. The tired youngest girl in our group led us to decide to break up for the evening. With enjoyable company and our girls active then pleasantly tired, it was easy to overlook the annoyance of the sand clinging to everything. The girls slept well--and though our bedroom became stuffy in the evening, what transpired earlier at the beach led us into pleasant rest.