At the Cape

We just got back from a week of vacation on Cape Cod. We rented a house a short walk from the beach in a quiet neighborhood. The beach was kid heaven. Hermit crabs at low tide, calm water to splash in, a swimming platform, shells. Hayden was especially fascinated by the crabs. They were easy to pluck out of the clear water, and we even found a few that were almost too tiny to be believed. Marlo was most interested in the sand. I've never seen anything hold her attention for so long. She'd dig and pour, and dig some more. She picked up and dropped shells. She dumped sand in boats and buckets. She was so absorbed that all I did was sit and watch.

The house itself was a great find. We had a little backyard, and the kids could burn off steam or enjoy one of the many projects organized by their cool aunt Rachel. There was a fair amount of chaos of course--a 5 year old, 3 year old, and toddler will do that--but it was a manageable level of chaos, and well worth the fun everyone had.

For the grown-ups, there was seafood and a lot of it. It's possible we ate seafood every day. The fried clams...I could have eaten those daily for sure, and same goes for the rich New England clam chowder. We went out fishing one afternoon and brought back more fish than we could eat. Even Hayden had some of that fish; apparently it's more appealing to him if someone he knows catches it.

It was a restful, wonderful week. Both Ben and I agreed that we could live there. Now all we need is a couple of million dollars.