Water Baby

Driving down the road, I saw two little girls sliding down a playset slide into a baby pool. Never thought of this (mostly because we use the baby pool out front, usually while Daddy is weeding the garden, and the playset is out back). I had to try this the very same day. Maddie went down the slide enthusiastically 3 or 4 times and loved the splash factor. I thought, "I'll go get the camera, now that she likes it!" Yeah, she never did it again once the camera came out. But we happily played until it was too dark to see the pattern at the bottom of the baby pool... and we were all dotted with nasty bug bites anyway.

Maddie In the Baby Pool (with a Slide!)

Then Friday we went to Brigantine. Must say, we LOOOOOVE Aunt Laura's choice of residence. Thank you for the use of your awesome beach house, Aunt Laura! Maddie and Aunt Laura got lots of frolic-on-the-beach time. There were those jellies that look like clear Nickelodeon slime, and moon jellies, so we didn't get in the water much. See, I scream like a banshee when I come in contact with these critters. I'd like to blame it on a traumatic tenticled-jelly wrapping around my leg and stinging me repeatedly when I was like 10...but I think I'd still be a sissy about them anyway. (Our first shore trip this summer makes up for dozens of jellyfish-infestations, though. Amazing beach day, that one.) Then we headed to Ocean City and hit the boards. Maddie was mesmerized by the lights and sounds of Wonderland, just like last year. But THIS year, she was big enough to go on the rides. Bob and I have been waiting to put her on the carousel all summer, and nobody was disappointed. She loved it. She rode the firetrucks - gripped the back of the seat with a "this is slightly scary but moreso cool, so I'm liking it" look on her face. She rode in the boats too, and the little boy who sat in the front seat (we said he was her driver) actually looked a bit like Bobby as a kid. She was ok with him (she likes the older men) and she drug her hands along the outside of the boat pond. Bobby even took her on the Elephants (and she liked this more than Bobby did).

Shore Trip

Gotta love a good shore trip: