Although it was completely unplanned, one of the highlights of our vacation was the fact that John's close friend Mike Skonieczny and his family were renting a place two towns away during the same week. We were able to meet up several times throughout the week, which meant the kids all got to play together and the adults managed to have some good hang out time as well.
One of our joint adventures was a trip to Provincetown that included a whale watch. We were all a little intrigued to see if all the kids would endure the long boat ride that might or might not include a glimpse of a whale. There were also some weather concerns. Fortunately, everything worked out perfectly. The only crew member that was short-changed was Eli, the Skonieczny's youngest at two and a half, who started his nap on the way out of Provincetown and woke up shortly before we got back into port.
While Eli napped, his brother Ethan and sister Ella, as well as Callie and the rest of us, got to see quite a few whales. All told we saw one finback and six humpbacks during our excursion. The captain was very kind and we happened to be in the right location, a combination that resulted in us standing in the front of the boat on the upper level, with a captain's eye view of the whales. Even Reese got excited and pointed to the whales every time they spouted or showed their flukes.
The girls certainly enjoyed their time on the boat. The naturalist was very educational yet also knew how to relate to kids. The boat also had lots of children's books about the ocean and its inhabitants, which entertained Ella and Callie in particular on the entire ride back. Although Callie loved tagging along with Ella and Ethan, she always wanted to come back and share part of the experience with her sister. This is one of the many special things about our little girl.
When we weren't having dinner at our place, we had dinner at the Skonieczny abode. In fact, out of our seven nights on the Cape we ate dinner there three of them. Very impressive. The picture below was the last of those three nights, when the dinner party was expanded to include Nana Banana and Sport.
It was so awesome to have a more casual environment for our girls and the Skonieczny kids to get to know each other. We usually only see them during the holidays, which includes a quick visit and mass chaos. This was a welcome change and hopefully it won't be the last time we are able to put something like this together.
Did we already mention that we spent a lot of time at the beach? At low tide we not only could walk out into the bay, but we could also walk along the shoreline to check out all of the other beaches in the area. Unfortunately, when we weren't playing in the flats and walking on the shoreline, Callie's legs found a way of getting "tired" again. But we were able to find different ways to entertain both her and Reese and ourselves to try and make the journey better for all of us.
There are some pictures that have to be included, and no other explanation is really needed. Below is one of those pictures. We can say that although sand was Reese's kryptonite at the beginning of the trip, by the end it was her new best friend.
But don't let the cute smile fool you, because it was during this trip that Reese began to earn the nickname of Godzilla. While visiting the tide pools Callie would take time to save all the snails by gently taking them off of the rocks and putting them back in the water. Reese, on the other hand, tended to wade into the pools like they were downtown Tokyo and she was a fire breathing monster. No tidal pool was safe from her wrath.
Shortly before we started our vacation, Callie learned how to play Uno. So we bought her the game so she could have her own deck, and now it is a constant companion. If we were at the cottage and she wasn't swinging, she wanted to play Uno. A word to the wise, however. Do not leave her alone to shuffle and deal the cards. You would be amazed at how many Wild Card Draw 4 and Draw 2 cards she ends up with if you don't keep a close eye on her. Also on this trip Callie had to learn the tough lesson of good sportsmanship. We love her competitive spirit, but it is crucial to shake hands and say good game after a tough loss.
One night we hit the road to find a good fish, chip, and ice cream joint. Not exactly a tough errand on the Cape. But we definitely hit a home run in Dennis at a place called Captain Frosty's. The ambience was exactly what we wanted and the food was better than we could have hoped for. But it you ask Callie and Reese, the best part of the outing was the ice cream they consumed after dinner. Each girl got her own ice cream cone and Callie got hers dipped in sprinkles, which was almost more than she could handle. Reese simply wanted to shove her face into the middle of her cone. She was in heaven with her first official cone.
Another highlight of the trip was that Nana Banana and Sport drove up to join us for the last two days we were there. Since we had seen them only a month before, the girls were ready to jump all over them the minute they arrived.
And we were ready to jump in the car and leave them to babysit just as fast. All kidding aside, it was wonderful that they were willing to watch the girls so that we could have a night out together. We had a great dinner in Chatham and got to walk around for a while seeing the sights. It was fun, but it also reminded John of the times on the Cape growing up when his grandmother would babysit while his parents went out for dinner. It's crazy how quickly life goes by.
On Friday, while Reese napped, Nana Banana, Sarah, and Callie headed out to check out the Cape Cod Natural History Museum, which was just down the road in Brewster. The three of them had a wonderful time looking at the various exhibits, including a lookout over the wetlands with an osprey nest and three newly hatched chicks. But the best part was an hour long walk with a naturalist across the wetlands to the bay.
We had a great time digging in the flats and asking questions about what we found. The naturalist pointed out several fun things, including a plant called a sea pickle. She encouraged us to taste it, which, surprisingly enough, Callie did. Her report on the experience was short, but to the point. "It was very salty." All in all the excursion was well worth it and the next time we are on the Cape we'll have to visit the museum again.
The final picture was taken as we were leaving Brewster on the last day of our Cape vacation. The girls headed to Madison to spend the weekend with Nana Banana and Sport, while John and Sarah drove to Fairfield for a fun weekend with John's high school buddies and their spouses. There were no tearful goodbyes from Reese or Callie. They were excited to have their grandparents to themselves. They also knew that waiting for them in Madison were their cousins, Michael and Brendan.
It certainly took us a long time to get around to scheduling a family vacation. Our week on Cape Cod proved to us that this is something we need to do much more often.
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