Saturday Snapshot -- On the Ocean

Join West Metro Mommy for this weekly meme of photos people have taken and share on their blogs.

Spending a few days on the oceanfront provides lots of photo opportunities.

Here's a sunrise as I ran along the beach one morning. 

The evening before we left, we went for a walk on the beach and I took some pictures of Grace.

I love that the seagull placed himself in the negative space of this picture to help balance it.

And here is Grace drinking in the beauty of the ocean while the sun sets behind us in the west.

Checking Off My Bucket List

I'm generally the kind of person who has big ideas, but thinks them through for quite a while. That means, that nothing may come of my big idea.
I can't explain it, but for a few months now, I have been wanting to try paddle boarding. Particularly, stand-up paddle boarding. Like this girl:

I don't think I'll look like this girl on the paddle board, but I hope to be able to stand up.

I'd been thinking that we should go to the beach somewhere to try it. But I work Mondays and Fridays starting next week and I get very little time off, which I need to save in case I'm actually sick. So we do not have time to drive to an ocean, 8-9 hours from here, learn to paddle board and drive back on a Saturday and Sunday. 

But Labor Day is approaching. I know that Earl works, but Grace is starting a new job, so she can take a few days off in between. 

I mentioned it to her, and, although she feels bad about leaving her old job early, I convinced her to come along. 

I asked my cousin who lives in Charleston whether she would be home that weekend. No luck.

Instead, I booked a hotel in North Carolina for three nights, and I've already made my reservations for the stand-up paddle board lesson on Sunday morning. 

It's so impetuous of me. I thought about it. I made the reservation without torturing myself. 

I'm thrilled, and a little scared.

Now to find out what kind of exercise I should be doing to get ready for paddle boarding. I suspect I'll need to do more planks!