Life's A Beach

Thursday, April 2nd

10 am: Jack & Allen had swim class that morning... and I still had no idea what I (we) were going to do for my birthday! But at least my boys gave me some delicious blueberry muffins for breakfast and a very thoughtful hand crafted (pun intended!) birthday card.

12 pm: I finally came up with a very simple last minute plan...

which started off with hamburgers & french fries at Islands for lunch.

1:00 pm: We found ourselves enjoying the warm sun, the cool waters of the Pacific Ocean, and the soft sands at Huntington Beach!

Jackie & I were the first brave ones to test the cold waters.

But Allen was't too far behind.

Me & my Boys... happy to be at the beach!

It didn't take long before the three of us were busy digging in the sand.

Allen takes a break from all the digging

to take Momma down to the water...

And left Jack to play in the sand all by himself...

Which I don't think he noticed or cared all that much!

At home or at the beach... I love watching my Boys play together!

Happy Boys = Happy Parents!

The Etheridge Boys... we sure do love digging in the sand!

To say Jack absolutely loved being at the beach... digging in the sand and playing in the surf, would be a monumental understatement! That crazy little guy had a huge smile on his face the entire time.

And speaking of big smiles...

we could say the exact same thing about Allen too. 

Especially when he has his little brother

there to play with and bury in the sand...

With the help of Daddy of course!

As you would expect, not only did we not have to twist Jack's arm...

but he totally loved getting covered with all that sand.

Jack eventually found an old abandoned sand castle and immediately searched for treasures... and after not finding any, he then promptly destroyed it!

With our time in the sand coming to an end, we ventured off into the water as deep and as long as we could stand... and then watched Allen run out as fast as he could trying not to get caught by any oncoming waves.

After packing up all the toys, washed off all the sand and put on our shoes, we brought out the bikes and went for a long family bike ride along the Huntington Beach Bike Trail. It was a long & tiring ride, but a very enjoyable one. Of course it wasn't without a few stops along the way (to rest) and snap a few photos while we still had some sunlight... but also so that Jack & Allen could give their Momma some sweet loving smooches too!  

The birthday boy & his boys...

at the beach enjoying the sunset. I'll take that birthday every year!

I have to say, for it being quite literally a last minute idea... spending the afternoon at the beach playing in the sand, riding our bikes, and enjoying the sunset ended up working out amazingly well!  

After packing up and saying goodbye to the sun and the beach,

we were all very much ready to feed our faces!

So for my unplanned birthday dinner that evening, we got lucky again... and found a 'Kobe' (Japanese) Steakhouse not all that far from the beach. It was a little weird not having a full table (it was just us), but our chef was amazing and the boys (myself included) thoroughly enjoyed both the show and especially the food!

On our way home that night, there was just one last stop

we needed to make to complete my birthday...

I think it was Allen's first time inside seeing the amazing "Hot & Now" operation, which of course he loved... but not as much as getting a free warm glazed doughnut at checkout!

Jack got one too... which he enjoyed very much!

A dozen doughnuts for the birthday boy!

A perfect ending... to an absolute perfect day!

What a fun birthday it was.