Friday, July 30, 2010

Burned Birthday Boy and a Baby at the Beach on the Black Sea

Yesterday was Shannon's birthday. So we took the day off.

We went to the beach.


Lots and lots of people! And lots of bikinis too...so strange for a Muslim culture...

The Black Sea is very close to Istanbul, only 60 kilometers (40 miles) or so, and it's a very popular place in the summer for people to go to escape the city and the heat. We decided to be among those people, take the day off, and relax a bit. Plus, Lane hadn't been to the beach yet, so we thought this would be a good chance to take her and let her wear her bathing suit that Meme bought for her.


We rented one of these umbrellas and 2 chairs and a table. That's us on the left with the kid in the sand in front of us.

We left a little after 9 am, hoping to be at the beach by 10. We got there at 11. We were trying to find a beach that our friends hadn't been to before, which is why it took us so long to get there. We eventually gave up and went to the beach that they knew how to get to. Lane took a short nap in the car on the way, and as soon as we arrived she ate. She was thrilled by the wind and was so excited to be there.


This is so much fun! All this sunshine and people paying attention to me. Plus, I'm all smiles and it's dad's birthday!

Until she got wet.


What IS this on my toes? It feels so weird...


Oooh, I don't think I like it...


Nope, I don't!

Lane was not a big fan of the water. But as soon as I sat down with her so that only her toes got wet occasionally, she did much better, even starting to smirk and smile a bit. I think that the sound of the waves scared her, as did getting too wet, but she seemed to be ok with getting her feet wet, as long as she was close to mom or dad!


Boy, am I glad mom's here for me to snuggle against! Otherwise that big loud noise might wash me away!

Well, I guess this is alright. I mean, at least I look smashingly cute in my bathing suit!

Shannon got a teeny bit (oh, alright, a lot) sunburned. He didn't put sunscreen on anything except his neck and ears because he planned to just hang under the umbrella most of the time, but little did he know that the right side of his chair was exposed to the sun, so he's a bit lobster-esque. My feet got burned, but other than that I was fine, and we of course slathered the 50 spf sunscreen on Lane, so she's fine and not even a tad bit pink or brown.


And all those Turks, they love to talk to me and coo and me and make me smile...it's so much fun, especially when mom is there to make sure that they don't take me too far away...


But boy, the beach is tiring! I'm pooped!

We left the beach around 2 and got home at 3, where we all got cleaned up and Lane took a good nap. Then we had homemade spaghetti (Shannon's favorite meal) and leftover birthday cake (I made one the day before because we had people over), skyped with Shannon's parents, and then went to bed early. And Lane slept all night, which was amazing. I don't mind a 5 am wake-up call nearly as much when she doesn't wake up at 2 or 3 as well!

August is supposed to be even hotter than July (it's been about 90 most days, occasionally hotter or cooler), so I think that we'll make another trip or two to the beach before summer is over. Hopefully Lane will enjoy it a bit more as she gets used to it!

5 comments:

  1. I love all the pictures of Lane looking adorable in her suit, and LOVE the alliteration of the post's title :) Glad Shannon had a good, albeit burned, birthday!

    ReplyDelete
  2. sounds like a fun day. David's birthday is Monday and we are planning a beach trip for this weekend.

    ReplyDelete
  3. What a fun day! Lane is super cute. Btw, love your sunglasses, Michelle.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Thanks, Ann. $10 at Target. Happy upcoming birthday, David!

    ReplyDelete
  5. what a beautiful location. I'm glad to see you are able to take some "me" time.

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for commenting!