I took a family trip to the beach yesterday with my dad, sister-in-law and 4 of my nieces and nephews. We had a lovely time. We left my place at 8:15 am and drove in tandem to North Padre Island. Now mind you, my dad, who used to brag about driving 80-90 miles per hour now drives a "Flintstones" vehicle. I had to keep calling him to remind him to pedal faster in order to keep up with me. He accused me of driving faster than warp speed but I was only going 70ish.... I DID want to make it to the beach before the sun went down.
Once we finally arrived we drove in a panic to the welcome center so my slightly hysterical niece could use the bathroom. We then proceeded to haul two carloads of "stuff" down to the beach. My dad is the only man I know who keeps a cart in his trunk , which he filled with coolers, chairs, water, towels, toys and a first aid kit. He then tried to wheel it through 6 inches of soft, dry, white sand. It took a little bit of maneuvering but he managed to make it to our spot. (It took much longer and considerably more energy for him to wheel is uphill through the same dry sand, but it was fun to watch!)
Finally we sat down to enjoy the beach. The weather was perfect. The breeze was fantastic and the water was so amazingly inviting. We spent 4 hours frolicking. We collected shells, played in the sand and spent a lot of time in the water seeing how deep we could go. We relaxed to the sound of the crashing waves while the sun warmed us, and eventually turned us into giant lobsters......
I should have known better. Normally when I go to the beach I resemble a woman with extreme religious convictions. I practically wear a dress and a veil in an effort to hide every square inch of my delicate, dayglo skin from the harsh sun. Not just for the sake of modesty, but for the sake of practicality. I detest sunburns. My skin doesn't tan, it blisters and peels and then I am left whiter than I was before the horrific experience. But I wanted to swim and enjoy the ocean with my nieces and nephews, which is nearly impossible to do when fully clothed. So this time I threw caution to the wind. REALLY bad idea.
I should have stuck with my original "non-religious convictions" about beach attire. Despite the 50 SPF sunblock my back, shoulders and cleavage (!) are almost the same shade of deep red as my sofa. And worse, blisters are already forming -- that should make wearing a bra really fun this week. I was going to take a few of my vacation days and spend them at the beach but after surveying my damaged skin the thought of more time in the sun is unappealing. I don't really enjoy walking around as a giant, pink blister so I'll be avoiding the sun, at least until I forget the pain!
Today we're all tired and sore and in some pain but we did create a memory. And we all learned a valuable lesson the hard way. The sun is not a friend to those with dayglo skin. Time to visit the dermatologist.
Once we finally arrived we drove in a panic to the welcome center so my slightly hysterical niece could use the bathroom. We then proceeded to haul two carloads of "stuff" down to the beach. My dad is the only man I know who keeps a cart in his trunk , which he filled with coolers, chairs, water, towels, toys and a first aid kit. He then tried to wheel it through 6 inches of soft, dry, white sand. It took a little bit of maneuvering but he managed to make it to our spot. (It took much longer and considerably more energy for him to wheel is uphill through the same dry sand, but it was fun to watch!)
Finally we sat down to enjoy the beach. The weather was perfect. The breeze was fantastic and the water was so amazingly inviting. We spent 4 hours frolicking. We collected shells, played in the sand and spent a lot of time in the water seeing how deep we could go. We relaxed to the sound of the crashing waves while the sun warmed us, and eventually turned us into giant lobsters......
I should have known better. Normally when I go to the beach I resemble a woman with extreme religious convictions. I practically wear a dress and a veil in an effort to hide every square inch of my delicate, dayglo skin from the harsh sun. Not just for the sake of modesty, but for the sake of practicality. I detest sunburns. My skin doesn't tan, it blisters and peels and then I am left whiter than I was before the horrific experience. But I wanted to swim and enjoy the ocean with my nieces and nephews, which is nearly impossible to do when fully clothed. So this time I threw caution to the wind. REALLY bad idea.
I should have stuck with my original "non-religious convictions" about beach attire. Despite the 50 SPF sunblock my back, shoulders and cleavage (!) are almost the same shade of deep red as my sofa. And worse, blisters are already forming -- that should make wearing a bra really fun this week. I was going to take a few of my vacation days and spend them at the beach but after surveying my damaged skin the thought of more time in the sun is unappealing. I don't really enjoy walking around as a giant, pink blister so I'll be avoiding the sun, at least until I forget the pain!
Today we're all tired and sore and in some pain but we did create a memory. And we all learned a valuable lesson the hard way. The sun is not a friend to those with dayglo skin. Time to visit the dermatologist.
