Our annual trip to Long Island was full of sunny days and water fun this year. And family visits, of course. We hung out with probably 50 relatives in the first two days of our trip, thanks to back-to-back gatherings of the triplets' birthday party, Rising family brunch, and Kulis family BBQ. We got lots of good Daniel, Carter, and Noah time in- can hardly believe they are over a year old now! Life with three babies is still a total production for Dan and Paulette; I am constantly amazed both by how much work it is for them just to do normal things we all take for granted, and at the same time how they've got every aspect of the boys' lives down to an efficient science. Feelings, bottles, naps, diapers, and baths- it can't be orchestrated any more smoothly than it is, yet it still takes so much time. But the triplets are clearly thriving and starting to have their own distinct personalities, for sure. All three are on the very verge of walking too. I'm excited for Dan and Paulette to reach the stage where having three kids of the same age really isn't that much different from having three that are a few years apart. That probably won't be for a few years still, but they'll get there.
The kids also had a great time with their Rising cousins, especially at Great Grandma's pool. Cannonballs and can openers off the diving board for the older ones, and lots of paddling around in swimmys for Haley, Peter and Charles.
On Wednesday, Aiden, Chris and I took the train into the city while Andy and Haley went to visit Andy's college friend Lisa and her three kids (one of whom, violet, is just Haley's age). While Haley and Violet played dress up princesses, Chris and I took Aiden on his first adventure with the NYC subway system. He loved standing up (holy cow!) in a moving vehicle, and refused to sit even if there were lots of open seats. Aiden's choice was to go to Chinatown for lunch, so that's where we headed. We ate a very cheap but very tasty lunch of dim sum dumplings and soup at a small restaurant and then took Aiden to an Asian candy store that featured hundreds of different kinds of gummy treats. Grandma Chris was supposed to supervise Aiden as he picked out some different gummies, while I made a bag for Haley. Somehow, she agreed to several pounds of gummies! Aiden's bag of treats cost more than our lunch for three! He was in heaven, as you can imagine. From Chinatown we headed further south to the Staten Island Ferry, which was mobbed with tourists like ourselves wanting to get a close-and free- look at the Statue of Liberty. It was nice to sit on the boat and enjoy the breeze and the beautiful day after so much walking around. In the afternoon I said goodbye to Aiden and Chris as they boarded a train bound for Long Island, and walked north to enjoy a delicious Indian dinner with Whitney, Will, and Aly. It was a perfect day in the city.
We also got some beach time, mandatory for a summer visit to Long Island. We spent a cloudy but warm and calm day at Smith Point County Park on fire island. Grandpa Dada joined us for sand castles, walks on the beach, and some swimming. Both kids enjoyed swimming out past the breaking waves, jumping up and over each wave crest just before it broke. We swam until lips were blue and goosebumps were taking over.
The last few days of the week, we got to relax at Oak Island. Haley and Kimball played in the sand, Haley with her toys and kimball by digging giant holes to bury clam shells. Aiden set crab traps, fished for snappers, dug clams, and used the umbrella net to catch shrimp, killies, and comb jellies. We ended up digging so many quahogs that we ate some raw and made clam chowder out of the rest. Andy, grandpa Dada, and Aiden also went out on an evening fishing trip and caught bluefish, seabsss, and fluke. They came home with a bag of bluefish filets too. Oh, and there was kayaking, jumping off the dock, eating, and relaxing in the sun too. Dan and Paulette came out with the boys on Saturday and we got to witness their first swim at Oak Island. They all seemed to love it so I'm sure they'll be back for more soon.
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