Okay, so I have to wear something

Monday 18 August 2008

Our uncle and aunt and cousins, who came down from NJ for Jessy's birthday party, are to leave Chincoteague tomorrow, and so it was arranged that we would all drive up to meet them at the beach there. It meant that Jessy and I-- and Lisa too! --would have to actually put on swimsuits, for the first time in about a week. As a form of protest I decided that I was not going to bring anything else-- no other clothes to get into for later, whatever we'd be doing. Naturally I did not tell Mother or Daddy about this. I put on the good yellow bikini I got in England-- it's a pretty conservative cut, almost two inches high at the hips, in a beautiful shade of pale lemon with a very thin light pink stripe going round the bottoms and across the cups. I put up my hair and pulled it through the back of a ball cap and wore my 'dressy' beach sandals, the ones with heels. I brought a little white canvas purse and a plain white terry towel-- that was it.

Jessy descended in the bikini she got in England, which is a string style with a black border round shiny silver splashed in a wild abstract print of blue, light blue, and maroon. It's a great fit-- it makes her legs look really long, though she is not tall at all. She brought a bag with her which had two pairs of shorts in it, one for me although I didn't know it at the time.

We got to the beautiful big beach park at Chincoteague at about 9.15, which is the perfect time to get there. The beach does not formally open till 10.00 so there are places to park and to settle on the sand with your stuff. Daddy got out with J.J. immediately and carried him on his shoulders down almost to the crest of the dune, where he put him down and then raced him-- ON HIS HANDS AND FEET-- down towards the water. J.J. shrieked in glee. (He's 2-1/2 and is good at shrieking.)

This left Mother, Lisa, Jessy and I to carry two chairs, two big blankets, a couple of bags and the rolled-up sun shelter that Daddy made in case our little ones need to get some shade. It's just a piece of black-and-white-striped canvas, about three feet square, and two poles poking into grommets at one end to hold it up. We set this up so as to block the eastern sun and spread one of the blankets under it. Of course Jessy and I are really well tanned already so there wasn't going to be any lying-out for us here. I just dropped my towel in a ball on the sand, laid my hat on top of it, and stepped out of my sandals. Jessy peeled off the t-shirt and we skipped down to the water.

Lisa came with us, and Jessy and I held her hands and helped her duck under waves or leap over them. Soon Mother came out with us, and when our aunt and uncle showed up our cousin Audrey joined us in the water. (Audrey's 11 and getting tall like her mother.)

After noon we all got takeaway from McDonald's, went back to the motel where our cousins were staying and went into the pool there. Later Jessy and I took Lisa and Audrey down Maddox Boulevard to the shops and then back up to play mini golf. Audrey, ever sensible, got dressed and Jessy put on her shorts, but little Lisa and I stayed in our swimsuits all evening. We had a nice time-- Jessy won at mini golf although we all took the time to help Lisa do well. She is very eager to be like her big sisters (and cousin) and will learn anything you teach her.

We walked back to the motel after dark. The adults were sitting round the motel room with the Olympics on but Daddy found an excuse to get away from that and we piled into the van to go home. No one had checked the post and so I strolled down our lane home to the box, which for now is still out at the road. I was still in the bikini and sandals with heels and felt very alluring and cute.

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