To the Water

You know how everyone says how your kids will shock you by being so different? Well, in most things, my boys are very similar. Their sleeping patterns have been the same (both as infants and as toddlers), their eating habits have been the same (both in nursing and in baby food and now in table food), they are both entertained by really similar things (like books and buses) and they are both quite social.

But looking through the beach pics from our annual October weekend in Port Aransas has me thinking about how different my boys are when it comes to the water. As a young toddler, Zack was very nervous about the ocean. As he grew older, he alternated between timidity and outright fear. He especially did not like the feeling that waves were continually coming closer to him. I think this year, at five years old, was the first year he was really comfortable running in and out of the shallows, filling up the buckets with water.

Sammy, on the other hand, at one and a half years old was already perfectly delighted with the water. He was most fascinated by the little shell creatures that appeared as the water receded and then burrowed themselves back down into the sand, but he was also tickled that his feet became buried in sand as the water swirled around them. He giggled when the waves covered him to his waist and pointed to all the bubbles. He didn't show any of the trepidation that we expected. It made for a very easy and fun time on the beach!