Different Hats

My family and I just had our first family vacation together down the shore in Wildwood, New Jersey.

It was sunny and hot, the sand felt like walking on silky sheets, the seagulls screamed and fought over scraps – it was perfect.

One of the best feelings in the world is traveling down the parkway and smelling the salty sea air and looking at the wondrous ocean.

We stayed in a motel for three days and I got a good deal booking online through Google. It was under $500 for our family which is like unheard of because it is very expensive to vacation down here. I spent months before searching online and waiting for deals to appear before I settled and it was worth it.

It’s a different atmosphere down here – the people are kind and everyone has a smile, messy hair and sun-soaked skin, it’s magical and I could live here forever.

Where I live in New Jersey the people are miserable, rude, inconsiderate, and so on. Nobody is happy here except for the people who don’t have to worry about things. It was so refreshing to get away from all of this for a few days and just let go.

The first night of arrival we spent the day unpacking and going out to the pool. We had two at our motel and I had no clue. We made friends with the other motel guests and the motel staff, splashed and jumped all around with everyone, and just had fun.

The next day we all got up early, got some breakfast from a cafe right across the street, and packed up for the beach. The sun was bright, the waves were calm, and the beach had plenty of space for everyone.

The sand…. was just incredible. It felt smooth and as if you could just sink right to the bottom in warmth and pleasure.

The ocean was chilly, breezy, salty, and delicious.

We collected seashells and sand, watched the seagulls steal someone’s bag of Doritos away, and got ice cream from the traveling vendor on the beach.

After we finished getting crispy on the beach we decided to take a nap before venturing out to the famous boardwalk.

One of the first things that you can hear and see immediately is the tram car, you know….”watch the tram car please” over and over again.

We got Mack’s Pizza, played games at the Gateway 26 arcade, and walked up and down the boardwalk all through the night. We zigzagged through the large crowds, made friends with a seagull, and watched the sun set over the ocean.

It was awesome.

Even though it was only for three days, I’m very blessed that we were able to take our first family vacation. My family and I have had a rough few years and this was a big deal for us to even do something like this. My kids had a lot of fun and they never stopped smiling, I just wanted them to have a good time and they did. Mission accomplished.

We are probably going to come back again next year but I’m not sure about that yet. I was thinking of heading down south next summer like North Carolina or Florida. We are in New Jersey every single day and I want to see all of the States with my family and experience new things. I want my kids to see the world because I have barely even seen it myself.

All in good time and patience, we will see the world together…but until then I’ll be reminiscing about the ocean and the sand.