A Family Tradition

When Elijah was a baby we began a wonderful tradition with Matt's family. Instead of doing a bunch of gifts at Christmas Matt's parents decided to put that money towards a beach house where we could all gather and spend a week of fun at the beach. Each family is responsible for cooking a meal for everyone, which is a fun way to contribute to the costs of a family vacation and also a great opportunity to share favorite recipes. The family has grown quite a bit since we first started this tradition. Seven years ago there were only 2 grandchildren and now there are 8! The kids have the best time living together for a week. They spend hours and hours playing on the beach and even in the freezing cold water! This year we did a few structured activities with the kids and they were a great success! We read gingerbread stories and let the kids make their own gingerbread people and decorate them. They loved doing this activity and their favorite part was eating the cookies, of course!. One day the kids decided they wanted to paint some seashells and try to sell them:) So we got out the paint and they painted a few seashells, but they mostly painted Ezra! He didn't seem to mind. One day Nana had a great idea come to her in the early morning hours one day to take seashells and string them on fishing line to make necklaces, bracelets, rings, belts etc. The kids had a lot of fun doing this activity and it gave them something to take home with them to remind them of the beach. Another day they created their own ocean scenes with crayons and sea creature foam stickers and we displayed them on the window. They were very proud of their art work. Aunt Erica came up with a really fun scavenger hunt for the kids to do. They had so much fun running all over the house looking for clues and finally found the prize: sea creature capsules that expand when you put them in water! They thought that was so much fun...it was really funny when some of the sea creatures turned out to be turkeys, elephants and pigs! Good old dollar store:) The rest of their time was spent digging for treasure in the sand, sticking their toes in the water and in some cases their whole bodies, and playing in their "house"...(a nice big closet is great for the imagination!).
I, of course, enjoyed my time with Matt- taking long, romantic walks on the beach (ha.) Oh wait, that didn't happen. But we did spend a lot of time making sand castles, digging holes, and burying little feet...which in my opinion is just as good:). I loved watching little Ezra scooting across the sand so fast like a little crab. I loved seeing my children laugh and squeal as they ran away from the waves. I love that no two seashells are the same. I love the beautiful beach sunsets and watching the repetitive motion and hearing the repetitive sounds of the waves. There are so many things to love.
It is so peaceful being at the beach under the great big sky, looking out over the vast ocean, and I just can't help thinking about what an awesome Creator we have. He is so big and we are so small, like the grains of sand. It is so easy, while on vacation, removed from stress and worry, surrounded by loved ones and God's awesome creation, to have the "feeling" of peace. However, I don't want a peaceful "feeling" that comes and goes like the tide. I want a peace that dwells deep within, one that will endure upon returning to the business of everyday life- even in the midst of the storms that are sure to come. It is so easy to lose sight of the bigness of God and get caught up in all the stuff that "has to get done" and somehow along the way get the crazy notion that I am the one in control. I want the everlasting peace of the blessed assurance that, indeed, God is in control. He guides my feet on the path, He knows the number of my days, makes the sun rise in the morning and set in the evening. I am so thankful for our vacation and the great big ocean made by our great big God that reminded me to slow down and be still; and I want to challenge myself as we come back home to make time to be still and seek peace every day.