I am back

Starting with this evening at the the usual Monday firehouse training...90 degrees out and the drill is burning a car!  Hot and miserable is all I can say.

The mini vacation was a huge success for the children, especially for the three older ones.  I have several wonderful photos to share with you.  It is late at the moment but I will summarize as best I can, because I understand that a few of you have been waiting for me to post again.

The older three girls had never seen a ocean before or felt sand between their toes. The first time we went to the beach was at dusk. As we trudged up the sand dunes from the parking lot, I told the girls to take their flip flops off. The moment my deaf daughter's feet hit the sand her face exploded in sheer joy and she let out a scream of delight and proceeded jump, dance and run in the sand. My other new daughter was so full of glee as she skipped down to the sea. And my oldest was the loudest of all three in her excitement.  The twins followed them going crazy.  Then the sea rushed up and caught their toes, and it was a full chorus of joyous screams of delight. The smiles and wonderment abounded. The three oldest acted as if they had just entered a magical world that they had never imagined. They couldn't get enough racing in and out of the surf (with their clothes on!).  The euphoria was amazing to watch.

And we stayed there until the sun was almost completely down. They all went to bed that night with smiles on their faces.  And for my deaf daughter, who's limited awareness of the world and it's makings was equivalent to believing that the earth was flat, has had this enlightening experiences that let her know that the earth was in fact round.  Think of the possibilities.