July 18, 2010 - Kittyhawk, day 1

Bridget and the girls give Ella her mid-morning bottle.
That's Elliot actually doing the work this time with Kelsey and Laura looking on.

Most the time when we're playing cards, Ella is out playing with the cousins, but sometimes she's in jail.
This particular time, Megan plays with Ella anyway.

Ella doesn't mind jail-time,

but Carmala can walk and misses her freedom.

Getting ready to head to the beach.

Ella's excited!

Now that she's down at the beach, she gets serious and checks everything out.

She's not sure about the hat, though.

Happy now?

She looks like Ava Pierce here to me, which is cool, because that kid is always smiling.

She doesn't know what to think of the sand

- it won't get off her hands.

What's that noise over there?

Gaby joins us to watch Ella on the beach.

Yes, I have a chest-painted white t-shirt on.

My beautiful girls.

OK, time to get in the water, which was stupid-cold, though it was warmest this day.

She's not loving it, but she trusts us.

She's actually really serious the whole time.

Even here with waves splashing (and touching my junk for the first time - brr), she's just checking it all out.
(Not my junk - the ocean.)

I'm still cold. Jill's in denial.

Carmala joins the fun.

One last shot of mom and baby in the water,

then it is up the beach to the kiddy-pool that Ben and Eulalia brought.

All the girls play.

Pretty mch the whole gang - Chris and Tommy on the left with life jackets and unknown chaperones, Paul, Eulalia, Carmala, Ben, Sean, Tad, Dedee, Elliot, Kelsey, John J, and Laura.

That night, 'the middle generation' went to dinner and the bookend generations played pirate ship.
Everyone wore their deck-swabbing stripes and donned newspaper hats.

Some wore eye patches, though mine didn't care for it.

The gang.
Notice the mustaches and bears on Kelsey, Elliot, Chris, Tommy, and Walter.

Everyone's having fun, but that's enough kid-time for Ella for the day.

Ella and Quinn (aka 'little Sean') mostly calm for Grandmama.
Sean misses the point of the eye-patch, but wants to hear none of it from Megan.

The first beach Pirate Night is a hit.