We’re home. Again.
Everyone is a tad exhausted but being reunited with these fools makes that exhaustion more than worthwhile…
(If you’re wondering just who all those fools are, they’re the Cobbs, Clarks and Shertzers. You can read all about us here.)
This yearly summer trek to Isle of Palms, SC is always a chance for our two girlies, best friends from birth, to get reacquainted. That takes all of about 5 seconds. Then it’s off to terrorizing their moms and dads with glimpses into the teenage years.
But with a little love and luck, one day they may end up standing on a beach somewhere with 30 years of friendship behind them.
(For the record the three of us only have 10 years on the books but I think we’ve got at least another 20 in us. Also for the record, the woman on the right is most definitely not a “bombshell” as her t-shirt may lead you to believe. She is however a fan of free clothing during a bra sale.)
The girls were born within days of each other in Colorado and spent the first 20 months of their lives practically joined at the hip. The boys on the other hand were a bit more scattered in their arrival. Born in four different states these guys don’t have the same bond since birth that the girls share. But you wouldn’t really know that from looking at them.
The major players in the boys’ camp include Ephraim (of course)… 
Benjamin, the youngest of the bunch at 2… 
Hayden, the oldest and most stealthy when it comes to photographs. Catching him on camera is a bit like filming an episode of Ghosthunters…
And William who was delighted to spend his vacation playing out his lifelong dream of being “a worker at the beach”…
One of the really great things about this trip is that all of our parenting styles are very similar and we’re comfortable enough with each other’s kids to take over when need be. It’s a bit like I imagine living in a commune might be. Or Sister Wives.
Although if you ask me Brent and Samantha take that whole metaphor a bit far.
Some days I think I’ll just let her have him. But then I see him pulling our daughter down the beach in a moment of rip-roaring daddy fun and I decide maybe I’ll keep him after all. Back off Samantha.
In truth, Stevie invented this little game and the kiddos were quick to cash in on it.
They’re no dummies. They know a free ride when they see one.
When the daddies were finally spent though, the girls took matters into their own hands.
Which is apparently not all they took into their own hands.
While Samantha relaxed under the umbrella, 
I set out for a quick photo opp with my little guy…
And while yes, I may have been accurately accused of only getting into that sandy puddle to play with my son for the photo opp, I say a mama’s got to get a picture of herself and her babies where she can get it.
And if it means being photographed in a faux-kini and a ratty t-shirt, so be it.
You’re welcome for the addition of the t-shirt, by the way. When you’re being photographed by the likes of this…
You learn to keep your clothes on.
That, my friends, is pretty much how we spent our first full day at the beach. Just rolling trucks through the dirt… 
Smiling for paparazzi… 
Showing off our mad skills…
Boogie boarding through the surf…
And wondering why there was a dragon-toting geisha following us around everywhere we went… 
In other words, 
it was just another day at the beach.
And holy geez, I had no idea I was photographed in a bathing suit so many times!
8 comments