Tis the Sea-Sun

By now, you can tell that we live in a climate that includes no beaches and no mountains; just some flat ass land with seas of corn and beans, and an occasional gas station with doughnuts. Ben and I are definitely beach people! I mean…we’re totally doughnut people too…aaaand we’re DEFINITELY doughnuts on the beach people. 🤣 So, you can imagine how sad it is to know that the closest beach in Florida is about 12 hours away.

Ben’s mom told us about the Indiana Dunes, which is like a mock beach of Lake Michigan. I was skeptical when I first heard about it, but it is surprisingly…very beach-like! Ben and I visited the Dunes on our first anniversary in 2017. It was really pretty there! You could actually see the skyline of Chicago in the distance! I was pregnant with Waylin at the time, so I felt like a true beached whale. #itsokayificallmyselfawhale

Since we weren’t able to make our annual beach trip to Florida this year, we decided to hit the Dunes! I knew Ben wasn’t feeling very well that day, but he toughed it out just so we could have a fun day as a family. He actually played a VERY dangerous game at 9 AM: ordering sliders from White Castle while we headed to a beach with no bathrooms. 🤣 I am happy to report we did not have any incidents. ✔

I will F-O-R-E-V-E-R tell mamas that the BEST thing you can purchase as parents that travel is a beach tent! It deserves a “holy shit”…sooo HOLY SHIT! I will never go to the beach with babies/kids without it! Sand literally gets everywhere, but I think the tent helps keep it out of our things and the little crevices of your body that sand seems to find! 😮

It’s also great for taking breaks from the sun and reapplying sunscreen.

Waylin really liked collecting rocks from the sand on this trip! She was absolutely fearless in the water. The waves would come crashing towards her little legs and she would stand firm, waiting for the wave to pass so she could see all the rocks that it brought with it.

Fearless doesn’t even come closer when I think about her! I love my little explorer! Every time we would come back to the tent to cool off or grab a snack, she would eventually take us by the hand and drag us back out to the water!

It was a long walk back to the car, but we really enjoyed our time there. Ben and I actually worked really well when we got back to the car because we had to change her out of her swim diaper and into regular clothes. She was exhausted and there were cars swarming us like angry bees because they wanted our parking spot.

We drove to a little pizza joint called Gelsosomo’s Pizzeria in Portage, Indiana. I mean, don’t ask me to pronounce that because there’s waaaay too many syllables in that (and s’s and o’s lol). It’s not in the best area, but the pizza is pretty good! Waylin did great even though she was really tired. She ate a lot of breadsticks lol. I think she’s a #carbiebarbie like her mama! 💁‍♀️

I looked over at Ben while he drove us home, smiled, and thanked him for a great family day at the “beach.”. I hope we get to go again soon!