seven and the secret beach

Scout asked me if I was 32 the other day. I'm pretty sure I turned 32 a month after Catcher was born, so the answer is no. I know this because yesterday was his 7th birthday. We wanted to do something new and fun to celebrate, so I hatched a plan involving a secret Austin beach--I would tell you more, but it's a secret (duh)--and left the children a note on the kitchen table saying "Good morning! Put on your bathing suits and get ready for a super secret adventure." Catcher tried to decode the message while Scout wondered who had sent the letter. Tillie was preoccupied thinking about what dessert would befall us on this blessed birthday.

We left the house around 9:00am and brought donuts--a Catcher birthday breakfast tradition--and watermelon on our super secret adventure. On the way there we heard rumblings about "Where are we going...just tell us!" and "Are we still in Austin?" But once we arrived at our destination, the ten-minute car ride and short hike down a windy path to our super secret location was all but forgotten. When the sub-ten group landed on the beach--I use the term "beach" very loosely here; it's really a quiet stretch of sand and rocks along the Colorado river--it was an instant playdate with nature. They learned how to skip rocks under the tutelage of their father (well, Tillie mostly just chucked big rocks into the river), and Catcher made friends with a big dog. Whenever a kid gets to hang out with a dog on his birthday you know it's a good one.