jersey shore: our way

Saturday was a rockin’ day for the Jersey Shore…we do it our way, not the way you may think, compliments of MTV’s version.  Yes, while guidos and guidettes are definitely in style and en masse, we rocked the shore in a wholesome manner at OCNJ.  Our kiddos were so excited to be at the ocean for the day.  (I‘ll be honest, I could barely contain myself, too.) We went to Jersey to celebrate our nephew’s 10th birthday (holy cow…he’s ten!), but during the day while preparations were made, we hit the waves and the boardwalk for some Jersey-style fun.  I love this picture – they were so overwhelmed to just be at the ocean, that the wonderful feeling of letting your feet sink into the sand was good enough.  For at least 30 seconds.At 31 seconds, they could wait no longer and jumped right into those waves.  Anna is fearless.  Hudson has no boundaries.  It makes the ocean a thrilling, albeit slightly frightening experience, for this parent.  They do well with rules though, and they understood they weren’t allowed past their knees without an adult.  Lucky for us, the waves were just the right size at that depth for our adventurers – for a while.  Castle building, digging, playing in the sand, making holes for bodies, baking sand cakes and spending a lot of time between the lifeguard flags for swimming (that is how the Jersey beaches work) took up most of our day….just the way we wanted it. We ate lunch at an OC pizzeria icon, Mack & Manco’s and finished up our day with water ice, salt water taffy and lemonades.  That pretty much hit all of the must-have-foods on the boardwalk for us.  (Well, Daddy got an iced coffee before we left too).  And while we were sad to say goodbye to the salt water air and the gentle breeze, we know we will be back – and we had a party to get too!