Going "Home"

We're on our way for what may be my favorite week of the year, our annual time on Chincoteague Island.

Time for the four of us to get away and just be together. No school, no work, no household chores.

Mornings on the beach. Afternoons of visiting our favorite spots on the island, or just relaxing at the house with a pile of new books to read. Late afternoon walks on the beach when the sun is much less intense and the colors of the sky and water combine to  become  truly amazing. 

Relaxed lunches after a morning at the beach, with Greek salads and caprese sandwiches, all made with our own tomatoes, basil and red onions. Crab and other seafood at favorite local restaurants. Bulgogi grilled on the grill on our deck. A barbecue on the beach--something we decided last year is our "last night at the beach" tradition.
Ice cream--lots of ice cream--from the Island Creamery!

The Man and I have spent time on the Island since I first moved here 20 years ago. And since then, we've been there just about every year, one way or another. The only year I recall missing was the year when JR was born!

We've been staying in the same cottage since JR was a toddler. We don't own it, but we think of it as "ours" right down to bringing extra kitchenwear to leave in the house, and expecting the owners' cat to come and hang out with us--especially when we're grilling meat.

We really need this vacation. It hasn't been an awful summer, but it's been hard in a lot of ways.

And when we turn the bend in the road by Wallops Island and see the Island across the marshes, we'll know that we're "home".

This song by Carly Simon says it all for me:

Have a good week, everyone. I'm probably not going to have Internet access this week, but I'll be back Labor Day weekend with a report.

Though perhaps after a week of crab soup, caprese sandwiches and ice cream at the Island Creamery, I'd better skip the weigh in again next week

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