A Day by the Med

The trick to taking three children and a puppy to the beach is to get going early. We were packed and out the door by 8:45 this morning and got a prime parking spot just across from the one section of dog friendly beach at Grand Travers. It was still cool and fresh and we had our pick of places to park ourselves for the morning. We staked out real close to the water so the kids and Clementine could splash and dig in the sand with no one between us and the sea. There were only three other groups there when we arrived at 9 am but when we left at two o'clock it was, as the Irish say, 'jammers'.

I love the sea and the beach more than any man-made chlorinated swimming pool. I love the sand, the breeze, the saltiness and refreshing coolness of the water and the freedom it gives the kids to roll around and get all messy. Another thing I love is how the sea changes. We lived by the Irish Sea when we lived in Ireland and I was madly in love with it. I've written an entire post about a morning jog along it and can bore you to tears with my fascination of the changing colors, depths and wildness of it. This morning at our little spot on the Med there was a shallow pool, virtually waveless that gave way to a sand bar running horizontally to the shore before the tiny waves started spilling over, barely breaking. As we walked out we saw a huge jellyfish or medusa turned on her back, tentacles limply floating in the water, lifelessly nudging the shore.As we gawked and prodded her with a plastic shovel to make sure she was dead, a man in a very snug Speedo came over and scooped her up with a stick and deposited her in the dunes. Very efficient.

madame medusa

Clementine ran along the sand bar with the big kids and the Littlest rolled around and shrieked and dug holes. I read my InStyle magazine brought to me by Mon Mari from his last pass through Charles de Gaulle aiport. I found a gorgeous decanter from napastyle.com that I don't know if I can live without (hopefully I can find a less pricey version at a brocante) and a recipe for green juice that sounds super healthy. Plus a recipe for an avocado face mask that sounds yummy too. Maybe I'll just eat it and not bother spreading it on my face. Eva Longoria looked fabulous in the photo spread and you'll be glad to know that she's fine after the break-up with Tony. She said the thing the celebrities always say. Something like, 'When you're not happy in a relationship it's ok to move on.'

Having Clementine has opened up a whole new bucket of beach fun because people in the dog section LOVE their dogs. It's like we have been given a membership into a new club where people are friendly, love petting the little baby girl and always say, 'Oh, elle est belle.' Thank goodness for the South of France, their dog lovin' ways, and the beautiful Med.

Off to look for a thai green curry recipe. Send me one if you have a good one.