We piled all the kids, our camping gear, and some buckets and shovels in our little car and drove south to explore Padre Island National Seashore. We had been quite curious to discover what some call "the third Coast". We set up our tent on a windy little spot right above the sandy dunes, and stayed for four days. Oh, how the sounds, sights, and smells of the ocean are a balm for the soul! We saw a good-sized shark, lots of laughing gulls (which were Hazel's favorite!), and many ghost crabs, which came out at night and tried to scurry across our feet as we made our way to the restrooms to brush our teeth before bed. It was quite the thrill! Sawyer and Aspen were sworn in as junior rangers. We played and played and soaked up the sun. We left one night (as the park ranger kindly suggested) due to an electrical storm - lots of amazing lightning, thunder, and a downpour! We basically abandoned our tent for the night and went out to dinner and then to a hotel for the night. When we returned the next morning, our tent had flooded and was barely standing! It was very well we had found shelter elsewhere! The sun dried everything out remarkably fast, so we were able to spend our last night under the stars, with the ocean lulling us into dreamland one more time. It was our first visit to the seashore - but it most definitely will not be our last.
