Laguna Beach

Most of you have heard of  Laguna Beach on MTV. That show full of ridiculously rich teenagers living their ridiculously shallow lives which evidentially much of the young public seems to be eating up. Not to say I don't enjoy some good trash television myself. I just haven't been able to watch that particular show for more than five minutes without feeling the chunks rise up into my throat. I don't  get it. Is it scripted? Isn't it? Why am I still talking about it? Oh yeah- because I wanted to say that is not the Laguna Beach I know. The Laguna Beach I know and love is a charming art community filled with eclectic ocean front galleries, fantastic food, and some of the most gorgeous scenery on earth. I love driving down Laguna Canyon until it dead ends into Pacific Coast Highway and getting a full panorama of the beach with the basketball courts in the foreground and blue ocean in the background.  Paradise.

One of the things I absolutely had to do on our visit to Southern California was take the kids back to Laguna Beach for a day in the sun and the surf.  Last year we took the kids to Laguna Beach and it was so much fun. We had lunch overlooking the ocean and then took the kids over to the beach and tide pools.

Now they were older and I thought they would just love to go explore the tide pools once again.  Well note to self: check the tide tables before you leave next time. Just because one year ago low tide was in the afternoon doesn't mean it will be today. That's right folks.  I didn't even bother to think about that minor detail so when when we showed up it was high tide in full force. The tide pools were completely submerged. I was bummed and kicking myself for not thinking about the obvious. Luckily it was Laguna Beach and there was still plenty to enjoy besides a few crustaceans living amongst the rocks. My mom and I took the kids over to the rocks where some water had pooled so the kids could play in it while my brother, Chris, and husband, Paul,  played like small children in the waves (I have been banned from displaying any pictures of Paul without his shirt on by Mr. Whiteboy himself). Mari was so excited that she  tried  her best to  escape Grandma's grasps and head for the water. Ben did what Ben does best and looked for some good rocks to throw while Mari did some salt water taste testing. Then she watched the waves as they crashed into the rocks and created a wonderful spray.

 

 

 

After playing at the non-tide pools we took the kids back to join their water logged daddy and uncle. I chose to get my feel wet and play in the waves with the kids (I include Paul and Chris when I refer to the kids) while Grandma opted for a position on the blanket.

Grandma did manage to remove her rear from the comfort of her beach blanket to take a few cute pics with the kids.

Ben took the time before we left to flirt his way into playing with an older girl's sand toys and Mari was happy to reap the rewards of her brother's charm.

If you are in the south Orange County area or plan to take a vacation in the area soon, I think you should really add a day at Laguna Beach to your itinerary. It is a great beach for all ages. There are small waves on one end for the little ones, tide pools for all ages (they are on the far right side of Main Beach), basketball for your boys looking to show off their moves and plenty of vacationers and beautiful people to keep you entertained people watching for hours. Of course there is also the gorgeous weather, warm sand, and azure water. You know. If you are into that kind of thing....