56° and raining

Since March I had been planning a family getaway to the Cape. We were to spend a long weekend in mid-June enjoying the sun and the beach - before it got overrun with tourists. Everything started off well, we began our trip at Edaville Railroad in Carver, MA, where we took a ride on Thomas the Tank Engine. This is the third year in a row that we've done this and it's always fun. We had a great day for it, the sun was shining and the girls were happy and well-behaved. We rode the train then went on some of the other rides at the park. Just as the sky started to darken, we decided to head out for the rest of our weekend on the Cape.

As planned, Rita slept in the car on the drive to the outer reaches of the Cape. We had booked a hotel room in Provincetown for the next three nights. Once we arrived, we decided not to tempt fate by walking around town with two tired kids after an already-full day, so we ordered a pizza and ate it in our hotel room.

The next morning we woke up to gray skies and cool weather. Luckily, I had packed coats and long pants. After breakfast, we spent time wandering around in Provincetown, checking out the shops. We took a walk down to the water just as it started to mist. We were lucky to make it back to the hotel before the heavy rains started.

While the two-year old took a nap with her Papa, Nina and I spent an hour and a half at a coffee shop in town, where I taught her to play bingo, checkers and crazy eights. I was so glad I decided to bring that 7-in-1 game pack along!

The next day we weren't so lucky, it felt cold and it was definitely raining -- not just misty -- and the wind threatened to turn our umbrella inside out. Paul and I joked that the thermometer in the car was broken since it had read 56° since sometime the day before. Still, we were determined to do something with our day; the idea of being stuck in a small hotel room with two little kids was unbearable. So, we struck out for Pilgrim Monument. Completed in 1910, the 252 foot tower marks the spot where the pilgrims (those of the Mayflower) first stopped in their trek to the New World. As we all know, they quickly decided to move on to Plymouth instead, where they are commemorated with a much less impressive ROCK instead of a tower, but there you have it.

Paul and Nina decided to climb all the way to the top of the tower while Rita and I waited in the relative comfort of the museum and gift shop. At first, we did try to go up with them but the wind was howling and blowing rain in through the open windows and Rita put on her best fierce face and said, "No!" I couldn't agree with her more, so down we went. When they got back from their climb, both Paul and Nina said that the wind was so strong at the top that the rain was coming in sideways and Paul had to hold onto Nina so she wouldn't fly out the window.

We also visited the Whydah Pirate Museum for a little while. It's interesting but not enough to hold the attention of two little ones. Although, Nina was fascinated by the rotting pirate in the cage that had been previously hung over the side of the ship. Okay, this one was a reproduction but still, it does capture the imagination.

After lunch, we took a drive so the girls would take a nap. Then we decided that we'd try to go to the beach and at least look at the ocean that we weren't going to get to swim in. We pulled into the lot and parked alongside some other brave souls in rain slickers who just wanted to take a quick walk on the beach. We all got out of the car and started to head towards the path that leads to the shoreline. Once again, Rita decided that she was NOT going to be out in this awful weather. The rain was coming down and the wind whipped so hard that it elicited four-letter words from me unbidden. We headed back to the car. Paul and Nina made an attempt to get to the shore but they didn't get much farther. It was not a beach day.

By now we were beaten down. We had tried, really tried to make the most of a crappy-weather vacation. And, while finding this website was definitely helpful, we really did not have a restful vacation. I haven't even brought up the fact that every night we had a struggle to get the kids to sleep. Being out of our usual routine sends them to a wild and crazy place when it comes to bedtime. Each night, after PJs, brushing teeth and stories, Rita would continually get out of bed and go to the little fridge, open it, take a swig of the milk in her sippy cup, put the cup back and slam the door. She was so proud of herself for figuring out how to open the door. Now the image of our little refrigerator raider is hilarious but in the moment it was pretty infuriating.

We managed to salvage a few good moments during the trip. Playing games with Nina, having a laugh with Paul in the car while the kids were asleep (over I don't even remember what), mostly enjoying one really good meal (that wasn't pizza or hot dogs) while the girls were occupied at the table with crayons, and finishing a really good book in the spare moments I could find, are among the better memories. And, on our last day on the Cape, when we decided to go to the Cape Cod Children's Museum in Mashpee, I spent at least 30 minutes sitting quietly, watching Rita play all by herself with a toy farm. That is beauty and peace.