Kim in Baltimore enjoying the summer weather.
Summer is my favorite season. That’s right, I enjoy the heat, the smell of fresh-cut grass, the sunny mornings spent strolling through the farmer’s market choosing the freshest vegetables, and lazily reading in my yard in a lawn chair listening as the ice-cream truck drives by with its music and bells chiming. But most of all I love the beach. 
From the first summer of my life until I was twelve years old, my family spent our summers on the shores of New Jersey in Atlantic City. My mom would take us out onto the beach in the morning and our afternoons were spent visiting the shops along the boardwalk. Pop-Pop was never far behind, trailing after us to be sure we were safe. We had our own security detail!
Once, Pop-Pop spent an entire morning searching the beach for a tooth my sister lost. He was more upset than she was when he came back empty-handed. In the evening we went to the Steel Pier to see the diving horses and listen to music.
Family vacations have always been important to me. I have carried on the tradition of going to the beach. Each year since my children have been born we have traveled, even if only for the weekend, to the beach. Living in Baltimore, we are fortunate to be within a three hour drive to beaches in Delaware and New Jersey as well as Maryland. I was not able to contain myself to the east coast, though, and have taken my family – by train – to beaches in Chicago and San Francisco as well. We have visited as far south as Cocoa Beach and Miami Beach and went up north to Old Orchard Beach in Maine.
Dear Reader,
Do you enjoy the beach? What is your favorite thing to do during the summer months?