I’m Goin’ to Coronado in My Mind

We just got home from our summer pilgrimage to Coronado. I love the first morning walk to the beach every year. I can never shake the feeling that we were JUST HERE… even though it’s been 12 months. I notice my children get a little bit bigger every day, but something about coming back for the exact same vacation year after year makes their growth so much more tangible.

This is the first time in eight years that we’ve touched down in SAN without a travel crib. I didn’t pack breast pumps or formula. I wasn’t pregnant, nursing, or recovering from surgery. It was my first ever no-strings-attached trip to Coronado, and it was GLORIOUS. I drank Hugo Spritzes poolside with Mackenzie (Over this summer we’ve become quite the Hugo connoisseurs, although I’m not sure that’s something to brag about). I went out for a girls’ night and didn’t worry once about the baby’s bedtime routine. I wore a string bikini and got a tan on my belly for the first time in almost a decade. I’m not postpartum, I’m not expecting, I’m just living right in the now. It was so enjoyable to joke around with our extended family and not feel the pangs of postpartum anxiety that have tensed my sense of humor for years. 

This trip felt like we were getting a peek at the next stage of parenthood… but I still look around the condo and am flooded with all of the “baby” memories we’ve loved here. When we first started traveling to Coronado for the summer, Nick and I were the only ones on his side doing the married with babies thing. My siblings-in-law were still sleeping until lunch, but Zary was two-years-old and up at dawn. East coast time. As soon as she happy screamed her way awake, we’d hurriedly throw some clothes on in the dark and rush out of the condo as quietly as possible (she wasn’t quiet at all. Sorry for the thousandth time, Fam Bam). We’d stroll up Orange Avenue, grab some bagels and coffee from the only shop open before the sun, and walk the beach for a few hours until we got word of life back in the condo. 

It was on that first summer beach trip that we decided Zary was ready for potty training. Like clockwork after dinner each night, she’d retreat to an isolated corner of the living room, throw one hand up on the wall and lean in for a 5-minute grunt fest. By the end of the vacation, she’d added an additional required step of locking eyes with my SIL’s then boyfriend, Marty (“TeeTee”, affectionately). Being the best Uncle-in-Training ever, he willingly obliged and laugh-cried his way through poopin’ time stare downs for the rest of the trip. Zary was out of diapers within the next month. 

TeeTee and Ali eventually got married, and it was in Coronado when they asked Zary to be their flower girl. Two years later they added Baby Liv to the vacation party, while I was sporting a Maisy baby bump the size of Texas. It was a pretty big target I guess, because that belly got spiked by a stray volleyball in the pool. I broke down in hormonal tears on the pool-deck and was pretty certain I was going to see my Mother-in-Law commit murder that day. Nana’s always got my back. Especially when I’m growing new grandbabies for her. 

Maisy’s first earthside trip to Coronado brought a whole new level of chaos and laughs. She was our first baby who LOVED being sandy. I had to rip the liners out of her swimsuits to drain the sand she’d gotten packed beneath the mesh. Maisy would scamper face first into the Pacific, gleefully taking waves to the face one after another. Mina the princess preferred to stay clean and relax with her chicken tenders which were delivered to her, poolside. 

Twice now we’ve celebrated the big kids’ birthdays in Coronado. We made a habit of visiting SeaWorld and joyfully celebrated when one of the kids had grown enough to strap into a new ride. One year we hit the sand dollar lottery, collecting twelve mint condition urchins that now rest for eternity in Zary’s seashell lamp. 

This year’s trip was fun in the same ways, and in entirely different ways than ever before. The kids were all old enough this year to go off with relatives and make memories on their own, without us. Macky treated Zary to an ice cream date and a bookstore shopping spree (which I hope she understands is now an expected experience per Z every summer). Mina got to spend an afternoon swimming at a new pool with Nana while I enjoyed some alone time. Maisy fell in love with Michael’s girlfriend, and forced “Laney” into a morning of carrying her all through the freezing cold pool, while certainly talking Delaney’s ear off the whole time. We leaned into the new vibe and let the nap schedule completely fall to pieces this year – insanity, I’m aware. 

Not being overwhelmed by the demands of babies this trip, Nick and I got to enjoy each other’s company more too. We laughed more than usual, relaxed for real, and thoroughly enjoyed each other’s companionship in this newer, slower, flow of life. On our last day at the beach, we teamed up to create our biggest drip drop castle ever. I spearheaded castle construction while Nick spent the whole day digging moats and channels to save my masterpiece against the tide. We kind of pretended it was for the girls, but we both know the truth. What would you expect from two engineers? 

We’ve been blessed with so many joyful memories in our favorite place, and I know we have decades more experiences to enjoy with our girls there. Every kid was in tears on the drive to the airport as we left the seashore, and I don’t blame them. It was pretty fun for Nick and I to act like kids on the beach again, too. The countdown to Coronado 2027 is offically underway.