I have long marveled over the difference between young girls and boys, and it was on full display for us to observe last weekend. It was quite hilarious to see.
I have no problem admitting to be a moron when it comes to all things girls. There are times when my wife would probably say my female ignorance covers all ages, but it’s particularly true when it involves girls around the same ages of my 5- and 4-year-old sons.
While walking on the Boardwalk last weekend, Beckett and Carson ran into their friend, Sophia, who tagged along with us for a while. It was a great thing because she provided some entertainment for the boys.
The kids played on the beach for some time and that was interesting to observe. While Sophia was careful not to fall into the sand, as she didn’t want to get sand on her cute outfit, Beckett and Carson were the exact opposite.
Beckett was somersaulting and tumbling all over the beach, while Carson, who kept trying to shed clothes the entire time, was nearby doing his version of “sand angels”. At one point, I even saw Beckett put sand down Carson’s pants, and then Carson returned the favor and added a few shells for good measure. They each giggled in delight and shook their bottoms furiously. They apparently enjoyed the feeling of the sand departing, or as Beckett said, “it feels so good sliding around on my body, you should try it.”
Eventually, the boys tempted the clearly more mature Sophia to join in on what every parent tells their kids not to do on the beach — throw sand. At one point, all three were engaged with throwing sand at each other’s feet, as Pam and I sat and watched and offered up a few pathetic and unenforceable “no throwing sand” comments.
When the topic of the movie “Frozen” came up, Sophia dazzled us with a solo of the song every parent in America probably knows by heart by now. Pam took a video of it, and that was hilarious to watch later.
There Sophia was doing an outstanding job of singing and even working in some choreography while blurred images consistently passed by in the foreground and background. Those, of course, belonged to Beckett, who was trying to dazzle us with his dance moves.
It’s certainly something that would have to be seen to get the full effect. At one point in the video, Beckett could be seen throwing sand at Sophia’s feet as she sang. She did pause in mid-song to throw some sand back at him with him shouting, “oh my eye, oh my finger.”
Sophia kept on singing while Beckett continued to throw sand at her feet. She would take a couple mid-song breaks to give him a taste of his own medicine, but she did a good job of not breaking character for the most part.
During lunch, it was fun to observe the kids as well. Carson, Beckett and Sophia had to sit practically on top of each other the entire time. There was plenty of room in the booth. They just preferred to mix it up a little and rarely did they keep their hands off each other’s food or belongings.
Pam served as the referee on that side while I scoured the menu to see if there were any adult beverages available. That was until I realized it was 11:15 in the morning and thought better of it.
The most fun the kids seemed to have was darting in and out of the various stores, particularly those offering cartoon designs on T-shirts and the skimpy shorts with the words across the rear.
When the kids started getting a little too rambunctious for our nerves, including Carson inadvertently shoplifting on several occasions (all items were returned), we decided to walk along the beach. Apparently, that decision was made a little late, as Beckett managed to pull a beer bong off a rack and stuck it in his ear, while Carson hummed into the funnel side. Apparently, and I was happy they didn’t know what it was, they thought it was something similar to the can on the string. I quickly put that back before I was made to pay for it. The last thing I needed to be carrying along the Boardwalk was a beer bong saying, “I Got Bonged In Ocean City.”
When it came to arcade games, Sophia was all about any game that dispersed tickets, and she clearly had her favorites in mind. She apparently is saving up her tickets for a large stuffed animal. Beckett played along, but the boy in him won out. The games that grabbed his attention were those involving shooting, throwing balls and fighting games.
When it came time to leave the arcade, our boys gave us their typical fight, while Sophia accepted the decision in stride so long as she had her receipts for her tickets.
It was an enjoyable day, one Beckett reflected on later. Due to his age, Beckett is of the mindset that girls are not particularly cool to be around because they generally do not enjoy the same things. When I asked him if he had fun with Sophia, he said in a surprised tone, “I really, really did. I liked her ponytails.”
When I asked Carson the same thing, he shook his head furiously “no.” When I asked him the same thing about me and his mom, he shook his head furiously, “no.”
We didn’t take it personally and neither should Sophia.