I don’t know why I associate August so strongly with the beach. Truthfully, I’m not sure I’ve been to the beach in August before, and there was a time in my life when going to the beach at any time of year was just about the last thing I wanted to do.

How times have changed. While mountain biking, climbing or skiing still sound great, my ideal vacation now includes a townhouse just steps away from the sand, browned little girls building castles and playing chase with the waves, dripping ice pops on swimsuits, outside showers, and the sound of waves lulling us all to sleep. If I can throw some surfing attempts into the mix for adventure, it will be perfect.

So, off we go to North Carolina for our beach fix, and cheers to getting a bit of sand in the crevices, splashing in the surf, and soaking up some of the hot sun before summer comes to a close!

The ideas, images and ink for the month are:

ideas the dog days of summer, white hot heat, burning sand under foot

images blinding sun, steaming pavement

ink white yellow, cool blue

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