My little baby had introduced to me to a love I never even realized I had; a love of the sea.  The famous French writer and aristocrat Antoine de Saint-Exupery said, “Each man must look to himself to teach him the meaning of life.  It is not something discovered: it is something molded.”  I watched my seven month old be lulled to sleep by the ocean’s gently rocking waves as my husband and I held her in her little float.  On this, our first solo family vacation, the three of us would be molded together like an inpenetrable castle in the sand.  It was built around special time spent with each other, in nature, with no watch.  We all were blessed to be in the mystery of the Blessed Stella Maris’ domain, the fathomless blue sea.  I collected shells obsessively and realized I could lose myself in that forever.  With each receding of the tide there was the chance of discovering a new treasure offered up in the powder white sand.  I lost all track of time and felt happy and genuinely at peace.  All too soon our precious time had come to an end and it was time to go.  Before the airport we were able to stop at this quirky place called the Shell Factory.  It was huge and contained everything from fossils, to jewelry, a fudge shop, a Christmas room, and a very impressive shell collection.  We all had great fun.  I scored a once costly bracelet made of real shells (on sale for 60% off,) Burk found all sorts of map replicas, and our little one rode her first carousel.  The picture here is blurred because we were actually turning as my husband took it.  Seashells and carousels; nature and delight.  That is what I wish for my precious miracle child.  Hence the meaning behind the name of my blog:  seashells and carousels.