It was the end of the first week of school. Joshan had been thrilled with his new teacher and class. He was already making many friends. Even Amalie was overjoyed to be teaching again. She felt all her students were so bright and she could hardly wait to really get into teaching them. The first week had more or less been for getting to know everyone. Even Ryan had been busy setting up his practice near the hospital. He wasn't quite ready to open it, but everything was moving along smoothly.
Ryan and Amalie had called Karissa that morning and asked if they could take the twins for the day. Karissa had immediately agreed, knowing that her parents wanted a real opportunity to get to know their grandkids. She also knew it would give her time to catch up on things around the house, such as correspondence and then some shopping. She'd also had an appointment scheduled for the afternoon.
As Ryan and Amalie headed to the door of their daughter's home to pick up the twins, Joshan beat them there. He smiled as the sensor went off. He was dressed in his swim trucks, a brightly colored tee-shirt and sandals. Around his shoulders was a towel. Both Ryan and Amalie were also dressed in swimming apparel but were covered with pants and shirts and wraps. Amalie also wore a large hat and carried a big bag with her.
As the door opened, Karissa smiled.
"Where's Luc and Maya?" Joshan asked excitedly.
Suddenly, the twins poked their heads around the door and giggled. They too, were dressed for the beach. Maya's bathing suit was purple and pink with big flowers on it, while Luc's trucks were a bright blue and green. Both wore shirts over them and sandals.
"We go to beach?" Maya said excitedly, her eyes showing her excitement.
"Yes, Maya, darling," Amalie smiled. "We're going to take you and your brother to the beach today."
"Yay!" she clapped as Luc joined in.
"I put sunscreen on them already," Karissa replied, "but I'm sure you'll have to reapply it. Especially after they play in the water."
Both Ryan and Amalie laughed.
"I think we know and thing or two about that," Ryan said gently with a twinkle in his eyes.
Karissa laughed. "I know, I know. I guess it's just a parent thing," she replied, her dark eyes sparkling.
"That it is," Amalie agreed.
Karissa hugged both of her parents. "Thanks. I know the kids have been dying to spend time with you."
"What about me?" Josh asked.
Karissa knelt down beside him and caressed his face. "Of course, you too!" she replied and then kissed his cheek.
"Momma, come," Maya said as she looked at her mother.
"Momma has some things to do, sweetie," she replied. "Just go with grandma, grandpa and Joshan. You'll have a great time."
For a moment Maya seemed a little sad, but as soon as Joshan took her hand, she immediately brightened up.
"We go to beach!" she said.
"Play in water!" Luc also said.
"Yes, yes that's right," Ryan smiled. "Come on, let's get going. The sooner we get there, the sooner the fun will start!"
With that, Ryan scooped Luc up into his arms and put him around his shoulders as Amalie held Josh and Maya's hands. Karissa watched until they were out of sight.
It wasn't long before the happy family was at the beach, setting up a blanket that Amalie had brought, along with lots of water and some snacks. Almost as soon as they had gotten there, the kids ran toward the water.
"Be careful!" she called out. "Don't go too deep!"
"We won't, mom!" Josh called back as a loud giggle came from him and the twins as they ran across the sand, letting the waves roll over their feet.
After everything was set up to Amalie's satisfaction, she joined the kids and Ryan as they romped in the water, engaging in games of tag and splash fights. In the end, Amalie and Ryan grew a bit worn out and retreated to the blanket to watch the kids as they finally settled down enough to build a sandcastle. They marveled at the speed Luc and Maya ran as they went to get more water in the bucket to make the sand nice and wet for building. They would end up in a chasing game, giggling the whole time.
"Do they remind you of someone else we know?" Ryan said with a smile.
"They are remarkably like Karissa, aren't they?" Amalie replied.
Ryan nodded. "Remember when we took Karissa to that park when she was about four and she jumped from the sand all the way to the top of the slide startling the parents along with the other children?"
Amalie laughed. "Oh, I remember that," she replied. "Had we not suspected she was special before then, that would have been the defining moment... and all the questions we got asked." she smiled and shook her head.
"Yeah, no one had seen a little girl like ours." Ryan smiled with pride. "You know, she may have been created by someone, but what matters the most is that she came to us. She's our daughter and no one can ever change that."
Amalie smiled and leaned into him. "That's right. Our Karissa. We are so lucky to have her. Just like Joshan, she was a gift. I know she's had trouble dealing with where she came from, but I think she understands that if nothing else, she will always be our little girl. It doesn't matter where she originally came from."
Ryan held her close as they continued watching the kids. "You know what I think?" he said as he kissed her forehead.
"No, what do you think?" she asked with a knowing smile.
"That moving to Serenity was the best thing we ever did... for us, for Joshan and for Karissa," he smiled.
"And don't forget Shara," Amalie replied.
"Definitely... and Shara. Our family's together and that's how it should be."
As they held each other, they saw the rather large castle the kids had build, decorated with many sea shells. There was even a moat. The kids were waving them over to take a look.
"I think we'd better go before they decide to riot," Ryan laughed.
"Yes, we don't want them storming that castle just yet. Do you have the camera?"
"Right here. I'll make sure I get a picture," he smiled as he got up and helped Amalie to her feet.
With that, they walked toward the children and their beautiful sand creation.
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