“Come on,” you coax, rubbing sunscreen over your eldest’s puffed-out cheeks as she sits sideways in the backseat, clearly on a mission to make this whole ordeal as challenging as possible. “They already got a head start. Allez, allez, allez!”

At that, your daughter scrunches up her nose, and, okay, maybe the French (you don't actually speak) was a little much. But you are in France, and besides, at just five, you thought she’d be too young to be embarrassed by you. Apparently not, though, judging by the pointed look she gives you, which she most definitely inherited from her other parent.

“Quoi?” you tease, dabbing one last streak of sunscreen across the bridge of her nose. “Oh come on! Don’t look at me like that!”

That finally earns you a grin, the pout breaking into giggles as she hops down from the car, her bucket and shovel clutched tightly in her hands. At least she hasn’t outgrown her sandcastle phase yet. The door slams shut behind her and she takes off at a sprint, bare feet kicking up little clouds of hot sand as she runs.

By the time you’ve slung the beach bag over your shoulder and locked the car, she’s bolted toward the water, heading for the two figures further ahead. Lottie is wading barefoot in the shallows, her hand wrapped tightly around your three-year-old’s smaller one. The little one shrieks each time the tide rushes in, her giggles carrying over the crash of the waves as her feet sink into the wet sand. Lottie leans down to say something, and your toddler tips her head back to laugh so hard she hiccups, tugging on Lottie’s arm. “Again, again!” she laughs.

When you catch up, your eldest has barreled into Lottie’s free side, her hand slipped into her mother’s. “Did she go in the water without me?”

“She did,” Lottie admits, brushing her knuckles tenderly over your eldest’s cheek. “But only because she really couldn’t wait for her big sister.” Your five-year-old frowns, then holds on tighter, dragging both Lottie and her sister toward the surf. “Next time, she has to wait. ‘Cause I’m gonna teach her how to swim!”

Lottie shoots you a helpless, fond smile, both girls glued to her sides now. “Think you can find us a nice spot for the towels before these two wear me out completely?” she teasingly asks over her shoulder.