The kids came back up from the dock full of excitement and chatter. They had checked the crab pots we put out over the weekend and counted up the crabs. Between the six crab pots (one for each kid!) and what they caught last night we actually have enough caught to make it worthwhile steaming a batch for lunch.

Last night was really magical. We set all the kids up with a string and a net and taught them how to crab from the dock like we used to do. Each kid tied a small piece of raw chicken to their string and dropped the string into the water just a few inches below the surface, holding one end of the string in one hand and the net in their other hand. Laying flat on their bellies on the edge of the dock planks, they peered down into the river water and watched for a crab to swim up to their baited string, then swooped him up with the net. Even the 5 year old caught three crabs and he was so excited he was practically jumping out of skin!

That was really great – sharing the experience of my own childhood with the next generation and making memories that the whole family will share with each other for all the years to come.

So now I’m off to find a big can of Old Bay seasoning and the crab pot, because we have crabs to steam.