Florida Fun

Wednesday evening we got back from a week-long trip to Destin, Florida.  We stayed with Adam and Ginna Siburt in Destin where we had a pool and the beach right outside the window.  It was amazing on several levels.  First and foremost, we got to spend some great family time together.  We also got to spend some quality time with friend (the Siburts, Hiltons, and Loom and Sara).  To top it all off, the weather was beautiful the entire trip.  I don't think it could have been more perfect.  I feel so blessed that we were able to go and enjoy the time together.

We decided to drive down, because the only thing less appealing than a 12 hour drive with two kids was trekking through the airport with two kids and all of the stuff that accompanies them.  At the start of the trip (literally 5 minutes into it), Audrey spilled her entire bottle of water on her seat, so it made me extremely nervous about the next 12 hours. Fortunately, it went by relatively quickly.  Audrey was great on both car-rides.  Barrett had a tough time on the way down, because he didn't want to sleep in the car.  He was much better on the ride back though.

 

  
We spent a lot of time in the pool, because Barrett was scared by the waves in the ocean.  Despite the amount of time we spent in the sun, all of us managed to avoid serious sunburn.  We went through a lot of sunscreen, but it was well worth it. 

 

Audrey loved playing in the ocean.  At dinner one night, she sat silent for 15 straight minutes watching the waves roll up on the sand outside the restaurant window; for those of you that have ever spent much time with a 4 year old, you know this is highly uncommon. She loved being in the ocean and playing on the beach. 

 

It was fun to see Barrett and Nora Siburt together, since they are only 3 months apart in age.  They got really comfortable around each other by the end of the week, and they didn't have too many disagreements over toys. 

By the last day, however, Barrett had gotten pretty comfortable with being on the beach.  I think his favorite part was eating the sand.  I seriously think he would eat just about anything.

 

 

One morning, we made trip to the aquarium.  Audrey really enjoyed the dolphin and sea lion shows that we saw.  She also like the sea life "petting zoo" where she got to hold a starfish, touch a horseshoe crab, and feel a sea urchin. 

Florida was a great diversion from our hectic daily routine.