Vacation 2011

I have been procrastinating writing this post. Not because I don't want to share our week at the beach with you, but because I took 929 photos. Using the quick frame setting. Which means there are about 25 of each shot with subtle little differences. To the untrained eye (you guys), they all look the same. But to the artiste (me), those subtle differences are of great proportion and actually deciding which ones to post is almost an impossible feat. We've been home for a week so I figured I better get it over with before I forget what we actually did on vacation. But then I remembered that I took 929 photos. There's no way I could forget what we did on vacation. I documented every. little. detail.

Traveling


Beatrice did great on the 7 hour ride to Destin, FL. She played with stickers, she colored, she gave her babies bottles, and she drank wa-wa juice. We're an extended rear-facing car seat family, but after a little snafu with the installation of her seat in JD's vehicle that delayed us getting on the road by 45 minutes, she rode forward-facing for the week. She did great and really enjoyed it, but she's back in the rear-facing position for at least 6 more months. I feel the need to explain that in the event that one of you rear-facers is judging me right now. Safety first, unless you can't figure out the stupid latch system and your husband starts mumbling 4-letter words. Then it's just get-the-thing-in-the-car-already and turn it when you're back home.  

To break up the drive, we stopped in Alabama at the Peach Park. It is this huge farmer's market/eatery that serves yummy bar-b-que, ice cream, and fried pies. Leave it to me to order blackberry cobbler at the Peach Park. It was worth it. Especially since JD and Beatrice aren't huge fans of blackberries. More for me!

The whole reason we stopped there was so Beatrice could run around and play before the second leg of the drive. We picked up rocks, played on a huge family sized swing, and rode a horse statue. JD took a few pictures of me, but upon further review it has been determined that I am too, er "unshapely" for digital film. I'm sure it has nothing to do with the blackberry cobbler...

The Beach


My child loved the beach. From the first night we took her down to play, she loved the sand, the water, the "burr-dees." It was precious to see how determined she was at digging with her "shuh-bulls" and chasing those birds.

Are you sick of looking at pictures yet? We're not even halfway done so if you're loving it, yay for you. If not, well, I'm really sorry. I told you there were 929 of these bad boys. I'm doing my best to not make this the longest post in the history of the internet. 


We spent a few hours in the morning at the beach, then about an hour in the afternoon before dinner chasing birds and hunting shells.

Bathing Shoots

Beatrice's favorite thing about the whole trip may very well have been that she got to wear a "bay-ting shoot" everyday. She loved getting up in the morning knowing that she got to wear a different silky suit. She worked them.

I love the expressions on their faces in the above photo. They're like, "seriously, another picture? If you're not careful, we're gonna have over 929 of these things."

Seaside


Seaside is this idyllic little beach town a few miles from Destin. The architecture and feel of the place is supposed to make you feel like you stepped into a storybook town about 50 years ago. It is surreal how perfect it really is.

We ate lunch and gelato in Seaside. I had a grilled goat cheese and prosciutto sandwich. Oh. Em. Gee. So good. I have no idea what the other 2 had. I was busy scarfing my sandwich and wondering how much gelato I could eat without JD intervening.

The Pool


Our resort had an indoor and an outdoor pool. The indoor pool was heated so there was really nothing else to consider. We swam everyday and our little fishy loved it. And threw tantrums when it was time to get out.

Walk Walk

More than eating gelato, my favorite thing to do at the beach is to walk it. Far, long walks to nowhere. JD likes to walk the length of about 3 resorts so he is not really all that fun to walk with. But Beatrice? She could walk for hours like her mama.

Thank you random passerby for taking the only family photo we have out of 929. 

The Ocean


Beatrice was a little skeptical of going any further than ankle deep in the big water. And then one day, she just went for it.

Oh my gosh, this is the longest thing ever posted on the internet. I want to throw in the towel right now, but I feel like I've come so far, I might as well finish.  We're almost done, I promise. This is getting ridiculous. I'm embarrassed I let it get this long. Is anyone still reading? Anyone?


Family Fun


I suppose the best thing about our vacation was being together. We found out the day before we left that we would be moving to L.A. The first few days in Florida were not relaxed. We were anxious and irritable with each other. I did some praying and crying on a solo beach walk (normal people do that, right?) and eventually, we found ourselves having fun.

The end. If you feel gipped, you are. There are about 800 more photos in the vacation album that you'll never see. But for the love of gelato, I have to end this thing at some point.