Beachpalooza 2011!

Wow - finally something to blog about!

We just returned from our trip down to Sandestin for an extended weekend getaway. Our friends Mark and Leslie also went along with their little boy Clay, who is closer to 3 than 2, and Mark's mom Nan.

Here is Clay enjoying the beach - he loved everything about it!




Ditda went along with us and we were so glad to have her help. Chase was a little bit of a handful which I think comes with him being so young. This was also his first overnight trip away from home so this was a new experience for him.

For some reason, Chase did not sleep a wink the entire trip down there - that is 6 hours in a car with an awake 16 month old.

Then, after we got there, we drug him OUT TO DINNER. I don't know why I thought that would work. So he didn't nap and then was up really late. Not a great start to his trip.

The house we rented was wonderful. One of the bedrooms had 2 sets of bunk beds so Morgan, Wyatt, and Ditda "bunked" in there. Wyatt was super excited about getting to sleep on the top bunk.

Our bedroom had a large walk in closet so we set up Chase's pack n play inside of it. It made a perfect "bedroom" for him and thankfully he slept well at night.

We spent the first day at the beach. Chase was not a fan.



I think he was still grumpy from being sleep deprived and it was just too stinking hot for him. Ditda went back to the house with him while we stayed the rest of the day. Leslie and I ended up getting too much sun. The first day. Nice. Apparently you have to reapply the sunscreen after you get out of the ocean. Even if you try to hide under an umbrella.

On Saturday the girls went out to lunch at The Back Porch restaurant and then hit the outlets for some serious shopping. We left the men folk back at the ranch to attend to the kids. Needless to say they were happy when we got home - both the kids and the men folk. I think I could have spent another day at the outlets - great prices with air conditioning was what I needed that day.

That night we all went to dinner at Pompano Joe's where Wyatt had his first "smoothie" like Mama's - without the rum.



He also went up on stage and played a percussion instrument along with some other kids. I was proud of him - a year ago he wouldn't have done that.



After dinner, we went down to the beach armed with buckets and flash lights. We had a great time chasing fish and crabs.



We decided to spend Sunday morning at the pool. Then we sent out the 2 dads for their very own Father's Day outing to get a good lunch and just get away for a bit. We got the kids down for naps and relaxed on the back deck with our kindles, books, and a cocktail. My kind of afternoon.

Later that day we went back to the beach and it was a much better experience for all of us.



It was not nearly as crowded or hot. We were able to set up right by the water so we could easily watch the kids. Plus it was a better time of day for picture taking.

Lessons learned:

1) Give baby a little shot of Benadryl or some other sleep aid for the trip down.

2) Skip the middle of the day beach outing - go late afternoon.

3) Reapply sunscreen after getting out of the ocean.

4) Bring toys for the time the kids are not at pool or beach. Poor Clay - his Mama was smart enough to bring his big Mack Truck with all the cars from the movie Cars. My boys Mama - that would be yours truly - brought one small ball.

5) Try for a late Spring or early Fall trip when it isn't SO STINKING HOT! My family is a fair skinned family and all the sunscreen in the world can't protect us from getting too much sun.

All in all - we had a wonderful time. Wyatt and Morgan loved the beach, the pool, riding in the golf cart, going out to dinner, shopping, etc. Morgan even got to do the Zip Line and Bungee jumped over at the Wharf one night. She and Ditda biked over after Wyatt was asleep - although he woke up and Nan had to cover for them.



We definitely think the Beachpalooza trip should be an annual event - start saving if you want to come with us!