San Destin, Florida (Part 1)

We have made it a tradition now that every year we drive to San Destin, Florida for a beach vacation.  Texas has beaches of course...but this Mama is a beach bum and I love the white sands and clear waters.  There is something that about seeing it in person that allows me to witness God's beauty and awe of his creation.  I am humbled by the sunsets, relaxation, and memories we make every year.  So, this would be our 5th year in a row to go.  As with all things of comfort, we have even stayed in the same house on Linkside for 5 years.  It is a perfect size house for us with well stocked kitchen, washer/dryer, golfcart, and access to everything we need.  This keeps us a little more secluded and away from the travel crowds.  As Gangaw used to say, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it."  So, off we drove around 3am heading toward Florida on Wednesday morning.  We arrived around 1pm in perfect time for lunch on the water.  After exploring, buying groceries for the week, and unloading at the house, we did our traditional golf cart ride to the beach.  The first sight always takes my breath away.  We enjoyed relaxing and unpacking the rest of the evening in preparation for a beach day the next day.  Thursday we slept in, ate breakfast, and then loaded the golf cart with lunch, drinks, toys, and anything else we could fit.  It was a long but playful day on the beach.  My favorite part about the beach days is taking the kids one at a time out into the ocean to explore.  Their excitement (sometimes fear), bravery, and seeing what God can create first hand just makes me stop and thank God.  Charles enjoyed snorkeling out deep and often would bring us back treasures to see like sand dollars, hermit crabs, shells, or pictures of blue crab/fish.  That night included a trip to Baytowne Wharf for dinner, pirate show, and games.  The Sky was the limit on Friday morning when the girls went parasailing and the boys took a helicopter ride.  After a bit of shopping in Destin, We ate at Dewey's and then relaxed at the pool before getting ready for a nice dinner at Bud & Alley's in Seaside, FL and watching the movie Paddington 2 at the outside theater.  The sunset was perfect this night and it truly looked as though God had water colored the sky. Saturday morning was Mama's pick, so I selected hiking in Grayton State Park, buying fresh seafood from the market, shopping, sunset playing on the beach and then a seafood dinner/game night at the house.  Dinner was beyond yummy with fresh seared tuna, scallops, shrimp, seafood pot pie, clam chowder, and hush puppies.  My kind of relaxing day!

Happy 14th Anniversary to us!

Celebrating 14 years today! We are so blessed by our journey over the years. Charles brings the calm and I bring the crazy, hahaha! Cheers to finding each other and God giving us each other.  I just love our life together.

Happy Father's Day!

Father's Day is a great day honoring such great men in the world that have held the privileged title of being a Dad.

To my Daddy (AKA Papa):  I still struggle (sometimes daily) with not having him to call for every up and down moment in my life. What I do know is that we were the privileged ones that were able to call him Daddy (along with countless friends of ours that he adopted). He was the BEST Daddy to us and the memories go on forever. I may not get the surprise Starbucks cards in the mail "just because" anymore or the phone calls with him slurping his cappuccino blast...but what I do get is peace at times I need it, that perfect song "Everything's gonna be alright" and the ladybugs landing on me when I need it most. Happy Father's Day in Heaven Daddy. You are so loved and missed. 

To Charles: Happy Father's Day to the leader of our family! Thank you for always being there to wipe tears, read books, snuggle during movies, and teach us all new things. Without complaining, you just take care of things and watch over us. We love and honor you babe!

Cade: "My favorite thing is that he is a Christian and spends time with me. I mean I hope everyone has a dad like him."

Caelin: "My favorite thing about Daddy is sleeping on his chest. I also love to sit on his lap during movies...oh and when he tickles me."

To Dad (AKA Grampee): You continue to show us all what a great Father figure is like.  You answer our calls regardless of the time of day and never hesitate to come help.  You give us tough love when needed and countless hugs when we are sad.  We are so excited to honor you and the Father you are to us!

Happy Birthday Grampee!

Happiest of birthday wishes to our Grampee! Thanks for always being a phone call away, making us laugh, and loving us unconditionally.  We celebrated the evening with a family dinner and swimming.  Grampee's big gift was a John boat for Grapeland to fish on.  Lots of accessories also came with it, so he is ready to catch some fish now.  The Grandkids all loved being part of the surprise and waiting in the boat when he walked outside.  May this be the best year ever!