Still in catch-up mode here; hopefully I'll get caught up someday soon!
The last week of March, we decided to head to the beach! We have been wanting to squeeze in one more beach trip before baby brother arrives since we don't know when we'll be able to go again, and spring break sounded like the perfect time. We hit the road bright and early one Saturday morning and I'll be honest, it was the most trying road-trip with Katie Wynn so far. She was not too keen on sitting in her car seat all day! We finally arrived in Florida around 3:00 in the afternoon and were all very ready to get out of the car.
Among the many, many things I forgot to pack (I literally fell asleep on the packing job) was my camera so any and all pictures from the trip are straight from our iPhones. Which means there aren't a ton (compared to last June!) and they aren't that great.
Our friends Sarah, Charlie, and Gus joined us at the beach. I guess since Charlie is the only teacher in the group that he was the only one technically on Spring Break, but the rest of us like to pretend we still get Spring Break too.
It's crazy how much these two little friends have grown since our last meet-up at the beach! Here they are hanging out in the bike trailer...on the left is the most recent picture and on the right is from last June. Can they please stop getting so big?? (Also, on the left is when we had just gotten to the outlet mall. Doesn't Gus's expression show a typical male's feelings about a day of shopping??)
Katie Wynn and I went for a short dip in the pool that afternoon. The water was freeeeeezing when we first arrived...thank goodness for a heated pool! We cranked up the heat and it was good to go by the next day.
And of course our matching swimsuits are intentional. :)
I think it was that first night that Charlie made gumbo for dinner and it was delicious! You really can't beat having guests over that cook dinner for you (twice!). :)
The name of the game for this vacation was definitely RELAX. We had a slow start to the next day, with everyone kinds doing their own thing. Katie Wynn and I hung out on the porch until her daddy finished working and could join us. She was in a great mood!
That afternoon we biked down to a cool little playground. Wish we had this in our backyard!
Gus was brave enough to climb up and slide down himself!
Just like last June, the swings were a big hit with our little people.
Here's another set of Then and Now pics. Isn't it crazy what a difference 9 months can make?? Sarah, our babies are getting too big!
KW is so big that she wanted to try the big kid swing. She may think she's ready but her mama is not!
Katie Wynn had zero interest in getting out of the bike trailer when we got back home. She played hide and seek in there for about thirty minutes by herself!
Even Gus couldn't convince her to come out!
Of course, she finally came out when she realized there was a pile of rocks she could play in.
Later that night, poor Gus got put into time out - probably for something that Katie Wynn did. She didn't like that he couldn't play anymore so she sat with him and kept him company.
When they were released from time out, they played a mean game of chase up and down this little pathway in the kitchen and living room. I know the pictures are blurry but they were so funny running after each other.
The next morning is when our Spring Break vacay really started to go south. Both kids had arrived with snotty noses so we'd already been wiping constantly, but on this particular morning, Katie Wynn woke up with crusty-sealed eyes. Yuck!
I had actually taken Katie Wynn to the doctor right before we left because I thought something might be brewing, but the doctor told us it was just a cold and there was no need for anything more than Mucinex. When she woke up with goopy eyes, we figured a trip to see a doctor was on the agenda for the day. On his third attempt, Matt found a walk-in urgent care clinic that would see her and, after a forever long wait, got the dreaded diagnosis of double ear infections. Not how I saw our vacation going! Thankfully he left with three prescriptions so we could get to work knocking them out.
It was a nice sunshiney day so as soon as they got home, we went to eat lunch at a restaurant where we could sit and play outside. The kids enjoyed running around in the grass!
Like typical spring breakers, these two did a LOT of drinking!
After lunch, Katie Wynn and I took a very quick dip in the pool while her daddy went to pick up her presecriptions. I had to do something to keep her awake because she was fading fast!
After everyone had napped, we decided to take a quick trip down to the beach. We couldn't travel all that way without actually laying eyes on it. Plus, Charlie had brought a kite and it was a perfectly windy day for it. As it turns out though, lots of wind on a sandy beach doesn't make for happy sick toddlers, and their daddies miiiight need to practice their kite flying skills before our next kite-flying attempt. It was a short trip that didn't necessarily leave a good impression on poor Katie Wynn. :(
We had contacted a local babysitting service so that we could go out for an adult-only dinner on our last night, but with KW's ear infections and Gus coming down with something too, we decided we better hang around the house. Sarah cooked us all some delicious spaghetti for dinner and then we were probably all in bed earlier than any other night of the trip.
Charlie had been getting sick over the course of our vacation and the next morning I woke up with the beginnings of a sinus infection. Gus took a trip to the doctor we'd seen the day before and got an antibiotic and steroid to help him feel better. With four of the six of us sick, we hit the road for home and called it quits on our vacation. I really hope we get a re-do soon where we can actually get out enjoy the beach and warm weather! Except next time, we'll have an additional kid in tow...