Last weekend we spent our first ever trip away with just our little family! We have always tagged along with others or had others tag along with us, and as fun as that is, it was really nice to just get away with just us. We went to the beach and stayed at the same place we always do because it is just such a wonderful, nice, family-friendly place that we can't bring ourselves to branch out and try another place! This was our fourth time here, and I think it just gets better each time!
We headed down on Thursday after lunch in hopes that the boys would nap on the way down. That worked for about 30 minutes because we were all so excited that resting in the car was just not going to happen! It was fine though. The boys were good, and we only had to stop once for Jake to eat and Cooper to go to the bathroom and get a snack. We got to our place around 5:45, and by the time we unpacked, we were starving! The thing Karl and I love the most about this place is that everything you need is on site, so there is no need to leave once you're there. They have people who can drive you around on golf carts if you don't want to walk too. I love it! Cooper passionately loves the beach. I cannot emphasize how much the kids loves being there, so when I say he was reeeeaaaaalllly excited to be there, just imagine the energy and excitement of a three year old at the highest possible level, and that was Cooper when we got there! Due to his over-the-top excitement, and the fact that we had been in a car for over five hours, we decided to just order one of the excellent pizzas and eat in our condo so we didn't have to worry about Cooper sitting still, being quiet, and using manners! He could eat and be excited, and we didn't care! After the pizza, we suited up and went to the dive-in movie. The pool was pretty cold because of all the rain they had in the days leading up to our trip, so we just lounged and watched the movie. There is something so fun about watching a movie at the pool!
The next day Cooper and I went exploring while Jake took his morning nap and Karl rested a little. This is kind of a Mommy-Cooper tradition, and is truly my favorite part of our beach trips. We walked in the sand, collected seashells, played in the surf (and got our clothes wet), checked the water temp in all the pools, put our feet in the hot tubs, found frogs, etc. I loved hearing his constant laugh and squeals as we chased each other in the sand and our quick pauses when we would find a good seashell for our collection! When we got back to the room and got Jake fed, we headed to the outlets for a little shopping. Even though the weather on Friday was pretty close to perfect, there were a few clouds here and there, and the temperature was lower than it would be the next two days. Since the weather the rest of our trip was supposed to be absolutely perfect, we decided this was the best time for us to get our shopping done! The boys napped on the way back to the condo, and then it was time for the beach! We stopped by the pool to eat lunch, and then we headed to the sand! Here is an overload of pictures to show our fun the rest of the day!
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| I love these pictures of Cooper getting his sunscreen on! |
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| This little boy could not get enough of the beach and was squealing and laughing and running with pure joy! |
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| I was nursing Jake in our little cabana, and all the sudden I heard others laughing and Karl say in a mortified voice, "What are you doing?!?!" I peeked out to find the first picture you see of my husband's back to me. I noticed Cooper was in the hole...and that his bathing suit was in Karl's hand! Apparently as Karl was digging a hole, Cooper decided he didn't like the feel of the sand in his bathing suit, so he just took it off. Right there on the beach. And Karl's first reaction was to just plunk him in the hole! Once he got him dressed again, he had a little talk about not taking off his bathing suit, despite not liking the sand in it. Then he turned around and gave me that "Can you believe our son just did that?! He must get that from you because he certainly doesn't get it from me!" (even though he does not get it from me!!!) look, and I was able to capture that on camera too! It was quite a moment! |
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| While Cooper was overjoyed to be in the sand, Jake was a little unsure of the whole beach thing. He did end up really liking playing with the sand and even sampled a little before I realized what was going on! After a very long feeding in the cabana (while Cooper went nude), he finally fell asleep for a little nap. It was killing me to be closed up in the cabana while the sun was out and everyone was playing, and then when I finally got Jake down, I came out and it was quickly clouding over! I was so sad! |
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| For whatever reason, the tide was bringing in a ton of starfish. When we would find ones that were alive, Karl would take them back out in hopes that they would survive, but we did keep a few that had died and were still in tact. In these pictures, the starfish are alive, and we got to feel them trying to move in our hands. It was interesting! |
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| Once we got cleaned up, we headed to the clubhouse for a delicious dinner. All Cooper had talked about that day was wanting shrimp, and he finally got his shrimp! He ate every single bite of it too! Once we were done, we rented Frozen because we hadn't seen it yet. It was really good too! I think I enjoyed it the most, but Cooper really liked it as well, especially that precious snowman! |
Since we didn't get a whole lot of beach time on Friday, we had to make up for it on Saturday! Once again, while Jake took his morning nap, Cooper and I headed down and set up the cabana and everything. We got some good play time in before Daddy and Jake joined us. The excitement of the previous two days, lack of good naps, and extra early morning rising was beginning to take its toll on Cooper, and he wasn't in the best or most cooperative mood this day, especially when it came to pictures. Karl got him a hotdog and that seemed to help his mood some! We played long and hard on the beach though and dug holes, played with our trucks, jumped in the surf, swam in the ocean, rode waves, and "relaxed" in the sun (is relaxing with children ever possible). Jake got to put his feet in the water, and we couldn't tell if he liked it our not. He would start kicking when the water hit him, but he didn't smile or fuss. He definitely liked being in the sand and sun and was perfectly content to watch his big brother and daddy do lots of playing!
We headed back to the room for the boys' naps, and there were about ten wonderful minutes when Karl and I got to sit outside our condo in chairs on the grass (we stay on the first floor because it's just so easy to go in and out with all our gear), talk, and have a drink before one of the kids woke up! Although it wasn't much, it was nice to have those few minutes as just us! Cooper napped really well, and once he was up, Karl took him to get his free ice cream and ride the golf cart while Jake and I started getting ready because I really, really, really wanted to get some good pictures on the beach. Well, I should have known this wouldn't go well. Even though Cooper napped well, he was still in his I'm three and gonna be a stinker mood. And, as any mama knows, it often seems that your children are determined to not do anything that you really, really, really want. Ugh. On the way to take pictures, Cooper even told me, "I not yike gettin' pictures because it's not fun for me." I could already feel my blood pressure rising! We started off good though. I love the pictures I got of the boys on bench (these are just a couple...there are probably a dozen more that I really like). Then as we made our way to the beach, I thought about how perfect the lighting was and how awesome these pictures could be. So of course when we got to the beach and I told Cooper where to sit, he had a meltdown over a little scratch he got. And the meltdown continued...and continued...and continued...
Amazingly enough, a lady came up to us and offered to take pictures of us all together and said she does photography on the side. Between the lighting and a photographer being there, this could have been fantastic...but the meltdown continued...and my blood pressure and temper were rising! I love the two pictures to the side where you can see me fussing, and I love in the two larger pictures how hard Karl is trying to not laugh. I threatened everything under the sun because I so greatly wanted a good family picture, and what better opportunity than this one, and yet, the meltdown continued...
So finally, I told Cooper he didn't get to be in the pictures anymore until he could dry it up and smile (great punishment for a kid who has already made it quite clear he doesn't even want to be in the pictures), and we got some sweet pictures with Jake. This wonderful lady probably took a hundred pictures of us. I was so thankful for her being there even though this was not going well!
Karl had a talk with Cooper because he is the good, kind, and patient parent that I wish I was. I'm so thankful our children have a daddy like him.
The sweet lady turned my camera back over to me, but then I decided I wanted some black and white pictures, but I couldn't ask her to take more, so I snapped quickly, and then Jake started having a meltdown, and Karl said no more.
Karl and Cooper had their fun jumping in the pool, hitting each other with the noodle, and swimming around.
We needed a little time away from the hustle and bustle and constant to-do list of home. We needed to breathe in the salty air and soak in the sun. I love this little family of mine with all my heart, and I love our time together. I love the adventurous heart and energy of our three year old boy, and I love the easy going, genuinely happy personality of our baby boy. I love the patience and thoughtfulness of Karl. It was a special little weekend getaway.
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