MY BEACH BABE & BEACH BUM
We just got back from a beach trip and we are still on cloud 9! We had the best time and it was truly a much needed break from this weird Covid life we have been living. Just wanted to share the pictures from our trip! We bought a travel trailer camper that can be towed behind my SUV less than a week prior to leaving, but we really just needed this trip, so we prayed things would go well and that nothing crazy would happen with the camper and the camping experience. It ended up being the perfect week, of course, with a few little bumps, but that's to be expected staying in a camper with two kids!
Day 1:
All hooked up and ready to go! We did the 5.5 hour drive in about 8 hours, which was honestly about what we expected. My car only gets about 9 miles per gallon with the camper behind it, so we had to stop often for gas, which meant more stops where the kids wanted to potty or get snacks!
We even got talked into these ring pop lips, and of course, Hadley got a mermaid one and kept it in her mouth like a pacifier for HOURS, so I guess we'd call that a win. As soon as we got parked, the kids and I got suited up and walked down to the beach area of our campground while Dave ran to the grocery store to grab some essentials!
Day 2:
We ended up needing a few things for the camper the first morning we were there, so Dave ran a few errands and I took the kids to the pool. It was empty for the first 2 hours we were there and it was glorious. The kids hopped in and out of the pool and I was able to actually enjoy my time just floating around a bit.
Once Dave was able to join us, the kids had gotten tired of the pool, so we dried off, ate lunch, and then took a break from swimming to grab snow cones from a local place called Tommy's!
Weston's face in the first picture says it all! It was the perfect midday treat.
We got back to the camper and got all geared up to walk down to the beach area at the campground again. This wasn't located on the beach, but had sand and was on the Sound, which was just an inlet of the ocean without all the waves. It was super fun, but a bit dangerous. Hadley and Dave got pinched by crabs, so those wounds stopped us in our tracks and sent us back to the camper for the night, but it was totally worth it because we got to spend almost 2 hours by ourselves on this little beach.
Day 3:
We were most excited for the beginning of Day 3 because we were going to see our friends! We got lucky enough to be just a short 25 minute ride from some of our best friends here in Huntsville. The kids hadn't seen each other since February, and we even planned out these adorable matching outfits. We got these swimsuits back in January so that our kids could match this summer at the splash pad, but Covid had other plans, so we never got to match. I knew we had to do matching suits at the beach but also wanted to some t-shirts. So, I got the shirts at Target and then made these on my Cricut for about $5 each. The matching outfits turned out so cute, so glad we pulled it off and the kids smiled for us!
After the forced photoshoot, we went down to the beach and had the best few hours playing in the sand and just enjoying time with friends. We didn't want to leave to go home for dinner, but knew we needed to get back to the camper and do some laundry. So we headed back to the campground and both kids passed out as soon as we left the condo!
Day 4:
We were ready to go back to the beach today, so we packed up and drove to the public beach nearby on the Gulf and had a fun morning. A storm started to roll in and as the waves got bigger, we all unfortunately got stung by jellyfish, so we packed up soon after those stings and headed back to the camper. They actually weren't that bad, but we didn't quite understand just how bad Hadley was feeling and wanted to give her the benefit of the doubt, but soon realized as we got back to the car that she was going to be just fine. The stings actually only itched, there wasn't much pain associated with them, so I'll take those stings over a painful one any day!
Picked up some pool floats and had little fun in the pool after our busy beach morning! I tried not to take my camera everywhere we went, but our camper was so close to the pool that I had to grab it to snap some of Dave in this heart shaped float. We now have a shark float too, but didn't snap a photo of it. I actually am hoping to be able to purchase a GoPro at some point to be able to better document our time together away from home as a family. Now that we have the camper, I really want to make sure that these memories are well documented for us to look back on one day! Until then, I'll continue standing in ridiculous positions to get the perfect shot with my camera that can't get wet. haha! We actually ordered in take out and then got ready for FAMILY PHOTOS after this busy day too. Can't wait to have those photos back!
Day 5:
We had an easy morning but managed to make it back over to our friends Condo for the second half of our day! Dave actually went to play disc golf while us mamas and the kids went down to the beach for a few hours. Once the kids expired, we went up, got changed, and hung out! They even cooked us an amazing seafood boil dinner! We felt so loved and truly blessed that we got to spend time with them!
Day 6:
Waking up after several beach and pool days, we decided to take it a bit easier and went to the Gulfarium. We were super hesitant going out to places like this, but wanted to give it a try. It went well, we were anxious in general because certain groups of people weren't wearing masks, so we would just turn away from them and get to a place where we felt more comfortable. It's a pretty open aquarium atmosphere, so we were able to socially distance and there was hand sanitizer available every few feet. So glad we did this outing because the kids loved it. Their favorite part was being able to hold the starfish! Our kids love wearing their masks and washing their hands because we have explained the importance of doing so and repetition works wonders on children. We did a the pool after this outing and then took it chill the rest of the day.
Day 7:
We were ready for another adventure, so we drove the 40 minutes to get to Destin and went to The Track! The kids had a blast on all of the rides and we were once again pleasantly surprised with all of the sanitizing measures that were being taken. In between letting riders on, they were actually cleaning things, so I felt less anxious than I expected to, which was a plus. We were hot, but it was a blast and totally worth the drive.
Naps happened often, but it took the entire week to finally accomplish a camper nap! Most of the days they would just nap in the car to and from driving places, but after the day at the track and a big lunch, Weston was exhausted.
Day 8:
We were able to sleep in a bit and then got the car all packed and hit the road. The drive back was faster than the way there, so it was a win. We couldn't wait to get back home and snuggle our pets though! We are officially quarantining now since we did quite a bit more than our usual daily interactions.
xoxo,
