Tuesday, May 29, 2007
Memorial Day Beach Trip: Surf's Up!
Each year, for the past five Memorial Day weekends (at least, from what we can recollect), we head to Ft. Walton Beach, Florida, for some R&R. Surf, sun, sand. The water in this part of the Gulf of Mexico is so clear and blue, it's hard to resist... We meet our old friends Andy and Kathy Flanigan (old friend-wise, not age-wise :-) who live in Nashville, and catch-up with them. Good times.
Since we've started going, between the two families we've added three kiddos into the mix. Will Flanigan will be three years-old in October. Sophie Flanigan is eight months-old. Ava is now 14 months-old. Last year, Ava was able to enjoy :-) the ocean at two months-old (see end of post for last year's pictures).
This year, Ava didn't seem to enjoy the waves too much. (Last year she slept during the festivities on the beach). She was like a little koala hanging onto myself or Doug, while in the ocean. To her credit, the waves were pretty rough. We saw a few surfers riding some waves, which was pretty cool. There were red flags flying both days we hung-out at the beach. This year was the first year we actually went into the pool at Seacrest condos. We had a great view of the ocean from our condo, too (Room #611 :-)).
The view(s) from our balcony:
We ate at Ciao Bella's, an Italian place in Destin, went for ice cream at Bruster's (another tradition). Our venturing-out has become limited with the kiddos in-tow. Andy, Kathy, Doug and I all agree that next year's trip needs to be a little longer, as the kids' naptime / early bedtime make the trip a bit shorter.
We normally go to church at Fort Walton Church of Christ on Sunday morning. While there, all Veterans were asked to stand, to be recognized. Surprisingly, it seemed like at least 20+ men stood up. This kind of made me tear-up, knowing that they fought and sacrificed for our country. It made me miss my Grandfather Lawson, who fought in WWII, and would've been around their age, today, if he was still living. Thanks to these men (and women), we have our DAILY freedom, and a very cool holiday weekend, to boot. Thank you to all who have served our country (and their families) and continue to do so through example!!!! It is a great country in which we live and love.
Big brother Will gives Sophie a kiss...
During last year's trip to Ft Walton, Andy and Will were both sick. When we returned home from the beach last year, I then got sick. This time around, we were all able to remain healthy, happy and sunburn-free! Now that's a nice trip!
Note: These next two pictures are of Ava's beach experience last year. Amazing what a difference a year makes. She was such a peanut, at 8 1/2 lbs!
We hope you all had a nice, relaxing Memorial Day weekend!
With love,
Shelly
Link to Andy and Kathy's blog:
http://andyandkathy.blogspot.com/2007/05/surfin-safari-07.html
This is the link for the 2006 beach trip:
http://thecareyclan.blogspot.com/2006_05_01_archive.html
For posterity's sake, I also included any pictures I could find from the 2003 beach trip; Brent and Rachel Spears took these. I think 2003 was the second year we went???
Since we've started going, between the two families we've added three kiddos into the mix. Will Flanigan will be three years-old in October. Sophie Flanigan is eight months-old. Ava is now 14 months-old. Last year, Ava was able to enjoy :-) the ocean at two months-old (see end of post for last year's pictures).
This year, Ava didn't seem to enjoy the waves too much. (Last year she slept during the festivities on the beach). She was like a little koala hanging onto myself or Doug, while in the ocean. To her credit, the waves were pretty rough. We saw a few surfers riding some waves, which was pretty cool. There were red flags flying both days we hung-out at the beach. This year was the first year we actually went into the pool at Seacrest condos. We had a great view of the ocean from our condo, too (Room #611 :-)).
The view(s) from our balcony:
We ate at Ciao Bella's, an Italian place in Destin, went for ice cream at Bruster's (another tradition). Our venturing-out has become limited with the kiddos in-tow. Andy, Kathy, Doug and I all agree that next year's trip needs to be a little longer, as the kids' naptime / early bedtime make the trip a bit shorter.
We normally go to church at Fort Walton Church of Christ on Sunday morning. While there, all Veterans were asked to stand, to be recognized. Surprisingly, it seemed like at least 20+ men stood up. This kind of made me tear-up, knowing that they fought and sacrificed for our country. It made me miss my Grandfather Lawson, who fought in WWII, and would've been around their age, today, if he was still living. Thanks to these men (and women), we have our DAILY freedom, and a very cool holiday weekend, to boot. Thank you to all who have served our country (and their families) and continue to do so through example!!!! It is a great country in which we live and love.
Big brother Will gives Sophie a kiss...
During last year's trip to Ft Walton, Andy and Will were both sick. When we returned home from the beach last year, I then got sick. This time around, we were all able to remain healthy, happy and sunburn-free! Now that's a nice trip!
Note: These next two pictures are of Ava's beach experience last year. Amazing what a difference a year makes. She was such a peanut, at 8 1/2 lbs!
We hope you all had a nice, relaxing Memorial Day weekend!
With love,
Shelly
Link to Andy and Kathy's blog:
http://andyandkathy.blogspot.com/2007/05/surfin-safari-07.html
This is the link for the 2006 beach trip:
http://thecareyclan.blogspot.com/2006_05_01_archive.html
For posterity's sake, I also included any pictures I could find from the 2003 beach trip; Brent and Rachel Spears took these. I think 2003 was the second year we went???
Friday, May 25, 2007
Is This Seat Taken?
This is what happens when your daughter mistakes a freshly-watered flowerbox for a seat. :-)
Giving new meaning to the term "soiled britches"...
Running to meet Daddy (when he comes home from work), our daily routine :-)
Loving her Cheerios...
With gadgets in hand, she is the happiest girl
Have a great LONG weekend!
With love,
Shelly
Giving new meaning to the term "soiled britches"...
Running to meet Daddy (when he comes home from work), our daily routine :-)
Loving her Cheerios...
With gadgets in hand, she is the happiest girl
Have a great LONG weekend!
With love,
Shelly
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