Cal and the slide...

Still having fun!

Made a stop at KidZone and Adrianne is going crazy on the inflatables. She has made a big group of friends already, and is running around playing cops and robbers. Cal is happy playing with the trains. He loves the huge slide, but moves too slow up the ladder. The older kids are making him mad because they mow him over to get to the top.

Spending the day together

We started with breakfast at the Big Biscuit and now we are headed into Burr Oaks Nature Center.

We made it home!

A bit of rain outside of St. Louis slowed us down, but we are now home. So begins the unpacking, and reintroduction to life far away from the beach...

Homeward Bound

We are in the final stretch of our trip home!  We are getting pretty close to Cape Girardeau.  I am so excited to see familiar people and things!  Both kids were up before 6:00 am so we were able to get on the road earlier than we thought. 

Sleepy Girl

We woke up today on Eastern time, left early and had a long day of  driving with no naps out of Adie.  Needless to say she's exhausted and fell asleep to the t.v. snuggled with daddy at 7:30.  We were hoping to get out of here early, I dont think we'll have a problem getting Adie up in time.  Cal is still going strong, so who knows when he'll crash!

Mess!

We stopped for gas and Jeff let cal get a ring pop....then came the mess!  He sure was a happy boy though!!

Hello Tennessee!

We have made it out of Georgia and into Chattanooga TN, only 3 1/2 hours to our resting spot: Paducah KY.  Hoping to dodge storms over Nashville.  Both kids are growing impatient.  They are great travelers nonetheless. 

Stopped for Lunch in Atlanta

Grabbing a bite just north of Atlanta. Cal is passed out and Adie is lost in her movies. We are making good time.

Headed home

Working our way through Georgia. 150 miles from Atlanta. Staying the nigjt in Paducah,KY.

Message in a bottle...

Adrianne left a bottle with a note in the Atlantic. Hopefully we get a note back some day...

First Couple of Days in Georgia

Dinner at Latitude 31 on the wharf, dancing in the Atlantic at low tide, and dodging a big storm!
We made it to Jekyll Island, GA this afternoon with Krista, Alex, Joey, and Jeremy. Wednesday was a "relax day" at Jason and Krista's house in Ray City, GA. The kids are all having a blast together, and it is great getting to spend time with everyone. We were even able to say "hey" to Jason via Skype.
Right now, the girls are playing cards and the boys are getting in trouble. The rain is hitting us hard, and more rain is in the forecast. Hopefully the rain will hold off long enough tomorrow for us to get our fun in!

Dinner at Jekyll Island

Joey smiles at Latitude 31, our dinner destination at Jekyll Island

Dinner at Jekyll Island

Alex and Adie waiting for their shrimp to arrive

Wildfires

Diving through the dense smoke from the swamp wildfires on the way to Jekyll Island.

Dinner @ Harry T's on the Harbor

Destin, FL Day 2

Resting after a day at the beach...

We headed to the beach first thing after breakfast today. It was another BEAUTIFUL day. Lots of sun, and Adrianne made another friend who also loves to "surf". Had lunch on the beach, big waves today, found a cool shell, and saw a jelly fish.

Back at the hotel taking a rest before dinner tonight. Cal is running around naked and pissed all over the floor. We are hoping he takes a nice long nap!

Around town and what not

After we got back to the hotel last night, I went to take some pictures of the balcony of our hotel room and the view from it.  That's right, I said there's a there's a balcony on our hotel room.  Jeff worked his diamond member magic and scored us an awesome room!  When I got the camera to take a picture, it wouldn't come on.  My novice diagnosis of the camera is that it got sand in the lens and its all gummed up now.  My heart sank.  I can't be here in paradise with no camera!  Lucky for us, there's a wally world right next door.  This morning, we headed over there to pick out a new one.  This time we opted for the water proof model.  Since we had to get out to pick a new camera, we decided to spend the morning checking out all the shops and things to do that don't involve the beach.  After lunch we couldn't take it any longer and headed over.  I must say that getting to the beach is a lot of work!  There's a lot of stuff to carry, and its a long walk!  Plus, walking in the sand is harder than normal ground.  Today we thought it would be a good idea to take the stroller with us in case we could get Callum to take a nap (HAH!  yeah right).  We put it down in the sand and were immediately shown that strollers and beaches are not a good combination.  We got all settled in and we all went right to playing.  Adrianne had a blast belly surfing on a wake board we brought with us.  She really got pretty good at it and was really proud of herself.  She also found a couple of girls from South Carolina to play with the entire time we were there.  Jeff spent a good amount of time snorkeling and saw a couple schools of fish as well as a "huge" fish not too far from him.  Callum fell in love with the waves crashing into him.  He would stand there almost get knocked down by the wave only to laugh hysterically and wait for the next one.  He also loved it when I would hold his hands and let him float through the waves.  I found some time to lay out on my towel in hopes to get a little bit of color on my skin as a souvenir from our trip.  Yesterday I didn't get anything so today I didn't think I needed to worry about the sunscreen.  I thought that I would get a little red, only to turn into a nice brown tan.  I was wrong.  I am definitely more than a little red.  I'm afraid of what tomorrow will bring.  I do know one thing...it will involve sunscreen.  Adrianne also got a sunburn even though I put sunscreen on her.  On her face, I used the sunscreen stick.  I apparently didn't do a very good job because her face is burnt with the exception of some  stripes running through it.  Poor girl.  I hope she's not in too much pain tomorrow.

For dinner we headed over to the restaurant next door to our hotel, Fudpuckers.  They had an area called "Gator Beach" with lots and lots of alligators crawling around.  Adrianne was dying to hold a fishing pole to try and feed one of them.  They didn't seem hungry, so we didn't want to waste the money on the food, but there was an abandoned fishing pole that she spotted.  We let her hold it and dangle the string around the gators and let her think she was feeding them.  She loved it.  That's all she wanted.

Adrianne and Callum are exhausted.  They both fell asleep in the car at about 6:00.  For Callum that was only an energy boost for the rest of the evening.  Adrianne hasn't been up since.  Here's to hoping she doesn't wake up at 3:00 am ready to go!

I.Love.It.

Catching the waves

Cal having fun in the sand

Model??

Our dinner destination-Fudpuckers

Adie getting her shot at feeding the gators

Now that's a whole lot of gators!  Yikes!

Jeff + Lindsey = love.

Callum and Adrianne waiting for dinner.  Cal is being his usual cooperative self

First Day on the Beach

After our long drive we wasted no time getting to the beach.  We were checked into the hotel about 15 minutes before we were on our way to the sandy shores.  When we made it over the hill and saw the beach really well for the first time, we were speechless.  It was so beautiful.  I had an overwhelming feeling of excitement knowing we had the next 4 days to spend here.  The first thing the kids (and Jeff) did was begin building sand castles.  Callum loved the sand.  He loves his sandbox at home, so the beach was like his sandbox on overload!  

We spent most of the time just trying to take it all in.  Not really knowing where to even start.  Of course, I started clicking pictures.  Trying to save every moment in time.  I didn't want to forget any part of it.  The look on Callum's face when he took a big handful of sand and tried a bite.  Seeing Adrianne covered in sand knowing how much she loved it.  How excited Callum got when an airplane flew over the ocean low enough for him to see it up close. The way Jeff was swimming and jumping in the ocean like a kid.  Then I tried to take a picture of the 4 of us in front of the water.  I started with the ole high school attempt of holding the camera out with my hand as far as I could while we all squeeze in really close to each other.  While that actually worked pretty well, a really nice girl who was probably feeling a small amount of pity came over and took another (better) shot.   

We didn't stay very long.  We were all exhausted! When we got back to the hotel we ordered pizza from a local pizza place and huddled on the bed over the pizza box in our pajamas.  It was perfect for the night.  That was until Callum disregarded my instructions not to touch something on the other side of the box and while reaching for said item fell short and dunked his hand in the cup of dipping sauce completely dumping it out and covering his hand in red sauce all at the same time.  Adrianne didn't want to feel left out so just about as soon as that was cleaned up she spilled her cup of red juice all over my leg.  I feel it was a nice ending to the day and shortly after everything was cleaned up and put away, we climbed into bed.  

Adrianne's all covered up!  

Look mom an airplane!

Long day!

After a long day at the beach, the kids are exhausted.   Jeff says shes sleeping "just like her momma" 

Fudpuckers

The kids enjoying dinner Monday night at Fudpuckers in Destin.

Long-haul Trucker in a Prius

Impatience has always been something Lindsey and I govern most decisions with, and our trip to Destin, FL was no exception. Instead of leaving early on Sunday morning, we rearranged the hotel schedule and left at 9:00 p.m. on Saturday. We hurriedly loaded the Prius, quickly filling every nook and cranny (including the hitch mounted basket I installed this year) and bid Independence,MO adieu!

So began the 16 + hour driving adventure. The 1000 miles from home to Destin didn't surprise us with much, outside of the hail storm we drove through near Cape Girardeau. An energy drink and a couple of trucker pills kept me focused and kept the wheels turning through the night. Lindsey gave an honest effort to stay awake, but the car was filled with nasally sounds of sleeping babies before midnight.

Skipping ahead 15 hours...


The salty smell of the ocean became increasingly poignant as we crossed into the pan handle of Florida. As we finally reached the Mid-Bay Bridge, which took us across the Choctawhatchee Bay, all of us realized that this was the motivation that convinced our family of four to journey across the south. This would be the closest to paradise we had yet to experience. There will be many experiences to come...

Counting The Suns and Moons

     As we wait in anticipation for the upcoming visits to Destin, FL and Jekyll Island, GA (with a meetup in Ray City, GA), both Lindsey and I are in a state of "Let's Get the Hell Out of Missouri!".

Why I'm Writing Typing
     In my attempt to relax the anxiety of waiting a week before my feet touch the white sands of the Emerald Coast, I decided to begin documenting these experiences for our future reference. While the kids don't quite yet understand the importance of these vacations, I know that one day the pictures and writings in this blog will bring to light what these trips meant for all of us. I find it incredibly important to raise our children in a setting which promotes both cultural and personal experiences. Our goal is to involve ourselves in as many of these experiences as possible.

Together
     I'm very grateful to have a companion and friend in this adventure who understands the importance of experiences, and has the patience to accommodate for it. The life story we are writing together will be full of the kinds of memories which garner a smile and a long stare.