The day after the wedding, family vacation started. The plan was for the boys and I to go to the beach for a week with Dee Dee, Poppy, and GG for our now annual beach trip. Daddy had to go back to work but first he was able to take one day to spend with us before heading back to Texas.
On Sunday morning, Justin and I got up early and went to pick up the boys at the Riley cabin. We were anxious to get on the road so Justin could have some beach time, but too little exhausted ring bearers had other ideas. They slept until 9:30!
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| sleepy heads |
As soon as they woke up we hit the road for Gulf Shores. All the way down we debated where to go first. Justin had never been to Lulu's before so I insisted that we stop. I had a hard time convincing him to stop, and then a hard time convincing him to ever leave!
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| enjoying the sand and super heroes |
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| post wedding relaxation .. check!! |
Then on to our hotel. We stayed in Orange Beach last year and this year opted for The Beach Club at Fort Morgan. It's a little far removed from everything but has so many amenities for kiddos that you never have to leave really. As soon as we got checked in and our bags in the room, the boys were ready to head out.
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| The Beach Club - that's my little man down there |
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| Heading out with daddy |
Beckett wanted beach first, Eli wanted pool. Justin and I split up so B and I headed to the beach. Unfortunately it was sprinkling and raining on and off so we didn't last long. Daddy and Eli went the pool and found the inside pool. It quickly became their favorite pool. Later that night we relaxed while we waited on Poppy to arrive.
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| take out pizza from the restaurant on site |
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| Ipad time with daddy |
The morning came to soon and Justin was up early and headed home. Poppy and I spent the whole day with the boys while we waited on Dee Dee to arrive.
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| Packing up to head down |
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| Yeah! Beach time |
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| Eli found this board in the closet and it quickly became his favorite |
The week really began. The boys liked the beach on and off. They are definitely not pack it up and stay out all day guys. About an hour maybe a little more and they are ready for the pool. We had some great times on the beach though! Eli fell in love with riding the waves or "surfing" as he called it with Poppy. They "tolerated" the sand on and off. Sometimes played well but other times used the tried and true mommy method, a bucket of water always on hand for washing off the sand.
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| Day 2. Why are you taking so long?? |
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| Getting ready to "surf" |
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| Poppy Time!! |
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| Happy wave rider |
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| catching "fings" in my net |
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| GG under the umbrella with her ipod |
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| my sweet boys |
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| poppy and his buddies |
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| taking a break in the shade |
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| playing with poppy and dee dee |
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| snack break! |
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| searching for the missing batman - they found it! |
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| didn't like his feet dirty! |
We seriously swam in every pool and body of water The Beach Club had to offer. Outdoor, kiddie, indoor, hot tub, little pool, big pool. These kids could have swam for hours. And they even got in practice without their puddle jumpers. I loved my new underwater camera. I was so nervous to take it under but it worked great. We had so much fun and taking pictures and videos with it. And so nice not to worry about getting it wet.
The Beach Club had a schedule of fun activities the boys could do. A couple of nights they had movies by the pool with glow sticks and treats. Another night the boys made smores on the beach.
One of the boys favorite parts? The golf cart tram rides. This "bus" took you around parts of The Beach Club. One night we took it to the playground and dinner. Another day the boys and I took it to get ice cream.
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| waiting on a ride |
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| a little shopping while we waited at the ice cream place |
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| ice cream is even better on vacation!! |
We did leave to visit two favorite local spots while we were there. One afternoon the big pool and indoor pool were closed due to "accidents" so it was the perfect afternoon to head back to Lulu's so both Poppy and Dee Dee could get their Lulu fix. The wait was a little over 2 hours. We put our name in and then headed up the street to The Track for go carts, rides, and bumper boats. The boys had a blast and I even got some racing in.
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| GG and her friend Sage |
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| uh on. Watch out! |
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| conversation and waffles for lunch with Dee Dee |
After 5 wonderful, sandy, sunny, crazy, fun-filled, exhausting days we were headed back to Texas. Someone special was waiting for us at the airport.
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| airplane ipad time |
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| sticker book |
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| looking for daddy |
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| We found him!! |
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| Daddy we missed you SO MUCH!!! |
Traveling is awesome, the beach is great, but both boys woke up the next day and said "Mommy! I'm so glad we are home!" We are so grateful for the time at home. Wonderful family, special grandparents, and all the memories of this summer fun. When the boys got home, they worked hard on the annual vacation memory jars. I would love to show you the finished product but they just keep wanting to play with the Gulf Shores sand, treasure and pirates we brought home.
“I'm no longer a child and I still want to be, to live with the pirates. Because I want to live forever in wonder. The difference between me as a child and me as an adult is this and only this: when I was a child, I longed to travel into, to live in wonder. Now, I know, as much as I can know anything, that to travel into wonder is to be wonder. So it matters little whether I travel by plane, by rowboat, or by book. Or, by dream. I do not see, for there is no I to see. That is what the pirates know. There is only seeing and, in order to go to see, one must be a pirate.” - Kathy Acker
Love,
The Riley's
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