Best Vacation Ever

We just got back from the best vacation!  

Here's how to have the best beach vacation ever!

#1-Travel with the best vacation friends EVER!

We have been literally around the world with the McCords and there is no one else I would have wanted to have all this fun with.  It helps a ton that Adelaide and Avery are both 3 and think each other are the greatest things since grits.  Little brothers won't be out done at the ripe old age of one, so Hank and Graham were fast friends as well.  I loved their hugs that always ended in them falling down!

#2-Choose a great location!  

The beaches were gorgeous, the towns picturesque, the water just right!  I am so glad we got to experience Seacrest, Rosemary Beach and Seaside for our adventures.  We stayed in Seacrest and played in Rosemary and Seaside.  

#3 Have a beach vacation destination that offers other fun, too!

I loved riding our bikes (this is Michael lugging the boys) to see the sites.  We used them to get dessert most nights and even a fun lunch one day!  While we had so much fun at the beach it was really great to have other options, too.  It is a lot for little ones to be at the beach all day, and for dads and moms to man them and haul all their stuff to and from the beach multiple times a day.  So having other options for fun made our trip even more enjoyable!

#4 Do your research! 

Evan and Annalee (not Ben and Suzie) did so much to help us have an amazing trip by talking to their friends that had been in the area!  My friend, Emme also gave me the scoop after her family went.  It was great to have a loose plan before we got there to maximize our fun!  Have I mentioned we have the best travel friends, ever???




#5 Have punkin kids who are easy to please!

 From the condo

 to a grassy field near the Sugar Shack

 to the beach, these little ones were happy and easy to please (for the most part.)  I was so thankful so many times for flexible, adaptable kids who made it so much fun for us to see the sites through their eyes!

#6 Don't leave home without your nebulizer or sunscreen.  

While our visit to the allergist this spring has kept Hanky's allergies much better controlled he of course started getting sick and wheezing as we were leaving town.  Thank goodness for modern medicine, and fun friends to keep a kiddo entertained for his treatment!  
I am also proud to say that one of the world's pastiest little boys spent 4 days in Florida at the beach and did not get a sunburn, yay for rash gaurds and sunscreen.  
#7 Have an attorney to create "the policy" for us!

There is always an unspoken policy among us that we just do what works for our families and don't stress about it.  I think this is the only way to travel with friends, that way you can do what you need to and know everyone is okay with it.  For example, one of the mornings Avery chose to wake up Hank at 6:45, NOT cool, so by the time we were headed to the beach he was a falling down mess.  So, the McCords and Michael & Avery went on to the beach and Hank and I stayed home for a nap.  
This year Evan drafted an addendum to the unspoken policy that we will not apologize for ratty kids or adults over and over.  We all know 3 and 1 year olds have their moments, as do 31 year olds.  It was so great to just enjoy the trip, although we all did forget and apologize a few times.  But, it always broke the ice to say oh no we have the policy, don't even go there!

#8 Leave bright and early, or make that dark and early for a crazy long car ride.  

We all made sure to pack up our cars the night before we left Texas and Florida so that we could leave at or before 5am.  While this wasn't so great when the kiddos didn't immediately go back to sleep like we had planned, it was SO great when we were to Florida by mid afternoon.  


#9 Take a little boy with boogie board dreams to the beach!

#10 And be sure and take one that thinks sand and snacks are super fun!

 
Can you tell we had fun?  I could go on & on!