We ended September with our feet in the beautiful white sands of the Florida panhandle - all the McClanahans converged on Miramar Beach for our first family vacation in the new camper! Jeff & Tonya graciously hosted all the kids and cousins for a long weekend of salty waves, seashells, warm breezes, and sun-kissed shoulders.
 |
| She was so excited to have a puppy around the house for a night! |
Jeff & Tonya stopped at our house on their drive down, and then we left in the morning together. We were the Bandit to their Snowman, but decided to detour a bit in Montgomery so Mike could see the state capitol and the first Confederate White House. I was there way back in 2010, so now Mike can finally cross that one off his list!
 |
| Alabama State Capitol |
 |
| Chevy Sonic looking good! |
 |
| First Confederate White House - I WANT IT. |
 |
| Sleepy little road-tripper! |
 |
| Silly faces after we finally got out of the car! |
We arrived at the campground and while the boys set up camp, we walked 20-feet across the sand-covered drive to the beach. We could see the water from the windows of the camper - it was an amazing spot! Blair ran straight into the water and promptly ripped off her shirt. We let her splish around half-naked for a bit and then we all changed into our suits for a late-afternoon dip. The Gulf was so warm and there was plenty of shallow area for the girls to run around in.
I woke up early one morning and walked along the beach as the sun rose. It was peaceful and breezy, and the colors were beautiful. There was a thunder cloud off in the distance over the water that kept flashing lightning, but after several minutes of trying, I gave up attempting to catch one with my camera.
I took an actual billion photos of Blair, I couldn't get over how much older she looks compared to the last beach vacation we went on. She still fits in the same bathing suit, but this year she looks like a tiny surfer chick! I loved watching her sprint after seagulls and sandpipers, dig curiously through the sand for seashells, and squeal as sand crabs skittered away from her.
We spent most of our days playing in the sand and splashing in the water. Having the camper right next to the beach was perfect for toddlers - we didn't have to lug a day's worth of stuff to our spot, we just went back and forth for lunch and naps. Mike and Alex built a giant sandcastle and the girls had the time of their lives destroying it - C even belly-flopped right onto it!
We took a treasure hunting walk with Jeff & Tonya one evening as the sun was setting and a breeze blew in some crazy clouds. Blair found several interesting treasures and couldn't keep herself out of the water, so, once again, she tore off her dress and just roamed the beach in her unicorn underoos. I'm totally that parent - go ahead and live your best life, kid. Someday you'll get arrested for chasing seagulls topless on a family beach. (Just kidding, no Spring Break 'til you're 30)
I also got some amazing sunset photos one night - the intensity of the color was magical! Most of these are straight from my camera, no editing needed, that's how gorgeous of a night it was.
The coolest part, for me, is that Blair will remember this one - she'll talk about beach vacation in "Peepaw's Camper" and rattle off the names of everyone there. She will giggle when we talk about the sand castle and splashing in the waves, maybe not recalling the details, but the joy and warmth of spending time relaxing and bonding with the family. That's what it's all about - making memories that will outlast all of the sand in the floorboards of our cars.
0 comments:
Post a Comment