We packed up and headed to the beach for the first time as a family of four. We were excited to spend time with the Drapp family for the week but a little nervous about the drive with two little ones. We left at 4 AM Friday morning and drove about 7 1/2 hours to Montgomery, Alabama. We got a nice King suite (thank you Marriott points) right downtown. We thought this was a great place to stay because we could walk to restaurants and play in the rooftop pool before we were back on the road again. The boys loved the hotel and were so happy to be out of the car...
After everyone took a nap, we headed to dinner. We ate at a cute little sushi restaurant in The Alley, across from our hotel....
I thought our fortunes were pretty funny and oh so appropriate for each of us so I had to share...
Owen's fortune...
Brad's fortune...
My fortune... (haha!)
After dinner we played at the rooftop pool....
The next day we had about a 3 1/2 hour drive so we took our time and arrived in the afternoon. We stayed in a high rise condo in Gulf Shores, Brad and I had never been here before so we were excited to explore a new beach town. It was a great spot for a true beach vacation. Our condo was right on the beach and it had a great big pool and baby pool.
Owen took a little time to get used to the beach but he eventually enjoyed playing in the sand....
Grayson liked the sand too, but he didn't last long without getting a little fussy...
Grayson's favorite beach activity is napping on his mommy and daddy...
We did find out that the best time to play in the sand was in the evening when the sun was down and it wasn't so hot and bright...
Owen would not get near the ocean which was not surprising, however we thought Grayson might like it...
If you can't tell that is Brad's uncle Chuck and brother Brian trying to help with Grayson. These three men couldn't get the baby to cooperate...
The beach may not have been our thing but the pool was the highlight of our daily activities. The pool had a zero entry with splash pads and a water fall as well as a three inch swimming area which was great for a crawling baby to enjoy...
(Grayson learned to stand up on his own without holding on to anything while we were on vacation - my brave little boy)
Owen loved the pool and swam himself tired every single day...
We really enjoyed spending time with so much of our extended family for the week. Usually when we visit it is a quick weekend trip to Ohio and our time together is short and sweet. This week however, the kids really got to enjoy the Drapp family, spending some quality time with Mimi...
Eating breakfast on the patio with Mimi and Aunt Holly...
Swimming with Poppy...
Enjoying a shrimp and crab boil with Uncle Brian...
Swimming with Uncle Chuck, Nathan and Amber...
Loving on cousins Amber...
And Charissa...
One morning we went on a special excursion - to Our Lady of the Gulf Catholic Church to celebrate 35 years of marriage for these two...
What an inspiration they are! Thank you for sharing your special day with us!!
We really didn't venture out away from the condo much, however one night all
11 of us braved the witching hour and went to to dinner at Lulu's, it is Jimmy Buffett's sister's restaurant. It was very kid friendly and was a fun atmosphere for everyone. Here are some pictures from our evening out...
Another nice part of going on vacation with grandparents - Brad and I were able to go to dinner alone. We enjoyed a lengthy, relaxing dinner with no interruptions...
After a fun week, we decided to pack up and leave around 8:30 PM and drive through the night, but first we had to say goodbye to the beach one last time...
We put the boys in the car at bedtime in hopes that they would sleep through the entire 11 hour drive home. It didn't exactly go as planned but it was more enjoyable than driving during the day...
Now it is time to say goodbye to summer, get ready for Owen to go back to preschool and enjoy my favorite season of the year....FALL!!
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