BEACHIN' WITH BABES
If you're in the market for some quality time with your babies, and by quality time, I mean: hands on, in the sand, on the pool noodles, stare in their faces and watch their joy, from splish splash to splish splash kind of time, then here's a little recap of our vacay and what I recommend. Because we all know beachin' with babes is so easy said no mother ever.
LOCATION
It's summer, so naturally everyone says beach vacation. Well, that sounds lovely, but it also requires the patience of Mother Teresa. So choose wisely. If you have littles like I do, the closest proximity to beach and pool (pool with gates) is paramount. Lugging 3 kids, all their toys, their swim vests, the sunscreen, the snacks, the diapers, the wipes, the chairs or umbrella, and hats, it's basically like walking onto a construction site. In the past (with one child or none) we've stayed in a beach cottage with easy walking to the beach and the village/town. For couples, the nearest bar with a view is a nice touch obviously, but a short walk to the ice cream shop with kiddos is A +. This year we needed all the above and perhaps a lazy river pool because can you say fun? So we chose to go off of 30 A (santa rosa, florida) and venture to Destin at the new Henderson Resort. Far and wide, location wise and facility, this was a game changer for families with littles. Lazy river, walk up beach pool, steps from our condo and cocktail waiters a plenty. Highly recommend.
SUN PROTECTION
My kids have Hawaiian blood so they can get color on their skin pretty easily. Sunscreen is a must, especially a little roll on like this, but a rash guard for kids is a no brainer. After day 1 and literally being a shade darker, I made my daughter wear a rash guard the rest of trip. Here's another cute one and here's one for the boys. Honestly, it really doesn't matter what it looks like, but you need rash guards period. I'm starting to plan (shop) for Hawaii next year because the thing is once they burn, the vacation really starts to suck. And nobody wants vacay to suck.
FAMILY SHARE
Whether it's by accident or planned that the in-laws or the sister comes on vacation, may it be more crowded or not, the family shared experience is one I wouldn't change for anything. Sure I like to go on vacay with just our little crew, but watching my parents watch my kiddos with such love, adoration and sheer joy while they discover the ocean, the salty breeze and the sunshine state, is a win win. Also, God willing, we as our little crew, will have many more summer vacations together, but the ones with our parents are slowly getting numbered. Sniff.
| nars lipstick | pink ray ban sunnies (not pictured but in IG stories) | black free people blouse sale! | denim cutoffs | flip flops (not pictured) |
PATIENCE
We learned quite a bit on day 1 of this trip. We found that the beach first thing in the morning before it's miserably hot is the only way. Then pool, lunch and nap. NAP IS EVERYTHING. It's always everything. But on vacation, here's why: Because having kids at the beach tests your patience. Like 3 times over. It's crazy. You're not only running after your kids, you're changing poopy sandy diapers in the sand. It's dumb. It's ridiculously exhausting. It makes your head spin. But the moment you sit back for one second and watch those babies play with the sand and fill up their castle moat with water, and they laugh with innocent wonder, the sweat falls from your forehead onto your lap and you realize why this moment is so important. Also, side note: patience with not only your kiddos but with yourself is one of my biggest lessons this week. I didn't have one tension headache this week. Not one. (This is huge for me.) I relaxed when I could, and when you can settle into that vacation mode, your body and mind will thank you. It sounds impossible, but I promise miracles happen. Also strawberry daiquiries before babies nap time do not suck.
MEMORIES
Because one day, you'll be riding in an uber with your parents to a U2 concert and your mom will say "if we downsize, what do you want out of our house?" and you'll say, "all the photo albums mom." And you'll realize that the last 7 days that you were on the beach taking video and photos of your children and your parents and husband, is all part of the memory card. It's what they did. It's the summer of 2018. It's their memories. It's yours too. It's the part of life that one day you'll look back and go "we did that." And you'll be so thankful.
I'm thankful. I know it can be hard. And I know it can be beautiful. But overall, when you see the joy, to me, that's magic. That's the stuff I prayed about when I was little. It's the stuff I prayed about when I was an adult. And when it's right in front of you and you witness it in real time, you thank God for all of it. The good, the bad, and the beautiful. Happy summer y'all!!! K, bye.
| cutoffs | white tank |
