Beach Vacation 2014

We are a bit behind blogging, so hopefully we'll get a few things posted this week to get caught up.

We didn't think we were going to be able to take a beach vacation this year with a bunch of new farm expenses and other things. But at the last minute things worked out for us to go. We've found that if you go the week before Memorial Day the prices for lodging are still reasonable, the water is already warm, and school is still in session so it isn't too crowded. We went back to Navarre Beach, Florida this year and stayed in the same complex that we did last year. We really like Navarre. It isn't touristy and crowded but has great beaches. We often had the pool to ourselves and very few people on the beach. We also like going down to the National Seashore which is just down the road and we had the beach to ourselves there as well. Like last year, our girls did great in the car and even better this year. They looked out the window, played with toys, read books, and colored. There were some tantrums, but overall they did great. We went totally expecting to use the DVD player, but we never needed to.

Playing in the sand at the National Seashore

Playing in the waves

Everyone enjoyed walks down the beach

A beach vacation is so great with little kids. Esther and Clara were happy to play in the sand for long periods of time. Esther loved the ocean and would take off into it if we would let her. We would take her out and let the waves hit her. We spent more time in the pool this year than last. Clara wasn't such a big fan of the waves, but loved the pool. Esther loved the ocean, but was more timid in the pool. They both would wear their floatie rings and float all around the pool. Josh's beach activity is hunting for shells. Last year we found lots of really great shells, but for some reason this year there were hardly any.

One day we went to Pensacola and went to the National Naval Aviation Museum. There were lots of neat planes and other exhibits. They had several planes that you could climb in, which the girls loved.

At the National Naval Aviation Museum

Playing in the sand at the condo, Josh relaxing.

Clara didn't mind the waves if she was sitting down and close to me.

Our attempt at a family picture. For some reason Clara didn't want to be in the picture.

It is fun to look back at last year's vacation and see how much the girls have grown. Taking trips with the girls as they get older gets more and more fun with them able to do more. We are excited to take many more vacations as a family.

A view from our condo.