Down By the Bay

Consider this fair warning - this will be a long one!

A few weeks ago we drove right into the middle of Tropical Storm Debby to spend a week at the beach.  Steve had a few clients to entertain, so my Mom invited us to come along.  J got a deep sea fishing trip out of the deal, we got to spend some uninterrupted quality time with my family (which doesn't happen much, unfortunately), and the kids got to swim their little hearts out.  It was a win/win all the way around! 

As we set out, the skies got darker and darker the further south we went.  We almost second guessed ourselves, but decided to keep on trucking.  We lunched at Tacky Jack's when we got into Orange Beach which allowed us the chance to see just how big the waves were from their upper deck.  Of course, J immediately wanted to get in the middle of it...double red flags and all.  Typical!  It sprinkled all afternoon, but that didn't stop the kids from hitting the pool, slide and lazy river.  Oh, to be a kid again!  I tried to join them, really I did.  I've come to the conclusion that I just can't get in that cold water if the sun isn't shining!  We'd almost convinced ourselves that it would be that way the rest of the week, but Monday morning we woke up to blue skies and were ever so thankful...

Our days were filled to the brim with pool time.  We hardly removed ourselves from the sun.  Isn't that how it should be, though?
We usually had breakfast outdoors in swimsuits which I could definitely get used to...

Some days we may or may not have even brushed our hair before heading downstairs...

Some things you just don't fight, especially on vacation!
Anna Grace was so sweet to play with Cate most of the time...
The floaties had been retired until this trip.  She was convinced she needed them since it was a new place that she wasn't familiar with.
Max was constantly at Towns' beck and call...
She didn't want to kick herself around the pool in her float.  She wanted him to do it for her!  He is the sweetest little thing.  She had it made, that's for sure.  Speaking of having it made...And...
It's a rough life, but somebody's gotta do it!
There were lots of handstand contests while we were there...

If we went down the slide once, we went down five hundred times...

The most fun was at night when there was no guard on duty at the slide.  J was the ring leader and had every kid at the resort trying things their parents would definitely not have approved of.  One night Cate had had enough and J told them all he had to go...to which they all replied, "nooooooooooo" and he promised he be back the next night.  He is something else.  And lots of fun!!
Cate and Max sort of thought so anyway!
Buggy changed swimsuits almost hourly, and this one was from one of our trip upstairs to change...

She knows she's sassy.  Goodness.
She enjoyed the big attractions, but the most fun she had was playing with other kids' toys in the baby pool...

I'd honestly discounted the fact that she was still young enough to enjoy that.  I didn't pack the first pool toy because I just knew she'd be all about hanging with the big kids.  Not so much.  She and I parked it in that spot a lot, and she had a ball!
This little mermaid was her favorite toy to swipe...

She'll be 5 soon and has put that on her birthday list already!
Towns was kind enough to grace us with her presence when she took a break from being a fish...

I think the child probably swam a couple of miles while we were there!

Late afternoon was prime time for finding fun little salt water creatures by the bay.  Pappy bought the girls nets, and they were armed and dangerous...


Hmmm, they can be nice to one another after all...

Kidding!  Sort of.
They met a friend who showed them the ins and outs of catching crabs...

And of course, J was all about showing them how it's done...

Towns was successful...

All Cate wanted to do was catch lizards...

The thing about catching lizards is that you have to be quiet and move slowly.  Neither of which Buggy is capable of!  So she settled for finding tiny little snails...

Love this one...

I wanted to take that cute owl top off my sister and make it my own!
They very much enjoyed being down by the water and seeing just what they could find.  After dinner every night when it was finally dark, they'd all go fishing on the docks.  That might have been their favorite part of the trip.  Steve brought all his fishing gear and they had a blast!

Since we were staying on the bay, J wanted to take the kids to the beach at least once.  Early one morning we sunscreened up and hit the ocean...

Towns stood there forever trying to decide if she should or if she shouldn't...

She did!
They both did...
We made a stop for boogie boards on our way because the thrill seeker wanted to teach the girls how to ride waves.  Buggy went first...
She was hanging onto her daddy for dear life.  A thrill seeker she is not.  She gave it a shot and quickly marched back to shore (in true Cate fashion) telling me that she was done with it because the waves "pounded" her.  Towns was excited to try it out and did great her first time, so she went back for more...

It was going good...
Until the wave sort of swallowed her up...
She came back saying the ocean was "not her thing"...

So they resorted to finding seashells for a few minutes before they decided to retreat to the safety of Phoenix on the Bay...

They usually love being on the beach, but it was a little rough even for me. Can't say that I blame them for wanting to stick to the pool!

Late one afternoon I tackled the dreaded "beach pictures" which weren't even on the beach because I didn't have it in me to get them dressed and transport them there unwrinkled.  Towns' face tells you how they feel about these annual pictures...
Just keeping it real.  They were sweet and cooperated for as long as they possibly could.  If I would have been smart I would have cut off their neon orange wrists bands they had all over themselves...

 

They were dying to get their feet in the water, so off they went looking like twins...

 She couldn't resist a little dancing in the water, all the while trying her best to lose her balance so she could get soaking wet...

 

That was her ultimate goal!

 

On our last night there, my friend Darby and her fam took us to dinner by boat.  Morgan and Towns hit it off immediately, and we didn't dismiss the fact that they'll be Chi O pledge sisters at Auburn in just eleven short years...

Cate whispered in my ear that she really wanted John Martin to sit in her lap on the boat.  He didn't go for it, but sweet Paige (who is two years older than Buggy) was kind enough to play along...

The whole gang at the Sunset Grille...

 

 The cherry on top was the fabulous playground for the kids...

 

 

The adults were thankful for the playground, of course...

If you only knew what we went through to get that picture.  Each child gave it a shot and I believe Morgan was the one who took the prize.  It was dark by the time we got back to our condo, and that's when we discovered that precious John Martin had used a pen to turn himself into a cheetah.  Whiskers and all.  I could have taken him home with me.  Too funny!

I have only one picture of me with my babies from the whole trip which J happened to take the morning we left to go home...

 

That's a real winner, huh?

 

On our way out of town, we promised the girls we'd stop and let them ride the ferris wheel at The Wharf.  Towns was all big and bad saying she wasn't scared at all to be up that high.  She quickly changed her tune...

 

 

She popped her head up for a fake "I love the ferris wheel" picture...

 

Cate and her daddy loved it, but I'm afraid Towns takes after her Bebby and her mama!

Last one, I promise, because it makes me laugh...

 

Hey there Miss Cheeky, Cheeky!

If you made it to the end, bless your heart...