Trip to New Smyrna Beach 2013

After a nine hour drive, we arrived home last Saturday from a week at the beach with David's mom's side of the family.  It was a really, really nice trip.  Maybe it was because it didn't rain the whole time OR there were a million less bugs and subsequent bites OR I wasn't busy working on stuff for Audrey's birthday party OR I wasn't constantly worried about selling the house (and dealing with our first offer while down there) OR the fact that I didn't have a teeny three month old, but aside from the gorgeous wedding last year's trip held, I thoroughly enjoyed this year's trip much more.  For some reason. :)

The kids both did really well on the drives.  It helped that David's parents took shifts driving one of them in their car most of the way there and back.  Luke still isn't really into DVDs and obviously can't play a lot of games or do crafts like AJ, so he was a bit harder to entertain.  He burned through most of my carefully-planned activity box in approximately 90 minutes.  Still, with that, two short naps, and two stops, we made it.  The condo we had this year was very nice and right next door to where everyone else was staying.

Most of the week was a blur of pool, beach, sunscreen, and food.  Here are a few specific highlights I do remember:

 - Luke did NOT sleep well the first night.  I think he woke up terrified and it was the first time I can remember not being able to get him calmed down right away.  I finally had to clench him really tight, rock him fast, and sing in his ear before he began to relax.  Poor guy was just so confused and scared.  The rest of that night was really tough, but it got better as the week wore on.  I think I got more sleep last year when he was three months old!

 - I got in three beach runs this year, one of them a full 10K!  I have always wanted to be able to run to "the rocks" (6 miles round trip) and after years of vacationing there, we did it.  David and I were able to hold a conversation since it was so flat, which made it go by much faster.  It was gorgeous to see the sun come up over the ocean.

 - David and I squeezed in a date night one evening.  We walked around the little shops on Flagler Avenue, ate dinner at a local spot down there, drove over to our favorite dessert place and shared a huge sundae, rode around looking at massive beach houses, and then took a walk on the beach.  It was a great break and nice to have a change of scenery.

 - While we were on our date night, Audrey got to have a pizza party with everyone and open up a birthday present from her Aunt Barbara, Uncle Don, and cousins James and Kimberly.  She thoroughly enjoyed "partying" while Mommy and Daddy were away!

 - We also had a Mommy-Daddy-Daughter Date with AJ and took her to DQ for a hot dog and her first ice cream in a cone.  She was in heaven!  David joked that we were starting her out in the big leagues for it to be her first cone - leaning how to navigate eating that in sunny, hot Florida is a steep learning curve!

 - We loved staying up and playing Phase 10 with his parents.  Of course, we can't hang like we could in the old pre-kid days and only did odd or even phases so we could get to bed earlier. :)

 - There were approximately 1,000 stories told by Grandmom and Aunt Pat during the week.  Audrey much prefers them to reading books and I appreciated their creativity and patience!

 - We ate and ate and ate and it was goooood.  Grandma made flitters, eggs, and bacon multiple mornings for us and it's always worth the year's wait to scarf down those.  I threw all diet plans and healthy eating habits out the window for the week and it was a nice break.  The four pounds I gained, however, proved it did not go unnoticed by my waistline, but hey, it was vacation.

 - We let Audrey stay up and go on a crab hunt one night after dark.  We donned glow stick bracelets and watched a few fireworks on the beach before running after the tiny, FAST little boogers.  David's cousins James and Kimberly and his Uncle Don helped us spot them and James did a great job capturing them.  Audrey had a blast collecting TEN and then we let them go.  It was a sweet memory that I'm betting will become a tradition.

 - Audrey and Luke both loved playing in the sand this year, which makes going to the beach much more enjoyable!  They built countless sand castles and buried just about every shell we found in a "shell garden."

 - We got to stop by and visit my Great Uncle Ben and Great Aunt Bonnie for a little while.  It was really nice to see them and meet my third(?) cousin Randy.  They are the only living connection I have to my dad's side of the family and it was important for me to introduce Luke to them, hear their voices, and be a tiny part of their lives for an afternoon.

 - Audrey was much more brave about the ocean this year and loved jumping waves.  David and I took her out pretty far while holding her and she was less excited about that, but it's still a huge step from last year.

 - AJ also loved the pool and swam like a fearless fish at least 45 minutes to an hour every day.  Luke pretty much just tolerated it.  

 - David got in two rounds of golf with his Uncle and Pawpaw at a course he really enjoyed.  It means a lot to him to get to play with them, so I know he was thrilled.

 - I got in some blogging, updated Picasa albums, took two naps, and read an entire book.  Even with kids, it felt like a real vacation!  That makes one happy Momma!

We had a wonderful trip full of great memories.  I am so, so blessed to have in-laws that I truly enjoy spending a week with!  I appreciate all of them loving on us and our kids.  I am definitely detoxing from all of their help this week.  Only 50ish more weeks to go, right?!

Pics are up in the gallery.  Click this link:
https://picasaweb.google.com/112482511844513189984/TripToNewSmyrnaBeach2013?authuser=0&authkey=Gv1sRgCNj08fz3xqa5-QE&feat=directlink

Also, 4th of July/Peachtree Road Race pictures are up and can be viewed here:  https://picasaweb.google.com/112482511844513189984/4thOfJulyPeachtreeRoadRace?authuser=0&authkey=Gv1sRgCPyLg63iksCTcw&feat=directlink