Matt convinced me the kids were finally old enough to make the 13 hour drive to Florida. He kept telling me the drive would be worth it because the beaches were nicer. I found a medical conference at the SanDestin Resort in Destin, Florida at the end of June and we decided to go for it.
Matt was totally right! The kids did GREAT in the car and the beaches are just so beautiful. We had perfect weather and I really liked staying in a condo right on the beach. It is hard enough to get the little kids excited about going to the beach every day so having to get into a car or ride a bike to get there would have been hard on me. Instead, we just rode an elevator down from the 6th floor and walked across a boardwalk. Wonderful! Matt was so kind to haul a tent to put up every day which provided wonderful shade. I could have stayed down there for hours, but the kids could stand about 3 hours before they were beat and wanted to go to the pool.
Seeing Matt's family there was really fun too. I liked they stayed at the same condo place and were only one floor away. Rusty, Beth, Zach and Josh came as well as Bob and Ruth. Drew did not get to come since he was in a wedding. The cousins, Zach and Josh are so kind and wonderful with my kids. I wish they lived closer. I would love to see them more. The other Risingers stayed about 4 days and left to head home so that left a few days with just the Austin Risingers which was nice, too.
We tended to eat most of the meals in the condo. I planned ahead and brought my crock pot and went to the store the first night we were there. It turned out to be really fun. I really did not mind cooking and it just made the days and nights so much easier. We did go out for a lunch at 11 am one day that was really good. We got a great recommendation off Yelp. We beat the crowds for lunch which is key with our crew.
Matt, Alivia, Will, John and I all went bay fishing one day. We had to meet our guide at 6 am and had Bob come to our condo to hang out with Matthew until we got back. I liked our guide better than the one we had at Padre, but it was really hot and we did not catch that many fish so I'm not sure I would rush to fish again. Plus, it was pricey!
All in all, it was just a great trip. Lots of family bonding and laughs. Some good time with the Baltimore Risingers and Nana and Pop-Pop. Our kids are getting so fun to travel with so I am already dreaming of the places we might go next summer. We are toying with returning to a Florida beach or maybe going to the mountains. It may depend on what time of the year it is and whether there is a medical conference in any of the locations that can help curb some of the costs.
On the way home we decided to return all in one day but did not get away until 9:45 am. It was rough returning home at 11 pm. The kids were beyond exhausted. I think I would recommended stopping halfway like we did on the way there. Stopping in Slidell, LA was actually fun and the kids slept really well in the hotel. The key was getting a SUITE room with a little more space. We had blow up mattresses for all the kids as well.
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| View from our condo porch - so pretty |
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| As we were leaving to head to Destin! First pic of the vacation. |
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| We made it past Houston before stopping. I was amazed. Note to self - Whataburger is not that good. |
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| Spent the night in Slidell, LA. Great hotel and great time to stop. |
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| The kids still really love sleeping in a hotel since it feels like a big adventure. They did really well. |
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| John and Matthew can sleep well in the car - Alivia and Will never nap. |
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| First pic upon arrival! The kids wondered if the sand was SNOW. |
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| Beautiful Destin, Florida. |
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| Matthew really stayed very close to us - he ventured to the water only up to his feet which was fine with me! |
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| John, Alivia and Will really loved boogie boarding and John found this surf thing that did not work that well |
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| My little poser. . .so cute |
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| The condo pool was so nice and a way to take a break from the beach |
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| Matthew really liked Rusty and spent a ton of time with him. Rusty (like Matt) is so kind and patient. |
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| Josh with the kids. He is such a great kid and so good with our kids. My kids loved him. Zach, too but I did not seem to get a pic of him! |
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| Bob ventured into the pool a bit - but Ruth stayed indoors quite a lot. |
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| The Risinger boys - plus Alivia! Still no Zach in this pic. :-( |
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| Double rainbow after one of the daily brief thunderstorms. |
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| Dippin' Dots is something my kids absolutely love. I have no idea why. I think it is so weird! |
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| Still no Zach in this pic! |
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| We went bay fishing one morning for several hours |
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| It was fun but really HOT. |
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| We caught a few things but nothing really mentioning - kinda disappointing. |
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| We went to the Donut Hole for brunch after fishing - it was SO GOOD! |
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| Back to the beach! |
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| Matthew made a friend with the cutest little girl named Anna Klein. We would always look for her and he played with her several afternoons. |
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| The whole clan (minus me!) Finally a picture of Zach! Third from the left |
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