Orange Beach 2.0

For summer vacation we decided to go to Orange Beach again this year.  We had such an amazing time last year, we decided we needed a Round 2!

All loaded up and ready to go!!

We rented the same condo as last year.  Fourth floor, with an amazing balcony overlooking the pool out onto the beach.

The view from our balcony.  If we weren't down at the water, we were out here watching it.  Great views of dolphins playing each morning.

We had an amazing week together as a family....very minimal technology...lots of togetherness.



Had to get our toes in the water immediately upon arrival!

We spent every morning down at the beach, and then we would retreat to the shaded pool in the afternoon/evening when we had had enough sun.  We all LOVE the beach...the sound of the ocean, the sand in our toes (except for R, he's totally NOT a fan of the sand), the sun on our face.  The beach is definitely our happy place.  And after a long, stressful couple of months this summer, we all needed the break!


Lots of these guys around this year.  We didn't see a single jellyfish our entire stay last year, but this time there were TONS of them.
 

Little R had an unfortunate incident with a jellyfish on the second day. Took him a while to get over it, but the next day he was right back out in the water!

The shady pool!




Smiles all around!!

 

More smiles!



What happens when your sister is a cheerleader?  You are forced to do stunts in the pool! : ) 

There were so many jellyfish, people were scooping them up and throwing them on the beach in piles!

A little sand castle action one afternoon...

And then some "bury your brother" action!

T had to spend a lot of time in the shade while we enjoyed the sun.  She is so fair, and she burns SOOO easily!  The umbrella man, sunscreen, and the Kindle were her best friends this week!

This time we cooked dinner each night in the condo, except for one night out for seafood.  Each kid got to pick a meal they wanted for dinner...we had Taco night, Fettucine Alfredo night, and Breakfast for Dinner night.  It was nice to prepare our meals and sit around the table together...loved it!!

We also had to visit Dairy Queen for ice cream a few times during the week.  It was right across the street from our condo...it was impossible to resist!



Dinner around the table...good times!

Doc's Seafood for our night out.  Wonderful food with a nice, casual atmosphere.  We will be back!

After dinner we either went back down to the pool or beach, or played games in the condo.  Lots of UNO, Scattergories, Taboo, and Pictionary were played this week!  I believe we set the record for the longest ever game of UNO...it simply would.not.end!!  T and I were both begging for it to be over...we didn't even care who won any more!!  Great time, even though the competition level got a little heated a few times...and we had to remind ourselves it was just for fun!  We have a couple of members of our little fam that can't stand to lose, and will be pretty vindictive to make sure they don't. 

After dinner walk on the beach to watch the sunset.

Beautiful sunsets every evening!

This was right before the longest UNO game in the history of civilization!!

 

The last evening we were there we went down to the beach for a family photoshoot.  Little R was out of the mood pretty quick, but we still managed to get enough cute pictures for Christmas cards! : ) I'll post a few silly ones here, but you'll have to wait until Christmas to see the others!

I have no words for this one...

These kids simply have NO personality!! : )

After the photo shoot, we headed back to the condo to get packed up and ready to head out the next morning.  We were sad to say goodbye to this beautiful place, but we were so thankful for our time here as a family to relax and rejuvenate after a long, hard summer.

Our sad faces! All loaded up and headed home!

On our way out of town, we decided to stop at an amusement park.  They had go karts, bumper boats, and an arcade, so we thought it might be worth a try!  Little R got to drive his very own bumper boat, and he thought he was big stuff!!

In line for the go karts!  It was fun!

We took an alternate route home, so we could swing through Arkansas and see my parents.  They just happened to be having a parade in their town that evening, so we decided to go.  I love where I live, but it is always so nice to go back home.  I love where I come from, who I come from, and what I come from.  And I love for my kids to be able to experience a little bit of small town life sometimes.

Sittin' in the back of PaPa's truck, on the courthouse square, with a perfect view of the parade!

Collecting candy...added bonus!

This was our view of the parade!  A far cry from our local parade that can last well over an hour!!  Sometimes less is more!

We spent one night back home in Arkansas, then headed back to our home in Oklahoma.  Overall, it was a great week of enjoying God's creation:  our beautiful, unique family that He pieced together just perfectly, and the beautiful ocean that reminds me of His greatness each time I see it!  We are so blessed to be together as a family and to be able to go off on a trip and forget about everything for a short while and just focus on being together and enjoying each other.  We are truly blessed in so many ways!!