Destin

Last year, my family started a yearly tradition of spending a week on the beach in Destin, FL.  Last year, I sadly looked at the facebook posts and pictures wishing I could be there and cursing the start of summer classes coinciding with the vacation.  This year, the beach trip again had me stalking facebook updates for pictures and wishing I could be there for the fun.  It had been 6 months since I'd last seen everyone- a new record.

crystal clear water.

Wednesday I got the bright idea that I could beg for the end of the week off and drive down early Thursday morning to spend 2 days and come back Saturday.  That's exactly what I did.  Sadly, Hubs had to hold down the fort at home (claiming something about working to support our zoo), so I made the trip alone.  15 hours in a car by myself was a small price to pay for the fun I had.

There was sand castle building...

and wave jumping...

And long hours on the beach with cloudless skies and perfect breezes.

These two were, of course, endless fun.

We ate some delicious dinners and played at the boardwalk area complete with ziplining and trampoline jumping.

We got dressed up for pictures on the beach until the storm clouds came in and moved our pictures to the balcony. 

It was such a fun few days and I'm so glad I made the trip down.  Thanks again to the fam for letting me crash their beach party.  I'm hoping to return next year!!

Our newest obsession.

Being an aunt is one of my most favorite roles to fill.  It's no secret that I have been completely obsessed with my niece and nephew since before they were born.  Ever since Mike's brother and sister-in-law announced they were expecting their first baby in May, we were SO excited for his arrival.  We booked flights down to Florida for Memorial Day weekend and were so happy to get our hands on our {then 2-week-old} nephew.

He is beyond cute and we fell instantly in love. 

He likes to sleep a lot and is an all-star snuggler (even if he's not aware of it yet).

fish on his booty.  love.

I couldn't get enough of him but tried not to be a total baby hog when his Grandma and Grandpop came to visit.

Our weekend was full of cuddling Ryan, eating yummy food, shopping, and visiting. 

There also might have been some homemade moonshine drinking (I opted to play photographer on this one!) and beer making.

We also had an impromptu Memorial Day celebration. 

cornhole.

It was a great weekend and I'm missing the little guy like crazy already.  Can't wait to see how much he's changed this weekend!

Sunday Recap

After a super fun few days at the beach (recap to come after all the pictures are sorted), I was looking forward to catching up on some husband {and puppy} time.  I started the day with a Body Pump class and then we headed to PetSmart to stock up on some supplies for our zoo and weigh the pup (up to 52 pounds!).  

ready to go.

We like to take our water-loving, heat-hating dog to swim whenever we can, so we hit up the new Firehouse Subs near us (SO happy to have this place back in my life. yuuum.) and drove to Percy Priest Lake.  I'd never been to this spot before but loved the big shoreline and picnic tables. 

so many geese.

Ellie ran right to the water and climbed in.  She goes so crazy for water.  I cannot wait to take her on her first Florida trip this Thursday! 

I'm also super excited for the new camera lens we ordered.  It will be nice to have a huge zoom in a few days!!

After becoming exhausted of the heat, I gave into Mike's wishes to go see the new Pirates of the Caribbean movie.  Besides finding Johnny Depp extremely amusing, I'm not really a fan of these movies.  This one was no exception and I was bored about 20 minutes in.  We both agreed it wasn't very good.  It didn't help that the theater was about 60 degrees and the two old women behind me wrapped themselves in tons of trash bags to keep warm.  They rustled and adjusted the bags pretty much non-stop despite the numerous dirty looks I sent their way.  I was so annoyed.  I guess the good thing is that I get to pick the next movie! 

Weekend in Memphis

Two weekends ago (yeah, I've fallen behind a bit...) M and I made the trip west to Memphis to visit two of our best friends.  Pat and Erin have lived there awhile and we finally found time in our four crazy schedules to make a visit.  We had such a great time enjoying their adorable apartment, lots of good food, and plenty of laughs. 

Our first stop included a trip to their favorite barbecue spot for some Memphis eats.  I'd like to tell you that we shared all that food, but that would be a lie. 

Saturday we woke up to some crazy storms but they quickly disappeared and gave way to a beautiful day to spend at the zoo. 

Their zoo is awe-some.  I'd like to go every single day. 

The rest of the weekend was spent eating more good food...

Playing with Lucicielosaur...

Being silly at the house...

And going downtown for food and music...

I can't forget to mention that the members of JAKE are all now officially signed up to run the St. Jude's Half Marathon in Memphis in December.  Wish us luck on our training.  I'm crossing my fingers that the fun of our reunion will hide the pain of running 13 miles!