"Family Vacation"

Okay, where do I start..........I feel like there are so many stories to share. We just got back from our week long family vacation to Galveston with Brian's family. We had an amazing time. The girls did great on the way down, for FIVE hours. I didn't even hear a peep. Oh, right..........I guess that was because I wasn't in the same car as those little hoodlums! I am not sure how we lucked out on that one........probably because we have some amazing husbands, but Amy and I rode with Poppy and Baba (Brian's parents) in a separate car. We were able to sleep the day away!!! Yea! We were there in no time, although if you ask Brian and Josh it may be a different story! :-)


We arrived at the beach house and it looked incredible! Maddie ran up the stairs to explore, as did the rest of us. Because she was younger and faster...she reached the top floor in lightening speed and seemed to be "drawn" to her room. She called to me...."Mom!!! Come here!" I ran up the second flight of stairs where Maddie was waiting for me with a huge smile on her face. "Mom, it is the room that I have always wanted!!" she said as I came up the stairs. Hearing this from a four year old made me laugh. I walked in and what do you think I saw............for those who know Maddie really well, I imagine you can guess.........PINK!!! The room was adorable. Bathed in pink and flowers, the girls were in heaven! There were two twin bed and a bunk bed which the girls thought was so cool. They were so excited and it was a great way to start the vacation........other than the five hour nap I had on the way there- wink, wink!

My second story is about Ally. As you all know, she has been somewhat challenging with her tantrums.....well, during the trip she did really well. There was only one time that I had to remove her from her surroundings. All was well. One morning, after breakfast as I was wiping down the kitchen table, Ally was climbing on the chairs just "hanging out" and she asked me....."Mom, do you like tantrums??"- plain as day............ it made me laugh, because she has been so good.....I was trying to think, what made her think of this. Their minds are so amazing. I told her, "No, baby, I don't like tantrums ." Then she asked.........."Do you like CAKE??" With this question, I really laughed. "Yes, I LOVE cake!" I responded. From then on she has been asking me what I like and it has been precious. Do I like snakes, grasshoppers, ladybugs, whining, pink.....everything that little girls can imagine and more. I love that she can think about these thing with out prompting. Her brain is constantly going and I know that we are making progress on the whole tantrum issue. For instance, she went into Sunday School without any problems this morning, which is a huge deal after a week and more of having Mommy and Daddy all to herself. I even got a kiss and hug AFTER she already went in. It was so nice. I relished in it for a moment. The little things make such a difference. I had a skip in my step for the whole day!

Family Vacation- a time to spend with family and enjoy all there is to enjoy about one another. This is my definition of "Family Vacation." I am a huge believer in family vacations. They can bring out all the good and bad, but as long as you are with family it makes no difference. They love no matter what....even when a certain someone (for those that can't guess...my sweet Ally) throws a tantrum because they wanted mommy to open the door and no one else. Silly I know, but it happened. These things fall by the way side because it is family. We had an amazing time; it is something that I will never forget. (Well, how can I.... I have 300 pictures to sort through from the trip- YIKES! )