The Matthews Family: Destin Family Vacation

One would think that with Mikayla at school and Gavin being much happier to entertain himself than Mikayla ever was at this age, that I would have so much more free time to do things that I enjoy (i.e. blog). This is not the case though. Things are starting to settle down though and we are figuring out our routine, so I should [hopefully] have a little more time to do some fun things.

The week before school started we went to Destin with a very large number of my extended family. My grandparents rented a house that would fit my mom and my uncles entire families. We had a great time together that was filled with many wonderful memories. We also have TONS of pictures from this week. I am glad to have so may memories documented. We spent a lot of time at the beach and at the pool that was at our house. The kids had a fabulous time together ( and so did the adults!). As our families grow and we spread out across the nation is becoming increasingly difficult for us to all get together. I was so grateful for this opportunity for us to spend time with one another. A big thanks to Grandma and Grandpa for this opportunity – without them, it would have never been possible!

Gavin had a great time playing in the ocean. It took him a little bit to get used to the salt water though…the goggles helped him through that. My two favorite boys – a precious little boy and one hot hubby! :)

We (er…Jeremy, the kite expert) had fun flying some kites with the kids. Mikayla had an Ariel kite and Gavin had a Buzz Lightyear kite. The had a lot of fun with this activity. The kids had a great time in the pool, too. It was a salt water pool, which I just fell in love with. It was so much kinder to your eyes and skin. If for some reason, I ever have a pool, I will definitely will try this one out. Mikayla tried her hand at some boogie boarding – it proved to be a little harder than she thought.

They had a lot of fun playing in the sand, too. No big sand castles were built this year, though. They were more interested in playing in the water. My cousin’s husband found this hermit crab (plus other wildlife prizes) out at the sand bar. The kids loved watching him move around in the bucket before he was taken back to the sandbar to swim free.

These are just more random pictures of my sweet children. They had a great time and definitely love the beach.

My mom found this great volleyball net that the guys set up in the pool. They loved it and had may very serious tournaments out there after the kids went to bed.