more pics.

Here are the rest of our pictures from the beach that we grabbed with our phones:

spring break 2016.

We were in desperate need for a spring break this year. We try to make it happen at the end of March to tie in my birthday and our anniversary celebrations, but the Bryant's beach house was rented until the end of April. So, we packed the kids up and headed down south Thursday morning. 

When we got to Santa Rosa, we picked up a lunch and raced to the house to change into our swimsuits. Of course, as we are walking to the beach we see a huge raincloud and it wasn't long before we were hit with a brief shower. And the wind that followed! I was freezing, but the kids didn't seem to mind it one bit.

Once the sun came out, we played in the sand for a bit, then headed to the pool. Both Brooks and Ann Bennett had so much fun swimming! That evening we went to dinner at the Red Bar and it was delicious, as always. We ended our night at The Hub and enjoyed some ice-cream and live music. 

It rained and it poured on Friday. We decided to make the best of it and head into Seaside for lunch and some shopping. The kids picked out a toy at Duckies (a shark sword for Brooks and lipgloss for Ann Bennett), we bought a couple of t-shirts and rain boots at Seaside Kids, then we ate lunch at Great Southern Cafe. The rain finally stopped after lunch so we drove back home to gear up for an afternoon on the beach. 

We went to George's for dinner and grabbed ice-cream in Rosemary Beach. The kids were pretty pooped from missing naps, so it was early bedtime…for us all!

Saturday was absolutely beautiful. John took the kids to get donuts in Alys Beach then it was go-time. We spent the entire morning on the beach, taking golf cart rides and feeding the fish. Both kiddos took great naps and when they woke up our friends, Phillip and Lauren, and their cute baby boy, Grayson, arrived at the house to visit and play.

[These two shared the sweetest kiss—a first for Ann Bennett!]

The seven of us went to dinner at Bud & Alley's and followed our delicious meals with frozen yogurt! It was the best night with the best friends. 

Saturday was so nice, we opted to stay one more night and spend Sunday afternoon with the Vlahos' again—this time at their house in Destin. They took us out on their boat, the kids swam in their pool, and we all went to dinner at LuLu's. I think the beach at LuLu's was a highlight for Brooks! 

We grabbed breakfast at the Donut Hole Monday morning, then made the trek back to Birmingham. We were so sad to say goodbye to the beach, but hopefully we will be back soon. We are so grateful for this long weekend together. So many sweet memories were made. I love my people so much!