Ah, the beach

After a terrific celebration of Miss Annabelle's 2nd birthday, Luke and I hopped a plane to visit Grandma and Grandpa in Florida. Our weather was lovely - loads of sunshine. And we were lucky to have two visits from Daddy during our week stay.

Luke loved the beach, throwing shells into his bucket of ocean water, watching the trucks "tus" drive by on A1A from his primo middle seat, playing with all the awesome toys that Grandma and Grandpa picked up, throwing toys into the pool for Grandpa and Daddy to fetch, and... possibly his favorite... eating cheetos. We had a marvelous time and are so fortunate to have such wonderful grandparents in our lives. We are especially lucky that they are so talented at making their famous Maui Martinis!

Chilling in my K.C. Tractor hat.

A trip to the very cool Jacksonville zoo... Luke loved the giraffes, gorillas, and especially the train ride.

Riding the "Roehl Reindeer."

Off to the beach to dig to China with Grandpa.

Watching the waves from afar on day 1.

Swapping playing in the waves for pouring salt water all over the belly.

Laughing with Daddy.

Strolling the beach looking for shark's teeth with Daddy.

Kisses for Mama.

Playing in the pool.

Funny boy!

Nice follow-through, hey? QB or shooting guard? Note the left handed throw.

Favorite game of the week... playing fetch with Grandpa and Daddy. Who's throwing and who's catching?

Does somebody have a phone book or two?

Running up and down the ramp at the beach... never-ending fun.

But way more fun with a stop to hug daddy!

Reading books with Grandma and Grandpa at bedtime.

On our final day, the tide was very low, forming tide pools. We stopped at the beach impromptu as the weather was a bit dreary and looked like rain. Luke in a diaper and water shoes played in the tide pools for hours running through the water, throwing shells in the pools, smiling ear to ear before a big storm rolled in.

The beach is a magical place. I've always loved Ralph Waldo Emerson's quote, "Live in the sunshine, swim in the sea, drink the wild air." And, that we did. Thank you, Grandma and Grandpa for such a wonderful time. xo