All the darling twins talked about even before they got back home was the beach.
“We’re going to the beach.”
Over and over again. In between car repairs and work schedules and having about six weeks of summer they were going to the beach.
When the beach trip got changed multiple times and looked like it just wasn’t going to happen, leave it to St. PhilBillPaul to have a brilliant idea.
“Why don’t we all go to the beach?”
Never mind that it’s not in the budget. Never mind that all three big kids are scheduled to work. Never mind that mom and dad have work too.
Let’s Go To The Beach
PhilBillPaul’s second brilliant idea was that MOM could work her magic and use the power of the internet and find a last minute beach bargain. In less than 48 hours.
“Yea!!” the children shouted. “Let’s leave on Sunday at 4:00 a.m.”
PhilBillPaul’s third brilliant idea was that MOM could make a breakfast casserole and cheesy potatoes so WE would have food right when we got there and WE wouldn’t have to cook.
What would I do without all the brilliant ideas surrounding me?
Leaving out most of the gorey details of everyone packing themselves and going to bed while mom cooked and sweated in the 150 degree kitchen and made lists and packed DIRTY clothes because…
The Washing Machine Broke
Oh yes it did.
On Saturday while the big kids were all working, PhilBillPaul turned himself black trying to fix the washer which would not drain or rinse the clothes.
Suspiciously this happened after Roger Leroy had C-R-A-M-M-E-D a load of clothes in that was seriously bigger than the washer.
Perhaps we did not teach her how to properly do her laundry. Oh wait, YES WE DID.
The Army and college have taught her that sorting is a waste of time.
I remained calm – surprising I know – and announced that we could do OUR laundry when we got to the beach.
The darling twins could take their wet ginormous load to a laundromat. And Rachel could buy the part she broke. And they were never allowed to touch our washer again.
Side note: I’m pretty sure that Roger Leroy would want me to extend her personal and heartfelt thanks to her sister Wizzy for doing this while she was at work.
This I said because we had paid for the last minute bargain I found and there were no refunds.
Off to the beach we went at a more reasonable time of 6:00 a.m.
The view from our bargain 6th floor condo wasn’t too bad.
And other than one giant scene about Scary Baby and brushing her hair, we all survived.
I’ll be so bold as to say that everyone had FUN.
I asked them if we could recreate the blog header photo.
But this is about as close as I could get.
Everyone was on their own for dinner.
It was very nice that they actually wanted to have one night be a family dinner so we all gathered at Pompano Joe’s.
And I made sure to snap this very important picture after she had told me numerous times to quit taking pictures of her.
I told her the whole goal of the trip was to get her darling toes in the sugar white sand.
She was very specific that it had to be the sugar white sand of Destin.
And then declared, on our last day, that she really doesn’t like sand.
Later this week, I must tell you what happened on the way there and the way back because no Humpfreeze trip is complete without some ridiculous moments that are not funny except to everyone else who didn’t have to be there. Or drive to the Piggly Wiggly.
Stay tuned.
One year ago..
Wait, that blue restaurant door looks familiar. Is that where you took us on your birthday for GROUPER? And Kim and I had burgers?
Where is the oil slick? Water looks pretty darn nice.
That is indeed the same restaurant. And we had grouper!!!
Thanks for my laugh of the day..which was much needed! While we are not on vacation I am getting ready to head out for a 4 day seminar leaving my 23 yr old son here with the dog.
I will let you know how that turns out..so far here are some instructions I HAD to leave…
The dog CANNOT wait until you get up at the crack of noon to pee.
The garage door must be shut at night and the doors locked..yes we are paranoid, yes we live on a safe street DO IT ANYWAYS
When the grass is mid calf it needs to be cut…oh and look out your window instead of the computer for the weather to decide how long to procrastinate…yes it said 20% chance of rain…BUT those dark clouds may have given you a clue to get out there EARLIER.
And of course….SHUT OUT THE LIGHTS!! My sister should have had similar suggestions when my parents ( 84) stayed at her house while her family was away…they had the AC on and EVERY window open…we told her it would be cheaper to kennel the dogs!
I would put some of this on my blog but my son reads it ( I think) Time to get on the road! Maybe I should leave the dog in charge???
Jenn Ross recently posted..Back in the saddle again
Sounds like your son and The Grunter could hang out together! Maybe you should just post the rules on your blog since they really don’t change, right?!
Glad to hear you broke down and took your poor kids to the beach. Destin, no less. You do know there are other beaches? A cousin of mine told me a long time ago that she never goes to the same beach twice and I have tried to take that advice. We have seen lots of new beaches and loved several of them. Yes, Destin is nice and it’s safe to go where you KNOW you’re going to like it but they have deals in other places too!
To Nancy: The media reports about the oil on the beaches has been HIGHLY exaggerated from what I understand. I’ve talked to several folks who still took vacation in the gulf and it wasn’t bad. Some days, yes, but other days it was still good. I think MS and LA got the worst of it and of course our seafood is going to suffer for years probably but if you were wanting to visit PCB or the Destin area I’d say go right ahead. We normally go to Gulf Shores in AL which is much closer to the MS coast but even there beaches have not been as bad as you would have thought.
Hey now – we’ve been to Hawaii twice, Bermuda, Cayman Islands, and Bahamas not to mention Hilton Head, Tybee Island, Jacksonville, Daytona, and Clearwater last spring. I’m all over any beach!! Destin can still be my favorite, can’t it?!! This time it was really Rachel’s request.
Sick to hear of the news reports just tonight of the oil in the water and the safety even if you can’t see the oil. It’s really heartbreaking…
Oh this post whas just what I needed today! Thank you for making me laugh.
Karen recently posted..What to Wear- Summer Casual Event
Typical family vacation photos. No sign of Mom in any of the photos. Vacations can be very stressful. Too much time together in small quarters can be a bad thing. Your trip length was perfect.
Yes, you are right about our trip length! No pictures of mom on purpose!!