Destin, How I miss thee!

We're home. We were blessed with a safe trip. I'm so thankful for travel mercies and that we all came home well. We had an amazing trip. Such precious memories for all of us. Only God could have given us such a trip...I'm still so full of thanks to Him.

I made the big mistake of letting Cooper drink regular tea most of the way home. Cooper rarely has caffeine in his drinks. He was a major chatter box. They talked and sang and cheered all the way home. I confess, at times it was difficult to not want to make them be quiet. Then I get to thinking about how thankful I am for them. How precious they are. How these times will be gone in a flash. How many people wish and hope and pray to be parents but it is not in God's plan for them. How thankful I am it was in His plan for me. How many parents pray for their children to be healthy enough to play and be full of life. How I don't want to take their health for granted. It is a gift...and they are a gift. They are my gift straight from God's hand and I want to be better for them. I want to treasure even the times that are loud and the times when I think I want quiet...because when they are grown and the car is quiet...I will wish for the noise of young children. So one day, my Claudia and Cooper, when you read this and you are all grown up...know that even when I got stressed over crazy things like you being loud for hours and hours all the way home from the beach, I still TREASURE the noise and I would NOT change it for a second because all that noise means I am a mommy and being a mommy is a sacred treasure to me! I love you both more than you can even imagine. Thanks for being my loud little bundles of energy. Thanks for loving me even when I make big mommy mistakes. You are a GIFT from the Lord for which I am very thankful! Sometimes the magnitude of my feelings for you takes my breath away! I love you my babies!

Here are a few pics from the beach...

On our first night, we had dinner at the Back Porch. We always go there. There's a playground on the beach. We always go there after we eat. The kids always love it.


Right beside the playground are these awesome restored dunes. I love the fence!

Oh my, this is so sweet and precious. Makes my mommy heart want to sing and cry all at the same time. It was a cool, stormy looking afternoon. It was breathtaking.