June 15-22, 2016
Our first major trip of the summer was to Destin, Florida. We were meeting Jordan's parents, Spencer, Brittany, Shaylee, Kevin, and baby Eden there for a week of some fun in the sun! We had to leave our apartment at about 3:30am to make it to our flight. Needless to say, we were exhausted before our day even began! We did catch a little sleep on the plane, but not much. Maria was a superstar and didn't give us any trouble.
We made it to Florida! When I walked out of the airport my jaw dropped. I have never felt humidity like that until it smacked me in the face! Holy cow, it was crazy! I had straightened my hair the day before... ya, it didn't last an hour after landing in Florida. Especially because we had to switch rental cars because our stuff wouldn't fit in their little car. So we were standing outside SWEATING for what felt like an eternity! We were very happy to finally feel some AC. :)
Because we were the first ones to arrive in Florida, and the rest of the crew wouldn't be there until that evening, we had time to just hang out. And since it was so stinking hot we went to the mall first. Jordan had been looking for a good barber in Philly but never had time to get his hair cut. He was sooooo excited when he saw this place. Jordan has some Afro-Carribean in him and it mostly shows up in his hair. Black people are the only ones who can do Jordan's hair correctly. I'm dead serious. I didn't think it was possible to give Jordan's hair a bad haircut until he went someplace the day before we were supposed to take our engagement photos. I can't even describe how awful it was and how long it took to try to fix it. Okay, rant over. We were both happy that he found a good place to get his hair cut.
The guy cutting his hair got super excited after he touched Jordan's hair. lol After that he said he knew exactly what to do. haha Jordan had a great time talking to him and getting the best hairline of his life (the most important thing to Jordan).
It turned out great! It was pretty short, but that's because he knew that Jordan doesn't cut his hair very often. The guy even did Jordan's eyebrows for free because he said he couldn't let Jordan leave "looking like that." lol All in all it was a great start to our week in Florida.
After the mall, our rooms were finally ready. This is the view from one of them!
And the rest of the family arrived so we were ready to have some fun! Beginning of course with putting the babies together for the first time in six months. They were both pretty rough with each other, but they did have their sweet moments. Eden was always trying to share and this is probably the one and only time Maria tried to share... Hopefully next time she'll be nicer. haha
Here's a video that kept us laughing for a long time:
The next morning we headed straight for the pool. In contrast to our previous trip to the beach, Maria loved the pool!
She never took her eyes off the water
And she couldn't stop splashing! lol I love this picture!
We got a floatie specifically for our trips this summer and it came in handy on the lazy river. It was so relaxing! And it was nice that we could stay in the water for a long time with Maria.
Later that day (I think) we went to some beach shops to check out souvenir stuff... and to check out the hermit crabs...
The next day brought very new experiences for me and Maria. We went to Fudpucker's with the Gator Beach. Yep, lots and lots of real life gators! Here's a video of me trying to feed them gators...
They even had an albino gator which I didn't even know existed!
Grandma Brassell and Maria. :)
Spencer was pretty happy to see both of his nieces.
Maria needed to nap when we got home, so I stayed at the condo while everyone went to the lazy river. It was so relaxing sitting on the porch, reading a book, and catching some rays.
insert vid of eden and maria playing with snoopy
The next day was Sunday so we went to church and then had Jordan's dad take us on a tour of all the places where he grew up. It was an incredible experience and I couldn't be more grateful for Jordan's family. There were funny stories and tender moments, and I'll never forget it.
Later that day we got all dressed up and ready to take some family pictures. Grandma sat with the babies while the rest of us got ready. :)
Eden and Maria also had some sweet BFF moments while they waited for all the grown ups to get their act together.
Here are just a few of the many pictures we took there. I realized I don't have any of the whole family, so once I get it, I'll add it to this post. :)
On Monday morning we went on a snorkeling/dolphin cruise. Maria and I stayed on the boat during the snorkeling (she slept through most of that) while the rest of the family had fun swimming around. After the snorkeling, the boat went out into the gulf to find some dolphins. It was so much fun! I love dolphins so I got super excited every time we saw them!
There was even a little group of dolphins that went right under our boat!
After we got home, we got to relax in the hammock Jordan set up. This hammock is one that Jordan bought while on his mission. The first attempt at hanging it up wasn't very successful and only held up Maria. But we had fun with it anyway. :)
The next day was Tuesday which meant it was our last day. :( Jordan's family rented a pontoon boat and so we cruised around and stopped at Crab Island (a sandbar just a few feet under water). That was definitely my favorite part of the day. The water was beautiful and it was fun to play some games there.
The babies getting some love from Aunt Brittany and Grandma. :)
We also had fun blasting music while people took turns driving. This was Brittany's turn and we were all grooving to the music. :)
Maria and Eden had some bonding time on the boat as well.
We felt a little sad as we watched our last sunset in Destin. The only thing that made it better was swinging in the hammock and spending precious time with family.
Maria giving Grandpa a kiss. :)
Jordan's dad is the sole reason Maria loved the water during this trip. He was the one who played with her until she didn't want to get out of the water. I'm so grateful for him and his love for Maria.
Thanks to the case I had, I got to take some underwater pictures. I love seeing Maria's little body relaxing in the pool.
Eden and Maria also had matching swimsuits. Unfortunately, Maria would not hold still long enough to take a picture, so this is the best one we have.
And that's the end of our trip to Destin! We loved Florida and loved spending precious time with family. We were lucky that we didn't have to go home after Florida. Instead, we flew straight to California to see my family.
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