Florida Winters

To all of my family and friends who do not live in Florida, I hope you will consider this post an invitation to leave your cold, snowy abodes and come visit real soon!

To those of you who live here in the Sunshine State, I hope you will view this post as a reminder of why it is so great to live in a place that rarely gets below 50 degrees. And yes, please remind me of this post when it's August and it's 100 degrees outside and I'm doing nothing but complaining about it. :)

So, on with the post!

You've gotta love Florida in the winter. The dead of winter.

You can throw on a hoodie and head to the beach! So that's just what we did on Tuesday when the kids were out of school for the second day in a row.

(That's Payton in the middle in the black shirt)

How gorgeous is that sky???

The kids had a ball searching for seashells and comparing the treasures they found in the ocean. Nothing like the thrill of finding a sand dollar! 

 This was also Parker's first time going back to the beach since he was 3 months old.

When we first arrived, I plopped him down on the dry sand so that I could set up my stuff.

Oh boy... that was a mistake!

You can't really tell from these pictures, but he's screaming his head off, crawling toward me at a snail's pace because he HATED his hands and feet touching the sand!

(Aren't I a great mother? Rather than immediately picking him up, I grabbed the phone and tried to take a picture of him throwing a fit.)

Anyhow, after I realized that he didn't like the sand, I gladly alternated between holding him and letting him roam around my friend's beach tent. He really loved it when I would walk with him along the water and we would chase an occasional seagull. 

He also enjoyed having his snacks in Payton's beach chair.

Unfortunately, what I didn't get a picture of, was when I took him down to the tide pool and let him splash around a bit in the water. He had a blast! He loved it and of course wasn't too thrilled when I scooped him up and took him back to our seats.

The good news is, by the time we go back to the beach this spring, he'll love every bit of it. And maybe, just maybe, Mama can sit and relax while all the "boys" play at the beach together. 

Hey... a girl can dream, right? :)

Here's wishing everyone warm sunny thoughts, ocean breezes and sandy toes!