O, Sanibel.

Spring breaks have changed yes?  Those loungy snoozy dreamy lying in the sun days of youth are gone.  O, they are gone.

::our little water worm was sans floaties by the last day, still far to go before true flotation and swimming, but eager and ready...so proud::

::post nap woes, animal crackers quickly helped::

 ::deep end synchronized swimming with grammy::

 ::family wave jumping::

 ::tide pool running::

In their place are vacations filled with activity and bustle, new sleep routines and rules, testing all of our flexibility and patience, and in the end? a whole lot of fun.

::our second littel water girl, jumping off ledges, walking off of deep steps, 

she kept us on our toes this one did::

 ::"Hi Bop!" Louise's new favorite exclamation::

 ::ah, family::

 ::Louise loved doing the stairs like a big girl, no crawling down for this little lady::

 ::Ainsley with the big kids playing shuffleboard::

 ::sisters! minus Kelly :o(::

::Louise's curls erupted on Sanibel::

 ::popsicles and frozen grapes were the favorite snacks, 

Griffin was very interested::

 ::Ainsley and her pool pals!  We hardly saw that child while down at the pool, 

she was far too busy with her new friends::

It's so bizarre and wonderful to vacation at a place with my family as a grown up mother and wife, that I vacationed at as a child for years.  My toes still tingle as I swim with the girls over the big mosaic turtle in the pool, my nose remembers that first gulp of salty air as we cross the bridge from mainland florida to paradise, my skin remembers that hot sun, my tastebuds the grouper...O! the grouper.

While it's taken a bit to get used to this new groove of vacationing with little ones I'm realizing it allows me to see this place I so love in a whole new way, with the renewed zeal and excitement of youth.  I'm spoiled rotten.

Don't get me wrong, it was hard.  I can't even count how many times I was told by other parents (with a look of empathetic remembrance on their faces) "oh boy, do I remember vacations at this age!" "you're doing good mama!"  "been there, it's so hard"  Because truthfully, we hardly sat down.  After Ian left and I solo parented for 4 days, plus air travel day with 2 mobile dolls, I can officially say I'm spent.  But you won't hear me complaining (except for that moment when I broke down when Louise ran wildly off with lasagna hands all over Aunt Gail's beautiful white beach house).  I feel so blessed to be able to do this with my family, for this time and these memories.  Thankful for the hard exhausted sleep that met the girls each nap time and the calm and rest it allowed us all.  Glad for the action, the biking and swimming, running and playing, shell finding and wave jumping.  We did it all.

O, Sanibel.  You never cease to amaze and inspire.  Thank you thank you, and now? a little vacation from the vacation is in order :o).