Living the Small Town Life: Perdido Key 2011- On the Beach

My favorite part of going to the beach is being ON the beach, watching in amazement God's beautiful creation rolling in as far as the eye can see. I often wonder how anyone can look out at the ocean and think about its vastness with so many sea creatures and life inside of it and not believe that God is real!

Our typical/general day: We woke up (usually between 7 and 8) and ate cereal on the porch overlooking the ocean. Sometimes I would enjoy reading my Bible there, and sometimes I read it in the sand. Both my favorite places to sit and read it ever... Once everyone was up, we would suit up in our swimsuits and apply sunscreen (different amounts and SPF levels based on cloud coverage and redness amount from the previous day).

On a side note, Brieleigh wore Coppertone baby 50 SPF all week and never got burnt. She is one of the most tan 19 month olds though I have seen (thank goodness she got the Crawford skin and tans alot easier than she burns). So she is proof you can wear heavy duty sunscreen and still tan! Since it was rainy and cloudy the first morning, the rest of us did not really wear any sunscreen that morning. David self applied some on the back of his shoulders. Well that worked really well for those two spots while the rest of his back was lobster-ish. Poor thing! So another myth proven- you can still get alot of sun when it is cloudy. David bought a swim shirt halfway through the trip and greatly benefitted from it (SPF 50). Thankfully, none of us got burnt that badly... mostly just red skin that turned into a tan or straight tan.

We would then spend most of the morning frolicking in the ocean either riding the waves or swimming out to the calm sandbar depending on the roughness of the water that day. The adults all enjoyed reading on the beach (often under our new tent shelter to get a break from the sun) from time to time (especially Mom), but the majority of our time was spent in the water or playing in the sand (especially Brieleigh and I as she was not into reading on the beach). Brieleigh loved the water. If I ever went in without her she would run to the edge and call me to come get her or often try to come get me herself! She loved the sand just as much. Her favorite activity was filling her bucket up with water and dumping it on dry sand.

After being at the ocean all morning, we would start to get hungry. We would head to the pool to swim a few laps or float around for a little while before heading up the the condo for lunch. We had almost everyday turkey or ham on rolls with ruffles (Low-fat) with french onion dip- a Crawford family beach tradition. We also ate alot of fresh peaches and some pepperidge farm cookies- traditions as well.

We would often then relax. Brieleigh and sometimes others of us would take a short afternoon nap. Brieleigh played HARD this whole trip and loved showing out for her extended family so much that she was zonked at naptime and bedtime everyday. Sometimes we would watch a show or two on TV... often something called Swamp People on the History channel where they hunt and kill crocodiles to sell (Cal's favortie). David also caught up on some work in the mornings and afternoons some days. Then when we were rested, we repeated the morning- ocean then pool.

We went out for supper most nights. After we were nice and hungry from playing hard in the waves and pool, we would all go get showered up and head out for dinner. Waits were sometimes long, but we enjoyed waiting together, looking at boats at the marina, listening to live music, playing on the playground, or enjoying the beach atmoshpere to pass the time. After dinner, we would usually eat Blue Bell ice cream (tradition), watch part of a movie, read, or walk on the beach. (Brieleigh did not care for the beach at night. She pointed to the condo and said, "Light!")

Brieleigh enjoying reading her Bible on the balcony while also looking for boats, dolphins, and fish.

Aunt Maddy and Brieleigh working on a sand castle. I love that I caught the sand Brieleigh threw down still in mid-air.

Sand play with the bucket (her favorite toy)

Brieleigh and Daddy working on a castle

Taking a break from wave riding

Watching the tide roll in :)

Aunt Maddy and BBug

This was my first time to ever see a flying fish. He was beautiful! So many bright colors. And he really flies! We also saw a shark about 2 feet long- small but very close to the shore. He left when I got my camera out. :(

Brieleigh wearing a life jacket running from Aunt Maddy.
Much of the gear (such as this life jacket, sand toys, chairs) we used was already there in the condo which was great!