Vacation

Hey y'all!  Long time no post, huh?  It's been a crazy summer around here.  I can't believe it's flown by so fast.  I had such big plans for the summer and didn't get most of it done.  Time flies when you're having fun, I guess. 

So, we went on vacation a few weeks ago, which was awesome.  We went with my parents, sister and her kiddos and my brother on vacation to Orange Beach, Alabama.  Our condo was right on the beach and was AMAZING!  It was bigger than my house.  I thought I took pictures of the inside, but I guess I didn't.  Here is the view from our balcony.

This is what L did part of the week:

The rest of the week he stayed in the condo and sucked down Dr. Pepper, fussed, and hit and bit whichever one of us was watching him at the time.  Suffice it to say we had a hard week with him.  Autistic kids do NOT do well when you take them away from their familiar places and routine. 

Since Hubby and I couldn't go out to eat with everyone else, because of L, my family decided to stay home one night and let Todd and I go out on a date.  We ate at a place called Shipp's Harbour Grill.  It was amazing!  It was right on the bay and you could watch the boats coming in and out, there was live music and it was wonderful and peaceful!!  So thankful for that night.  We don't get many dates these days. 

E had a great time playing on the beach and in the water.  She had a great time boogie boarding with her Granddad. 

Catherine and I boogie boarded quite a bit too.  What a workout!  Gracious my legs were tired.

C in her Mr. Magoo goggles.  Do y'all remember Mr. Magoo?  Need a visual reminder?

Anyway, the last full day we were at the beach, C was out in the water with her goggles and looking at the fish.  My niece started screaming "SHARK!"  We had watched the dolphins every mornings from the balcony so I thought for sure that was what she was seeing.  I looked up and saw the fin.  It wasn't moving up and down like dolphin fins do.  It was staying above the water constantly and it was way too close to C, out in the water.  I waved my arms, called her name and screamed for her to get out of the water.  Finally she heard me and slowly waded out of the water.  She was maybe chest deep?  The shark kept swimming down the beach as people scrambled out of the water like ants running from the sun beaming through a magnifying glass.  We were talking to the other people on the beach and found out that the beach had already been cleared earlier in the day because two sharks had been spotted swimming there.  We missed all of that excitement.  The rest of the family had gone to lunch and I'm sure L was being too loud for us to hear the sirens on the beach.  SCARY moments on the beach! 

I hate I didn't take more pictures.  My sister had some really cute ones on her phone but mine didn't turn out so hot for some reason.  I think I only had on picture of J that turned out and it is pretty far away.  I am really glad he missed the shark incident.  He talked for MONTHS about being afraid we would get attacked by sharks on vacation. 

A few hours before we left, C and my niece K, decided that they wanted to parasail.  Granddad and my sister took them while we packed up.  They had such a good time.

Overall, it was a great vacation with my family, despite L's bad behavior.  So, we thought we'd thank my mom and dad for the great vacation.