Life's a beach!

Just getting settled in from a "turtley awesome" vacation! 🐢 After a pretty tumultuous year concerning Gary's job situation and adjusting to working myself, boy was I happy to get to go on an actual vacation!! 🌺🌴🌊⛅

We decided to go visit the coast of Texas! Corpus Christi, Port Aransas, Rockport and even drove up to Victoria for the day. We stayed at the Holiday Inn Express in Rockport. The girls were thrilled because it was on the top floor and from our room, you could see the ocean. What a climate change though! A friend of mine had told me prior to us visiting down there not to even worry about my makeup or my hair because it'd do no good! And when I got out of the truck to go check into the hotel, my glasses immediately fogged up and the air was THICK with moisture and humidity!! I could just feel my makeup melting off my face lol! So needless to say, my makeup stayed in its bag the rest of the trip and my naturally curly hair loved having a break from being straightened! 💁

One thing I noticed was that down there, there is a Whataburger every couple of miles! Heaven! 🍔🍟🙏

Our first day, we ate breakfast at the hotel and then we went to Corpus and went to the Texas State Aquarium. That's a pretty neat little place and had an awesome up-close dolphin show that the girls loved. After that, we walked over to the USS Lexington. It is a World War II-era aircraft carrier which has now been turned into a naval museum. You could go inside and look around at the different planes used in WWII and ammunition and such. I, personally, thought it was interesting BUT I love history. The girls...not so much. For one, they were tired and hungry and HOT, and walking around a massive ship, looking at planes and stuff, that wasn't appealing to them. But they did pretty good.  They liked the view of the water and could see a lot of jellyfish below us. Before we left there, we stopped in the gift shop and we got the girls personalized dog tags. Great keepsake!

When we left there, we went to a little beachside restaurant called Blackbeards. It doesn't look appealing as its kinda run-down and very purple! But the atmosphere was very laid back and I thought the food was delicious!! I'd definitely visit there again! 

The second day, after eating breakfast at Ken's Diner (delicious) we went to the beach!! What the girls had been waiting for every since we told them we were going down there! So, we rode the ferry over to Port Aransas. Lanie thought that was neat, getting to drive your car onto a boat and riding it. The ferry line wasn't that long and the ride itself was probably three minutes. Once we got on the island, we went to a place called Bron's and we rented a golf cart! The island allows people to rent golf carts and ride around the town and the beach on. I think this was Gary's favorite part of the trip, getting to drive that little thing all over the place. We rode up and down the shoreline first. Before we went to Port A, I had bought a loaf of bread and decided I'd feed the seagulls while Gary was driving. Those birds are ferocious! They swooped in immediately to get the bread I was throwing, and the girls, who were riding in the back, FACING them, got scared because there was a huge flock of them! Lanie started to cry and this made me laugh. The louder she wailed, the harder I laughed. It was hilarious. Finally, we got out and we swam in the ocean and we built a little sandcastle. :) After some beach play, we drove back into town and ate at a place called Moby Dicks. Totally awesome place but wasn't too crazy about the food. But I think it's because I got fish, thinking it'd be like Long John Silvers but instead, it was actual fried fish 😳 Like, shaped like a fish and everything. 🐟 It tasted "okay" but not my thing. Lol! We then went back to the beach and we let Kaci drive the golf cart! She did a great job, but as I was observing from the backseat and hearing Gary say things like, "straighten up the wheel, keep to the right, slow down!" it made me realize in just a short while, my little girl will be actually driving!! Time soooo flies. We also let Lanie "drive"..(she sat in my lap and "steered") It was so fun.I'm surprised the girls didn't pass out on the ride back to the hotel from our exhausting day, but instead they stayed awake and wanted to swim at the pool once we returned! Wish I could siphon their energy sometimes!

Our last full day of vacation, we ate breakfast at a little cafe called JJ's Little Cafe and it was great! I love breakfast at places like that! 🍳🍴We were going to go to the Sea Turtle Farm but found out it was in South Padre Island...like wayyyy at the bottom and would be about a 6-hour drive, so we didn't go. Instead, we drove to Victoria just to go to the mall and take the girls to see Despicable Me 2. It was really fun. While at the mall, we went to James Avery and Gary bought me a charm for my charm bracelet. It's of a sandcastle. 😊 I love it!! My charms all have a little story behind them and its one of my most cherished possessions! 

Today, on our way home, we took the girls to eat at the ORIGINAL Whataburger, which is a two story establishment and the girls (and I) thought it was neat! It was right by the ocean!! After that, I took Lanie to a souvenir shop so she could get seashells for some people. For July 4th this year, we got to spend it at the lake with my awesome family!! We stayed with my aunt and uncle and cousins, popped fireworks, rode the boat, ate great homecooked food and just relaxed. It was great! Well, while we were there, Lanie collected nasty clam shell looking shells from the bottom of the lake and wanted to take them home. Like 20 of them! Lol! I told her to leave them at the lake and once we went to the beach, I'd make sure she got some actual pretty shells. And she did. 😊

We made it home safely and we had an amaaaazing time. My friends who have visited that area before helped me with places to go and places to eat and I appreciate that so much! Our last 9 days have been absolutely wonderful and unforgettable. I wish every month we could go to the lake and then to the beach and be with family and friends. That would be paradise to me. ❤ I'm so thankful for my family, friends, and the memories we've made!! Glad to be home in my bed though! 😴 G'night!!