Party Time!

We were out of town for Reese's actual birthday so we planned to have her party the week following.  This year she opted for a party at a place called Kidz Kabaret.  It could not have been more perfect a setting for our budding performer.  They put us in our own little room complete with a stage. 

They only had a couple of hours to fit in a lot of practicing lines, choreography, and some time to eat cake and pizza before the parents were due back for the final performance.

I was pretty happy with how the cupcakes turned out (pats myself on the back).  Microphones....again, perfect for our little performer.

Reese didn't waste any time getting into character.  She had the choice of the two lead parts: Gabriella or Sharpay.  She chose Sharpay because "she is super sassy". 

After an hour of hard work it was time to stop for a snack break.  The girls put down six pizzas between 16 of them.  They can eat! 

While the girls were distracted, Talan snuck up for his moment on stage. 

They rushed backstage as the parents were arriving to get into costume.  You can see the excitement on Reese's face when she was finally able to take to the stage. 

She is truly such a ham and so comfortable up there.  I have no idea where she gets it.  I had to give an update at today's PTA meeting.  I didn't even stand up....I did it from my seat.  And I was so nervous that I sweat through my shirt.  I wish I had an ounce of her confidence!

When the show ended the girls invited their family up onto the stage.  Talan was thrilled to pieces when Reese came and picked him out of the crowd to come and join her.

I think it's safe to say that her party was a huge success.  She had such a blast doing what she loves and being surrounded by her best girlfriends. 

Florida - Days 5 & 6

Another exciting day.  We surprised Reese by telling her that one of her early birthday gifts would be to get her ears pierced that morning.  So off we went to Destin to add some bling to her ears.

The idiot woman who pierced them missed the mark on her left ear.  She had to take it out and we had to come back that afternoon to have it redone.  Therefore, Reese had to go through all of the anxiety twice and had to walk around with one ear pierced all day.  Needless to say we were not happy.  Reese, however, took it like a champ.

From there we met our families at Baytowne Wharf for an afternoon of fun.  Our little daredevil daughter had her heart set on ziplining having seen it the night before.  Because we were celebrating her impending birthday and because she had such a great attitude about the ear piercing snafu, her wish was our command.

She loved it.  The kids spotted yet another bounce contraption and we were off to check that out next. 

This time just bouncing wasn't thrilling enough for little Miss Reese.  She had to throw a few back flips into the mix. 

She's not the only daredevil in the family.  After we insisted, put money in the machine, and shoved him in against his will Granddad took on the hurricane simulator.  Fortunately he survived the 75 mile per hour winds.  His hair, however, took a beating. 

The obstacle course proved to be a bit much for Reese but not to worry, Uncle Steve came to her rescue. 

We all worked up a pretty big appetite (spectating is hard work y'all!) so our next stop was Acme Oyster House for po-boys, gumbo, and more of the food I love most. 

Another full day of fun.  The next morning was Reese's 8th birthday.  I say this every year but it really is hard to believe that eight whole years have gone by since the day she was born.  I remember every detail of her first day alive so vividly.  I'm so proud of the young lady she has grown into.  Gosh I love that kid. 

After a quick breakfast we were back in the car and headed to Panama City Beach.  Our intention was to spend another day by the pool, soaking up the sun, but the weather turned on us.  We made the best of it which wasn't hard because we were in good company.  Reese's request was a cookie dough cheesecake so that's what I made for her.  It was so delicious! 

The most special part of the day for me was being in the company of this amazing woman, my Gram. 

So cool that we were all together for her birthday two weeks before and here we were again, celebrating another life together.  She was with us on Reese's 1st birthday and we've been able to wish her a happy birthday in person for the past 3 years now.  So special.  

After cake we all made our way back to Destin (are you dizzy yet from all of the back and forth?  We were!) to end the night with some bowling.  I wish I had pictures from that part of our day but I was too busy throwing gutter balls....again.  

That night we got home very late, got very little sleep, and got up very early the next morning for a very, very, very long drive back to Illinois.  We rolled up into the driveway at midnight and spent all day Sunday trying to recover.  You really do need a vacation after vacation sometimes.   

Florida - Day 4

Panama City Beach is beautiful but that beauty is tainted by spring breakers between late February and April.  The sand is littered with beer cans and you can barely walk the beach through the thick crowds.  Not that you'd want to with children in tow....the language alone would be awful much less what they might witness.  That said, we decided to visit the state park to get our beach experience.  We'll save the "real" beach for the summer. 

There wasn't a cloud in the sky.  If not for the strong breeze it would have been a perfect day. 

I cannot believe our crazy kids even stuck a foot in the water.  It was way too cold for my liking.  Again, I prefer summertime when the water is 80 degrees. 

We were having a really nice time when out of the blue a guy walks by wheeling a suitcase behind him.  Sounds weird, right?  Imagine seeing it.  Bizarre is an understatement.  Of course weird guy decides that of all the beach all around us, he's going to sit down next to us, about 15 feet away.  He unfolded a chair and sat down.  About two seconds later he stood back up, reached in his waistband, and pulled out a gun!  He unzipped his suitcase (which was overflowing with who-knows-what), shoved it in there, and zipped it back up.  At this point Kevin and I gave each other the "did I just see what I think I saw" look and within a minute had the kids out of the water, dried off, bags packed, shoes on, and we were headed to the car. 

We stopped by the office on the way out to let them know about dude on the beach with a gun.  They were not concerned and said that they had recently changed the law allowing guns at state parks.  Huh?!?

A beach trip cut short just made for more time for naps before another busy evening.  My brother, Steve, came into town as did my parents and Gram.  Unfortunately we didn't have much time with them before we had to rush off again.  That night on our way back to Niceville we stopped back through Grayton Beach to check out our friends' new art gallery.  Andy Saczynski and his amazing pieces did not disappoint!  He is such an awesome talent. 

Just behind Andy's studio is The Hurricane Oyster Bar which is owned by some other friends of ours.  The BEST oysters ever!  Steve joined us for the evening and got his oyster on, too.

With full bellies we headed towards Niceville making one last stop at Baytowne Wharf to jam out to some music.  The kids danced and ran wild and had a really great time. 

Florida - Days 2 & 3

We decided before we left Illinois that we needed one day of nothing.  Just rest and relaxation by the pool.  So that's how we spent Monday.  We were the first people there and stayed until Talan was in dire need of a nap.  At that point I went back to the condo and helped Kevin get the kids down.  He had work to do so he was tethered to his computer at that point.  Me?  I decided to take complete advantage and headed back to the pool for 2 whole hours of bliss.  I read magazines and soaked up the sun and silence.  It was fabulous. 

That evening we went to The Pier.  Basically a huge tourist trap.  Lots of expensive stores and rides.  We were playing the role of tourists so we dove right in.  The kids were so excited to bounce.

It worked out for us that we went late in the day.  Once the sun went down it got a little chilly.  The kids were cold so we had to leave before we drained our bank account on obnoxiously priced 4-minute rides.  They weren't too upset though, knowing what the next day had in store. 

We were all pretty excited for the next super cheesy tourist activity....the pirate ship. 

It's very safe to say that this was a true highlight for the kids. They had an absolute blast! And it was a lot of fun for us big people, too. We both love boating, even with obnoxious pirates with fake accents and a million out-of-towners. And the real treat for us was that said obnoxious pirates kept the kids entertained for two hours while we took in the view and sipped on cold beverages. It was pretty awesome.

We are used to seeing dolphin having grown up in the area....but it really never gets old. This particular pod had a mother and baby. It was so awesome to sit and watch them.

After our trip, we had just enough time for a short nap before heading out again to meet some friends for dinner.  This time we went to Seagrove Beach.  We drove through one of the newer developments, Alys Beach.  It was insanely gorgeous.

We had a great time at dinner visiting with our friends Nathan & Erin and their two adorable kids, Finn & Morgan. 

We all slept really well that night!