Our Little Horned Frogs: Alabama Vacay: Day 2

So here we are, Day 2 of our vacation (yes I am writing this post-trip, but let's focus and pretend that its really Day 2). First I want to share my favorite photo op. Before our evening stroll on the beach, we found the perfect place to pose together for a family picture. And we didn't even need assistance. Thanks to some McGuyver like work by moi, and a little help from the timer on the camera, we got this shot in four attempts. I love it!

So we started our first full day on the beach by arriving early and picking a place to park our gear for the week. The beauty of coming after school starts and to Gulf Shores is how alone we were. There were probably five families on the beach the same time we were all week. We picked a spot and it was ours the rest of the week. Here is Kaitlyn announcing that this is the spot for us. AJ is more interested in pushing cars around in his new huge sandbox.

On the right is a picture of CAMP FRIEDMAN. It was a happy place, with shade and toys and snacks.

Once a spot was picked, we did what any beach lover does. We stuff our toes in the water and appreciated the beautiful view of the ocean. Then, after a moment of relaxation, we got busy! It was time to build some sand castles and use these new toys we brought. First lesson, Daddy taught us how we need water and sand to make the sand stick together.

After some hard work by Daddy (Mommy called herself "management" and read a book while supervising he-he), and some assistance from KK and AJ, our first sand castle was built. We opted for more of a spread out compound versus a tall tower. Ariel and Ken were very happy to romp around and destroy the place after we took pics.

Another glorious thing about vacay: naps! And with a morning at the beach, we were even able to convince KK to take one. Ahhh - it was wonderful! We ended our day with yet another trip to the beach. It was my favorite time of day. The sun setting over the water.. we took a nice long walk along the beach until dark.

Here are the kids ~ stopping for a quick pic before racing for the beach.

Now the picture person that I am, I couldn't resist trying to get a few family shots before it got darker and before we started playing. I laugh so hard at this one, I am not sure what little man was doing but it cracks me up.

The "real" shot :-)

Below: just a perfect view that we got to walk by every day.

Here are some shots from our walk that night -- notice KK in the water here smiling without holding on to anyone? Remember that.. by day 4 (thanks to some jellyfish) that won't happen again on the trip without effort. Below: me and KK dancing in the water.