The top ten reasons why family vacations are not only important...they are necessary.
10. You get to watch people grow. Even if you are lucky enough to see family regularly, which we are not, there is a certain difference when you all are placed outside of the usual setting. You are able to see how much people have changed and matured (well, hopefully ;)) Watching our nephew play in the ocean and exhaust himself at the beach was amazing. He is growing so fast and is getting cuter by the minute.
9. You can learn new things. For our family, we always play games at night after everyone is exhausted from the sun and sand. Sometimes we will bring out the mad-libs and laugh until we hurt. This year, Daniel and I got to learn a new game that has since proven to be quite addicting....bring on, the FARKLE! Daniel even bought a t-shirt at the outlet Nike while we were there just to wear during Farkle...which Aunt Kathy promptly took away from him as she kicked his butt! Since vacation, Daniel and I have added it to our game night for the two of us.
8. This sort of goes along with the previous one. A little healthy competition can make for a fun night! Family members are the best people to challenge to a competition, because no matter who wins, or how many lines are thrown out in the heat of the game, everyone still loves each other in the end.
7. When you are removed from your everyday environment and only have to worry about what you WANT to do that day, it can provide for time to think about your life. This year, I spent many moments just relaxing and thinking about the journey that we are on. The baby inside of me is growing so fast, and things are about to change dramatically. For seven years, it has just been Daniel and I. This year on vacation, I was able to not only be "selfish" for the last time, but also center my heart in preparation for what was to come. Sometimes when I would meditate, my stomach would move and so of course, people wanted to feel that little man kick. Every time it happened, I was reminded and interrupted in my calm thoughts of what the near future will be, and I can't wait!!
6. Laughter is God's greatest gift. It keeps us healthy. On family vacations....we tend to do an enormous amount of it!! I wonder sometimes if every family gets along as well as ours does, because we are TRULY happy to be in each other's company, and laughter is inevitable. One of my mother's finest features are her smile lines....and she is proud of each one!
5. One word....relaxation. Something we rarely get in this world. But it is the perfect way to recharge the battery!!
4. Good food! This could not have hit home for me more than this year (haha) when everything in sight sounds delicious. Our family always cooks for each other every night of vacation. We basically each get a night, and year-to-year they don't vary too much. I like the predictability of it though because I look forward to that food so much! Pizza Saturday, Goulosh Sunday, Grill Out Monday, Tony Taco Tuesday...the list goes on, and it is all so GOOD! We usually go out with just a few people for lunch too. This year, Daniel and I went with Megan and Andrew for lunch at Pompeno Joes.
3. Experiencing new things, even if you've had some variation of it in the past. Yes, we go to the ocean every year together. But, every time something is different. This year, we experienced our first tropical storm which kept us cooped inside for two days. This was also the first year we were joined by Jake (Leah's boyfriend), Jessica/Ellie (Emily's friend and her daughter), and Shane (Julie's boyfriend). Having new people adds so many fun elements.
2. Experiencing beautiful things and surroundings. Missing people that noramlly go on vacation, also changes things. This was our first year back to Destin without Uncle Tony. It was extremely emotional at times to not have him there, but yet, in only Tony fashion...he made his presence known. He continues to make things beautiful everyday, and it is a constant reminder how much he impacted our lives. If anyone in this world would want family vacations to happen every year, no matter what was going on in your life that you thought you couldn't get away from, it would be him.
1. The number one reason to go on annual family vacation is of course....for the pictures! haha Just kidding.. We kind of like to be together too, but the family pictures that we can update in our frames are an added bonus in such a beautiful location. :)
In trying to take some bump ones...baby boy decided to make known that he wanted to be in the shot as well and kicked me like crazy.
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