2. "Only daddy can catch the really big ones."
3. A year makes a really big difference: Sam didn't eat the sand, Kendall preferred the ocean to anything else, and Cooper became obsessed with the Wii instead of obsessed with the pool.
4. No matter how much they appreciate the effort, your fellow roommates will still make fun of the fact that you planned a weekly menu and shopping list. Every. Day.
5. Tiny miracles DO happen. Like, for example, our children never got the super-contagious stomach bug that ran through the condo like a California wildfire.
6. The World Cup overrides everything. And I mean, everything.
7. There can be tar balls "in Destin" but they will probably only be in one area. Like, our area. And when I say "area" I mean, the 20 yards directly in front of our beach.
8. We will never bring a tailgating tent to the beach again. Year 1 w/ the tent found it stolen after the first night. Year 2 found it caught in a wind storm while I was alone on the beach. It almost took out an elderly woman's head and a nice drunk man down the beach had to catch it for me and hold on to it for dear life while we waited for the wind to die down. His child was screaming out of fear of all the things flying through the air and his drink never left his hand, but neither did my tent, so maybe I shouldn't complain? There will be no Year 3 tent stories.
9. You can almost always bribe your children to smile. However, the price is HIGH and the smile is BRIEF. And, most likely, fake.
10. Knock-Knock jokes are HILARIOUS. Even without a punchline. For example, "Knock-knock! Who's There? Peanut!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Get it? Yeah, no, us either.
11. Even nice, well-mannered, polite men with good morals can cheat at board games.
12. Apparently it is very much not normal to wash your vegetables with soap and water.
13. If your shrimp smells bad, return it immediately. It is possible that the guy at the fish counter might very well admit that "I knew we had a bad batch of shrimp. I tried to tell Management but they wouldn't listen." Then go find a new place to buy your fish.
14. It's possible to hear the bulk of your nation's news from other condo residents while swimming with your kids in the pool. I never laid eyes on a newspaper, a news broadcast or so much as the Today Show the entire week. I even missed the record-breaking Wimbledon match, which I even had 3 days to catch a part of.
15. The ocean has a "deep end" and a "shallow end." According to a certain 3 year old. For the record, the deep end was her favorite. As well as the "wave pool" in the deep end.
16. We unofficially spent WAY less money than last year on groceries. I would like to believe it was thanks to my menu and organization and had nothing to do with the fact that at least 2 people were sick all day everday after Tuesday.
17. We are fairly certain there was at least one person napping at all times of the day, everyday when you include naps for kids, naps for adults, sick children, and sick adults.
18. A 20 ounce Gatorade is officially the LAST thing you should give your 3 and 5 year old to drink on a 10 hour car ride.
19. Basically, we've learned at least one thing the past 4 years of this vacation: Have No Expectations. It will be wonderful, regardless of what you're hoping for. When I say "expectations" I'm really talking about family portraits on the beach in cute, matching outfits.
20. No matter how difficult the week can end up being, you still miss the good parts: the beach, the pool, the relaxation, the family time. Even the sand in my bed gets a little missed after we're home. 
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