Florida - On the Gulf

 We arrived in Camp Gulf on Friday, May 23 and parked our RV near the beach. The large campground was very full for Memorial Day weekend. The boys wanted to take a look at the beach, so almost immediately we tore the tags off our new swimsuits, boogie boards, and beach chairs and got ready to head to the beach. It was gorgeous! The sand was white and soft between our toes and the water was relatively warm. The boys and I walked out to catch some waves. There were a few that carried us to shore and we all four had fun. Mark enjoyed snapping pictures of us. The sun was starting to set and the scenery was absolutely beautiful.

I don’t know if anyone else has the same feeling when they arrive at the ocean, but for me, hearing the crash of the waves, feeling the sand between my toes, and smelling the salty sea air reminds me of many vacations I’ve taken to the ocean. As a young girl growing up, on into my teens, my college years, and vacations Mark and I have taken together, beach vacations rate among the best times I can remember. There’s something amazing about the power of the ocean, a single wave can toss me to the ground, carry me to shore, or be gentle and lulling. I could tell the boys were having a great time too and it was fun to share these moments with them.

Saturday, May 24 was an incredibly fun-filled day. Camp Gulf gave us a flyer of activities they had planned to celebrate Memorial Day. At the end of the day, we looked back at the flyer and realized we had done every single activity…and we even spent a couple hours boogie boarding in the afternoon. If you are curious, our day looked like this:

10:00am T-shirt Painting (paint your own Camp Gulf T-shirt); the boys all colored T-shirts and I colored a bag

11:00am – 1pm Hippo slide Free (a HUGE blow-up waterslide that normally costs money per ride); Jimmy and Luke took advantage of this, getting several rides in

3:00pm – Parade Decorating – Luke napped while Brennan and Jimmy decorated their new bikes for the parade

4:00pm – Memorial Day Parade – Luke still napping, Mom and Dad sat outside the RV and watched Jimmy and Brennan ride their bikes in the parade through the campground

4:30pm – Spray Ride – Brennan and Jimmy rode in a trailer that took them through several spraying stations

5:30pm- Fish Fry – YUM! (Plus, I didn’t have to cook!)

8:00pm – Outdoor movie, “The Nut Job”

What an exciting day!

Our internet connection is not very good here at Camp Gulf, so you’ll probably get this a few days late. However, I was able to connect to Facebook a few times and heard some tragic news about a family from my hometown. A couple I grew up with lost their middle son in a plane crash this week. While I can’t imagine the devastation his family is going through right now, I’m holding onto his mom’s words today, “Hold your kids, appreciate them, take vacations and camping trips. Work can wait. Trust me. We made this sacrifice and for that I will be eternally grateful....we are not promised tomorrow.”