July 26 -29, 2013  marked the first family vacation with the ENTIRE family that being our newest edition Hunter Jackson Long who came into this word on January 29th.  Summer is always hectic around our house...4-H work, garden work, yard work, work work work...did I mention work?  Anyway we were excited to get to take a few days...get away and just have fun being together!

Mary Audrey has been asking us for weeks when we were going to the beach.  Well the time had finally arrived and as we left Blocker Rd she held her sand bucket and shovel tightly as she drifted off to sleep along with her brother.  We had only been on the road for about 30 minutes when she woke up and informed me that we needed to find a gas station so she could get out and throw a ball with me since "she had been in this car seat way too long!" ( By the way this is a tradition that we started on a recent trip to Chattanooga where we stopped outside of Fort Payne and threw the ball around while momma fed Hunter. )

As we traveled down the familiar roads..I was taken back several years to my childhood when my family, along with the families of Jerry Ray, and Tommy Morgan all went to Gulfport on vacation.  It was my first time to the beach and I remember the excitement that Mary Audrey was feeling and it was so good to relive those moments through her eyes.

As we approached the beach I made sure to stay on Hwy 49 as to add to the presentation.  As it came into view I said to MA...Look there look what I see!!  She became ecstatic! She started screaming "Daddy Daddy I knew you could make it!!!!"  Oh the words of a child that speak so true..

We had a great time.  We ate good food we collected sea shells...we played and played and played. As I sat on the beach with my family watching Hunter clutch fist fulls of sand and MA making "birthday cakes"..I took a moment closed my eyes and as I  thanked God for my blessings, I felt the warm gulf breeze on my face, as the small waves lapped the shore into the inner workings of my heart.