Day 7

Today was the seventh and final full day of our Florida vacation 2008.
Once again I started my morning off with a Double Chocolate Chip from Starbucks coffee shop. I returned home and got ready for the beach. When we arrived at the beach, the waves were picking in and that meant I could ride my new board some more. I continued to ride my board for about 20 minutes and then hit the water. A storm had arose in the sea somewhere and caused seaweed to wade into our beach. Me and Lauren Ashley went and gathered up some clumps of seaweed and began to shake them and noticed fish, crabs, and even shrimp swam rapidly out of them. We went back to shore and got a large net that we could shake the seaweed in. We began to shake it again and caught everything that was in it. This past summer I worked at a Saltwater Fish Store, so I could easily identify the fish we caught. The majority of the fish were Trigger fish and Sexy Shrimp. It was very interesting to work with the fish and shrimp and then swim with them. =]. We gathered our things and returned home. We decided to go back to the mall and make last minute exchanges and purchases of items we hadn't on Thursday. We went to a souvenir shop and I bought key chains for my friends back home. Today was picture day at the beach so we had to hurry home and get ready for pictures. It was a beautiful sunset which made our pictures beautiful. When we finished pictures, we returned home and Maggie, Lauren Ashley, and I left to go to the Sugar Shack, which is an ice cream store down the road. We got lots of ice cream and lots of toppings. We returned home and began to pack our things for tomorrow. Its now time for bed because were leaving tomorrow and have a long ride home.

Day 6

Today was the sixth day of our Florida vacation 2008.
I continued my morningly routine by awaking around 8:00 and headed off to my favorite morning stop, starbucks. I once again ordered the double chocolate chip, and headed back to the house to see what I could find to eat. We had nothing special planned today, so we were just going to hang out at the house and beach. After everyone woke up, ate breakfast, and got ready, we headed for the beach to work on our tan and hunt for seashells. I brought my to board with me to the beach and tried it out. It was a challenge in the beginning but I soon got the hang of it. I swam down the beach and searched for seashells. I found numerous shells and one very beautiful shell that was orange and had no flaws. I continued to search for shells in the water for over an hour and then headed back to the house. When I returned home, I did one of my favorite things to do, which is eat a peanut-butter and jelly sandwich. YUM. When I finished, the rest of the group was arriving home from the beach. Maggie, Lauren Ashley, and I all decided to go swimming in our pool for a while. I taught Maggie how to do a full twisting backflip under water. =]. It was quite fun. When we got out, we dried off and got into some dry clothes. Uncle Guy began to cook hamburgers on the grill while the kids went bike riding. We came home and delicious burgers were ready to eat. Now its bed time and I am worn out.

Day 5

Today was the fifth day of our Florida vacation 2008.

I awoke around 8:00 this morning and immediately got dressed, went down stairs and found my dad waiting on me to head to Starbucks. I once again ordered the Double Chocolate Chip with Extra Chocolate Chips this time. yum. We sat outside of Starbucks and finished off our drinks. We then mounted our bikes and headed back home. When we arrived, the rest of the house hold had awoken also. Several of them were dressed in daily clothes and the others still in sleep wear. Today were we going shopping at numerous mall and stores that were in/around the area in which we were staying. Everyone ate breakfast and got ready to go shopping. Mrs. Liz, Dad, and I were the first to leave to head for the surf shop. Here I searched for a surf board but didnt find one. I could only find skim boards, so I decided to keep looking in other stores before making a purchase. When we left that surf shop, it was time to meet up with the others and head our for some food at Joe's Crab Shack. We left Joe's and headed for the big mall in Destin. Here we found many stores I liked including: American Eagle, Hollister, Oakley, and many other stores in which i took an interest in. As we keep walking down the mall, we came across Maui Nix which was also a surf shop. Me and my dad walked in, and the first thing I saw were the surf boards. Unfortunately, here the waves are not large enough for surfing, so I purchased a blue, black, and white skimboard. It was very nice. We left that mall and headed for another. We found many more stores that I was interested in. When we returned home all the kids hit the pool. All the adults were outside with us having a good time also. Here I am sitting in bed about to go to sleep.

Day 4

Today was the fourth day on our Florida vacation 2008.
Once again, I woke up around 8:00 to head out to Starbucks for a Double Chocolate Chip. Those things are so good, they really get me going. It was only about a 5 minute bike ride both ways from the house were staying at to the Starbucks Coffee Shop. When I arrived back home, I scoured the cabinet in search for something to eat. I found a bag of powdered donuts, which I love to eat. Their were only like 6 or 7 left in the bag so I decided the finish it off. By this time, the rest of the house hold was beginning to wake and move about. Kai again, was the last one up. As everyone began to wake, they also began to get ready for the beach. All of the kids grabbed their boogey boards and headed out to see what kind of waves were arising on the beach today. When we arrived we noticed that their was still a "Yellow" condition flag flying, meaning the waves were calm to moderate. I waded out a little ways and noticed the waves were starting to "white-cap" which means I could ride them back to the shore. I grabbed the boogey board and caught the wave at the perfect time and glided with the waves all the way back to the sandy beach where the rest of the family was. I had now mastered the boogey board and road numerous waves throughout that beach trip. When we returned home, we all washed off and decided to go swimming at our private pool and relax for a while. When we were done with the pool, it was time to get ready for the dolphin cruise that we would be soon enjoying. We arrived at the destination of the loading dock, boarded the boat and headed out into the ocean in search of the dolphins. Halfway through the trip, we spotted dolphins and took numerous pictures (below). When the trip was over, we headed home and enjoyed tacos. Here I am now wandering what tomorrow will bring.

Day 3

Today was the third day on our Florida vacation 2008
I woke up around 7:30, quite a bit earlier than yesterday, to go bike riding with my dad. We biked down the road a good way to find a little shopping center where their was a Starbucks Coffee shop. My dad ordered a Grande size coffee with two shots of expresso, and I ordered a Double Chocolate Chip with Extra Chocolate Chips. yum. When we left their, we noticed next door was a candy/ice cream shop. It was currently closed and didn't open until 10. We biked back home and everyone was up except Kai, hes a late sleeper. We all got on our swim suits and headed down to the beach to have a little fun in the sun. The waves were not as large as they were yesterday, and their was a "Yellow" condition flag, telling us that the water was in fair conditions, current wise. Yesterday, their was a "Red" condition flag, warning us that their was strong current pulling in the ocean. When we returned back home, Kai didn't get to go to the beach because we left him home. So we decided that since he didn't get to go to the beach, that we would give him the choice of what we did that afternoon. Kai got on the internet and started looking up activities to do around the area in which we were staying. He found the Ripleys Believe It or Not Museum which was only 20 miles away. So we gathered our things and headed that way to see what this had in store for us. Their were many interesting exhibits their at the museum, along with a 4-D movie that was an Underwater Adventure. That was very interesting and adventurous. After we left their, we returned home and ate supper. We then headed back to the beach for more crab hunting. We did not find as many crabs today as we did yesterday buy a long shot. Here I am now wandering what tomorrow will hold.
=]

Day 2

Well its day two here on our Florida vacation 2008
I woke up around 10:30 to breakfast and sunshine.
Everyone else was already at the beach and I was soon to follow.
I grabbed my towel, boogie board, and sunscreen and headed out. When I arrived they were all in the ocean jumping the huge waves that were coming in at that time. I hoped on my boogie board and went into the ocean. The waves were enormous, so big you could surf on them. After we left the beach, we headed home and ate spaghetti and drank lemonade. Then everyone headed back over to the community pool where we played volley ball, and played in the water fall/fountain that was in the center of one of the pools. When we arrived back to the house, we all hopped on our bikes and took out to venture the rest of the community. All of the kids decided to play hide and seek on our bikes. Lauren Ashley was "it" first, so we all took out to find our hiding spots somewhere in the community. We continued to play this game for about an hour and then we headed back home. As usual I fixed and ate a peanut-butter and jelly sandwich which was three layers high. Later on that night, we all came into my room to look up restaurants that we would be eating at tomorrow. It is now around 11, and I have had a FULL day, so I am going to get some rest but I will let you know how tomorrow goes..

=]

Day 1 (Arrival)

It's day 1 on our Florida Vacation 2008.
We arrived at the beach house around 2:50 and immediately began
searching the house to pick out our rooms that we would be staying
in for the next week. We then began to unload the car and place our
belongings in our rooms. My cousin Kai and I were in one room with
a balcony view. Then we hit the back yard where the pool was. Kai, Guy,
Parker, Jacob, Lauren Ashley, Maggie, and I all hit the pool and swam
for a good two hours. After every one was dried off and settled down, it
was time to eat. Mrs. Fran, Dad, and Guy grilled hot dogs on the grill.
Everyone ate, and by that time it was getting dark and time for sand crab
hunting on the beach. Everyone grabbed their net and bucket and headed for the beach. I caught nearly 20 crabs with my hand because the net was
just to big and wasn't quick enough for the snappy grab. Once we caught the crabs, we took a couple of pictures and then released all the crabs back
onto the beach. It looked like a crab zoo with all of the sand crabs running
around our feet. Everyone headed back the the house with sandy hands and
feet. Maggie, Lauren Ashely, Kai, and I wanted to go swimming again but
not at our pool this time. We headed out to the community pool which consist of 6 different pools joining together by a waterfall. While we were their, we found two beach balls in which we used to entertain ourselves in our time at the pool. So after the community pool closed we headed back to the house where I ate some snacks, talked with the family for a little while and now here I am.
Who knows what tomorrow will hold. I will let ya know...
=]