Vacay as a Family of 4

Don’t get me wrong, I certainly wanted to get away from the gloomy Wisconsin weather for awhile, but just the thought of packing and traveling with our mini’s was giving me slight anxiety. I was stressed about what I would need to pack for the kids…like, “Do I bring their monitors?” “How many outfits should I bring for each kiddo?” “Do I pack diapers or do I save room and buy them when we get there?” EEEEK! I was overthinking ever little thing. Vacation is supposed to be relaxing right? All I could think is, it might be easier to just stay home. Hindsight, I realize how crazy I was for thinking that way (haha)! Thank God for my husband! He puts up with me and my nuttiness… He assured me everything will be fine; he was right, he’s always right somehow (eye-roll)! If you were wondering… Yes, we brought their monitors and yes I packed their diapers along with waaaaaaay too many outfits each, but ya know what? I’m so glad I did! Totally worth it!

As soon as I finished packing for all 4 of us, I then began getting nervous about the flight. I have never been an anxious or nervous flyer… until I had children. If I am on a plane and it goes down that’s one thing, but my babies being in any type of danger scares me more than imaginable! I needed to remind myself that God is watching over us and HE is ultimately in control! Giving all my fears to the Lord gave me the confidence I needed during our travels. Being calm and collected (I believe) helped keep Lazar and Mila calm on the flight since they both did amazing! Our sweet little travelers exceeded our expectations. They are truly wonderful! Also, and SO important, traveling with Grandma and Grandpa was clutch! Without them, I don’t think things would have went as smoothly!

With the flight behind us, it was now time to get ALL our luggage and the rented van. We decided to check Mila’s carseat and rent Lazar’s. This worked very well! Renting Lazar’s carseat was worth every penny… not sure we could have managed lugging around two carseats. The only reason I brought Mila’s, is because she is still in an infant one and it clicks right into our double stroller, which Paul’s parents brought down for us (since they drove). That worked wonderfully! Thankfully we had one set of grandparents fly with us and the other set driving down with a couple of larger items like our stroller and pack-n-play (talk about life savers)! What a treat it was having both sets of grandparents on the trip to make memories with!

As soon as we got to the house we rented, it was bedtime for the kiddos. Lazar is old enough now to realize he was in a strange place. He was not happy that first night… This is where the monitor totally came in handy. Lazar finished his bottle and I placed him in the crib (provided by the house) just like I do at home, but with the added exhaustion from traveling all day and the new surroundings he wasn’t pleased. I knew he would fall asleep in a jiffy if I just let him be. So having the monitor to keep an eye on him was perfect! He was out within minutes! Bringing his noise machine and a crib sheet with familiar smells of home was also helpful in aiding him to sleep! It’s the little details I swear by!

Waking up in that beautiful house was so refreshing! The decor was exceptional and the location was great; minutes away from the beach and yummy restaurants (like Starbucks for our morning coffee runs)! I was so happy I didn’t chicken out and opt out of this vacation! I wanted to move in for good after the first night!

I loved that Lazar and Mila seemed right at home as well! They were able to nap, while Mama got some much needed sun! I was so thankful for every moment! Of course not everything went off without tears here and there, but for the most part the kiddos did fantastic and I’m honestly proud of them!

There were days spent on the beach and days spent at the home we rented in the pool. I quickly realized the Florida heat and humidity for a 4 month old can be a bit much. Mila wasn’t the biggest fan of the beach, but we certainly made the most of it! Lazar loved the water, although it took him a couple tries to get used to it. So again, having the help of family and friends was such a blessing!

It was definitely a unanimous feeling that everyones favorite time to be at the beach was at sunset! We took this vacation with a bunch of family and friends so we knew it would be challenging to make plans with such a large crowd, especially with mini’s involved, so meeting up each night on the beach for sunset was so special! Not to mention beautiful!

God truly blessed us with amazing family and friends! Being able to travel with them was an absolute pleasure! I will remember this trip for a lifetime. Each day was a new adventure, even if that “adventure” was just taking a walk down to the local park, it was a blast! Without my parents and Paul’s parents I don’t know if we would have been able to do it. At least not as smoothly! Having a glass of wine and chatting each night as the babies slept was one of the other memories that is just so simple but so great. The laughs and good company were even better than the sandy beaches and palm trees!

I swear Lazar and Mila both grew so much on this trip! Paul and I made sure to get our cuddles in with them and really soaked up this beautiful family vacay as a family of 4!