And we're off!!!

Yes, you read right... this little family of 3 is soooo anxious for their first vacation with Katherine Grace!  We didn't think it would happen this year with all of the other expenses, adoption fees & such.  But, after a few months of SAVING and not eating out, and using some serious coupons... we've managed to save up & pay for a week long vacation at the beach (& we even got beach front!)!  I promise I'm not bragging, I'm simply reminding myself how a little "doing without" can be so rewarding later on!  :)  Plus, it definitely helped, because we planned the week prior to Memorial Day - we managed to get an incredible deal & afford beach front.  Amazing how dramatic the prices get just one week later!  So thankful we planned this way and didn't have to settle... instead we got way more than we could have hoped for in a vacation!

So... you ask... "where are you going?"  Well, this charming little beach house is where we're off to first thing Sunday morning! (excuse the quality... I borrowed it from the website)  Its a 5 bedroom little house, with a large front porch, and AMAZING back porch that extends the entire back of the house!  Incredible views from the house and even allowed us to bring our sweet dogs!  You might wonder why on earth we needed a 5 bedroom house - well... my parents are coming down for a couple of days.  Then, Richard's parents are planning to come down for the last part of the week.  Allowing us time with our families, and a little down time with just us!

And this... well... this is the beautiful beach outside our back door!

And that girl you see walking along the beach at sunset (possibly sunrise, not sure)... well, thats not me.  However, this momma WILL be out there every evening & EVERY morning walking the coast & reflecting on His beautiful creation!  The beach is by far the most relaxing place on earth for me.  I cannot possibly explain the way it makes me feel & reminds me how BIG our God is!  I am excited to spend the time off really getting into the Word, and digging deep into what it is God has for us next!

You may be curious what packing for a week long trip with a 4 1/2 month old might look like... or maybe not... but here you go anyway!  This is the result of JUST Katherine Grace's stuff.  Everything from clothes, swim suit, sandals, bumbo seat, travel swing (thank you Amy!!!), formula, rice cereal, bowls/spoons, dishwasher basket for bottles, cleaning spray, beach tent, towels & play matt!  Amazing!  This should be fun.  Not to mention we still have to include our own items in the packing, plus our two dogs!  Oh my, what have we done!  haha

And a little side note:  THIS BOOK IS AMAZING!  I won't lie... a little tear jerker.  But my baby girl loves for me to read to her and we found this book at Target the other day!  Its called Someday!  You must check it out!  Its now a tie between this book & Shoey & Dot... both are my favorites currently!

I'm so excited I cannot stand it!  But first things first.... we're off to photograph a wedding out of town, then drive back (probably won't be home until almost 2am), only to leave the following morning at 7am sharp!  How crazy are we???!!!

Well, there you have it!  The crazy life we live.  I wouldn't have it any other way though!  Hope you all have a fabulous week and I cannot wait to share with you pictures from our adventure!  Wish us luck!

Until then... Brantley