Our Surprise Florida Trip, Days 1-3

For Christmas this year, we were fortunate enough to surprise the kiddos with a trip to Florida. We have a long time frined, Paul, who lives in the Valparaiso area, which is in the north-west part of Fl, along the Gulf of Mexico. A year and half ago he lost his wife and our good friend, Jamie. I wish we could have physically been there then. This past year, he lost his father. Paul had been talking about wanting us to fly out to see him for a while now, but the extra cash was never there for us to make the trip, despite us really wanting to make it work. 

Paul, being the giving man that he is, insisted on using some of the money he got from his father's passing to help us pay our way to Florida. With that help, we couldn't pass up the opportunity. Sammy and I booked our flight back in October and kept it a secret from the kids. We decided to do fewer gifts this year, and keep our Florida trip as the kids' main Christmas gift. 

On Christmas morning Paul called and was telling the kids all about how sunny and warm is was in Florida and how he couldn't wait to see us. They were confused for a second, then they understood the surprise, lol. Everyone was very excited! 

It took a lot of work to pack for everyone and get the house and animals all ready for our absence in one day, but we managed! And thankfully, Gma Cathy and our friend Nic graciously agreed to hold down the fort for us while we were away. 

Since our flight left early on the morning of Monday the 27th, we decided to leave Sunday the 26th and stay in a Portland hotel by the airport. This meant an extra night away, which I wasn't too thrilled about because of how hard it is for me to be away from my dog, but it would make life easier. 

Day 1! 

The kids hadn't been on a plane since Timothy was 2! So they were all a good mix of excited and anxious. Getting through the airport and security wasn't an issue, and the flight there went exceedingly well. The kids enjoyed free movies, lots of snacks, and complimentary soda! 

We arrived at the Pensecola airport in the late afternoon. Paul picked us up and we had about an hours drive to his place in Valparaiso. Paul has a home in a little nook of Valparaiso called Hidden Cove. It's right on a small bayou called Tom's Bayou. He's got a small personal dock, as well as a shared community dock. Paul has a kiddo still at home, and now lives with his new lady friend, Kim, as well as her son. The kids wasted no time getting aquainted and headed out right away to do a bit of night dock fishing. 

 

Day 2!

Paul had to unexpectedly spend some time at work, so we took the kids to stroll HarborWalk Village in nearby Destin. It was a collection of shops, restaurants, and activities along Destin's waterfront. We went to East Pass Seafood & Oyster House where we got a delicious meal before walking the shops, stopping in at a laser game that Molly and Timothy participated in, and getting ice cream for the kiddos at The Fudgery. 

Afterwards, on our way back to the house, we stopped at Henderson Beach State Park so we could dig our toes in the sand and relax a bit after all our walking! The kids didn't get in and swim, mostly because we weren't prepared.....not because they didn't want to.....but we enjoyed our first time at a Florida beach all the same! The sand is white and squeaky, haha. 

We ended the night with a bit more night time dock fishing! When we weren't actively out doing something, the dock is where you would find the kids, especially the boys. Molly enjoyed a lot of relax time in the cute little wood and stone sun room Paul has. 

Day 3! 

Day 3 was probably my favorite. We did so much! We started the day out with a little hike at Turkey Creek Trail in nearby Niceville. This was an amazingly fun trail. It was all boardwalk, which was awesome, with lots of little docks you could go hang out on. I can see how it is probably a very popular place for the locals during the summer months. We didn't need it to be summer for us to get in the water though, haha. The best part about our walk was at the very end, just as we were reaching the car, it started to dump rain! It was literally a downpour! I couldn't help but laugh at the thought of all those families we passed, pushing strollers, caught out in the rain, lol. We had perfect timing. 

 

 

After our walk, we headed back to the house for some hang time while we waited for Paul and the others to be ready for the day. (Yes, we were always up and ready for the day long before everyone else, lol). After collecting ourselves, we all went to a trampoline park for an hour or so, and then to Fudpucker's Beachside Bar and Grill where they have a self guided alligator tour! That was super fun! I loved the sweet baby alligators. THey had alligators there of all ages. We even got to hold one and have our photo taken! A bit touristy, but that's exactly what we were, so I didn't mind. We ate dinner in their restaurant and then heded next door to their arcade. We all played, but wound up giving Timothy all the tickets so he could get himself some goodies. He was so stoked! 

 

To end the evening, we decided to take a night stroll on the Okaloosa Island Pier. This is the pier where Paul and his son like to sometimes go fishing, so it was fun for us to see where he was always talking about, even at night time. The glow of all the lights on the beach and ocean were amazingly beautiful. My silly camera phone definitely didn't do the view justice. I really enjoyed that walk. It was such a fun way to end one of my favorite days there! 

More to come! 

With love,

Mama Hauck