Smothered, Covered, Chopped-Destin 2018 Pt. 2

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I mentioned in part one the traffic hell we experienced on the road to Destin.

Just after the Alabama rooster incident, Ella got car sick and had “sick” all over her clothes. Thank God she had layers on (us Midwesterners, always prepared), so we literally stripped her down in an abandoned parking lot, threw out her blanket, and made an executive decision: she is riding in the front seat.

I got in the driver’s seat, and two teens (Anna and her best friend) were in the backseat furiously googling “age allowed to sit in the front seat.” It turns out it was legal in Alabama.

Six hours later, we were finally there.

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Side note: we’ve jokingly called Simone our third daughter for as long as I can remember. She lives across the street and has been friends with Anna since Anna was in kindergarten and Simone was in preschool. Summers were spent almost entirely in our home, she’s gone on trips with us, and she’s very much part of our family.

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Our first stop after getting our feet in the sand was The Back Porch. We went last year and the kids loved it so much we came back again.

The main reason we go is that you’re essentially eating dinner right on the beach. We can’t afford to eat out every night, so we usually do the first and last night, and cook in the condo the rest of the time.

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After ordering, the girls ran straight back to the beach to play in the sand, then again after dinner. That kind of life is very appealing in a way that makes us all question why we live where we do.

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The first morning in Destin, Mike and I were awake at 5:45 for no clear reason, so I immediately looked up the hours for our favorite donut shop. They opened at 6, and I’d heard there was a line, so we decided to let the girls sleep and go grab donuts for them.

And for us too.

Some people get up early to work out. Some people get up early to wait in line for fresh donuts.

I feel like you’re either one or the other.

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The Donut Hole has really good donuts, with specialties like Key Lime and Red Velvet. The regular chocolate iced ended up being our favorite.

They also have the best Key Lime pie in Destin, so don’t skip that.

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Our resort has everything. Except heated pools.

We still swam in them anyway because Northerners.

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Note to self: never stay anywhere within walking distance of a Waffle House. Every time I passed that window, I saw my waffle friend just looming, quietly pulling me in.

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Ella didn’t feel well for most of the beginning of the trip, and honestly probably most of it. We ended up taking her to a minute clinic on day three (pollen aggravating a lingering virus), and after an inhaler and stronger cough syrup, she finally started to feel better.

On the day we were leaving.

But she powered through it, laughing through coughing, still fully in every moment.

That picture above was taken on morning two when she felt awful. She wanted to walk the beach with me anyway.

I will love that picture for the rest of my life.

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We try to pick one big adventure each vacation, something we don’t usually do at home. Last year it was parasailing. This year it was renting a pontoon boat, going to an island, finding hermit crabs, anchoring, picnicking, and swimming in freezing water among sea creatures.

Much better than last year’s jet ski adventure from hell.

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On our final night last year, we tried to go to Lulu’s, the restaurant owned by Jimmy Buffett’s sister. It had great reviews and a beach the kids could play on while we ate.

It was raining, so we ended up at Hooters instead. The girls had never been, and what was supposed to be a backup dinner ended up being one of their favorites.

So this year when we tried Lulu’s again and saw a 2.5-hour wait, I was out.

I love food. I don’t love food that much.

When I suggested our traditional last-night Hooters dinner, you would’ve thought I suggested Disney World.

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We had big plans for our morning in Nashville on our way home. Simone had never been, Mike wanted us to meet a coworker there for lunch, and we planned to walk Broadway.

Then it was 35 degrees and raining. And we were all kind of over it. Actually, more honestly, Mike and I were over it.

We had a little tiff. I had my first migraine of the trip. And suddenly all of us just wanted to be home, out of the car, and back with our dog, who we had serious separation anxiety over.

Being in a car for 20 hours with your family always sounds better than it is.

But I did want to see the angel wings in The Gulch.

Before the tiff, I had told Mike and texted him the address so it would be ready in GPS.

After the tiff, we all got in the car in silence. Anna in front, Simone behind me, Ella next to me in the back.

Then I started crying.

As I sat there quietly crying, Anna turned around and took my hand. Ella put her hand on top of ours. Mike quietly told Anna to plug the address into GPS.

We got there a few minutes later.

Mike and I hugged in the parking lot, realizing how small the tiff really was, and the girls ran to the wings.

That moment is one I will never forget.

Not because of the wings, but because of what happened in the car.

Because my girls were comforting me, and my husband was quietly making sure I still got something I needed even when I wasn’t easy to be around.

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We joked a lot on this trip about Buddy being my comfort dog because of my anxiety. Anytime something stressful came up, Mike and I would laugh about how I didn’t have him there.

Ella, who inherited my anxiety, asked what a comfort dog actually does. I explained, and she hugged me and said, “Mom, you are my comfort person.”

Gulp. ❤️

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It briefly hit me that this might be our last spring break trip with Annie. Not the last trip, but maybe the last spring break one.

I know this isn’t the end of anything, but it felt like a shift.

We take our daughters on trips for a lot of reasons—memories, experiences, adventure—but I think the deeper reason is this: when we leave our normal lives, we become a smaller unit again. Closer. More aware of each other. Less distracted.

I hope they remember that part too.