Our favorite vacation ever!

The greatest sandcastle ever, and some boogie boardin' fun!

John and Saige spent some time creating this beauty! Completge with clam shell accents aroung the edges, a bridge and a moat.


What a nice big sister! Saige let Wyatt destroy the castle not long after it was finished.



These are out of order a bit, but this is it. The completed castle, the artists, and the soon to be demolition team.

Hard at work.

Working on his tan!

We got to spend a day with our friends the Craners. Here is Saige with Allison and Sarah heading out to boogie board. These girls could have boogied all day!

Wyatt doing "frog jumps" over the waves

Moody Gardens, Galveston, TX

We did take one day of our non-touristy vacation and drove 40 miles up the coast to Galveston where we went to the Moody Gardens Aquarium. A bit pricey, but worth it.


Saige, Wyatt and I at the start of the tunnel 'o' fish

Saige with a big reef-looking thing behind her

Wyatt observing a stingray up close

Oh yes, I need one of these at home! Too bad they didn't sell them in the gift shop! :)

Entering the tunnel 'o' fish

Surfside Vacation continued

There is definitely still a lot of damage from Hurrican Ike. Not all of the building have been repaired. I'm guessing this one will have to be demolished...


Evening wagon ride along the beach.



Taken a break in the shade

You know that SOMEONE had to be buried in the sand! :)

Saige heading out to boogie board to her heart's content!

Ummm, I think this is a new form of yoga...Toddler Beach Yoga??

Surfside Beach, TX Vacation 2010

This was absolutely the best vacation we have had! Vacations are supposed to be a break from a routine, vacations are all about trying something new, vacations are about experiencing a new environment. When you have a child with Autism, vacations are absolutely the furthest thing from relaxing! Children with Autism like routines. Children with Autism like "sameness". Children with Autism are usually NOT content in a new environment, or with trying new things. Every vacation we have taken up until now has been....stressful to say the least. This summer we tried to plan a vacation that both Wyatt and the rest of our family could enjoy. He loves sand, he loves water, so do we. We looked for the closest beach we could drive to, and found Surfside beach texas to be the perfect vacation spot for us. There is not much to do in this town except the beach, and several miles of beach homes, two restaurants, and a convenience store. We didn't care. We were there for the sun, sand, water, and some relaxing family time. We didn't have the distractions that we would have had in a more "touristy" town with lots of stuff to do. We established a great routine...wake up when we want to...hang out in our pajamas all morning...put on our swimsuits...walk the 50 steps it took us to get to the beach...and relax. Nice. Can't wait to go back!

Saige collecting shells in her bucket. The beach was full of clam shells, I've never seen so many in my life. We also saw a dead baby shark wash to shore (no it wasn't the tar balls that got him), and a few jellyfish.

Wyatt taking a break, relaxing with a refreshing CarpiSun in hand.

The view from our condo. 50 steps. That's all. Oh how I wish we could be there now!

(more to come, couldn't fit it all in one post...)