beach babe

So last week we packed up Miss Ruby and all of her stuff and all of our stuff, and we headed to the beach.  Steve earned a "free" trip to Florida through his work for all of his sales last year!  What a good excuse to get away as a family.  Ruby was a trooper on the plane.  The airports were filled with so much entertainment that she skipped naps until we got up in the air.  Mom just had to stand in the aisle and rock her for 5 minutes, and she was out for an hour.  A couple of the flights her ears got to her on the way down, but we used pacifiers and nursing as best we could.  She was quite popular on most of the flights, as we were flying to Naples (a popular spot for our nation's senior citizens) and we heard lots of stories about great grandchildren from across the country. :)  The plus side is that there were lots of people happy to play peek-a-boo with her from across the aisle.

 During our days in Naples, we spent most of our time at the resort.  It had it's own private beach and a couple of pools.  Between playing in the sand, splashing in the pool, and watching other kids play, Ruby had quite a good time.  Ruby loved to kick her feet in the sand and got a kick out of Mommy and Daddy building sand piles for her to destroy.  She only tried to eat it once or twice, I think she quickly learned that sand in your mouth isn't a pleasant feeling!  We upgraded our room to a suite, so that during Ruby's nap times and after bedtime, Steve and I could relax.  It was nice to actually read a magazine for the first time since Ruby was a tiny infant.  We did take one day trip to Sanibel island.  It was a bit windy and stormy though, so we didn't get the time seashelling that we though we might and instead introduced Ruby to her first icecream.  We did have a few social engagements to attend along with the other employees of Iowa Realty.  Again Ruby was pretty popular, as we were the only family to take a baby on the trip.  At times she was quite the ham, smiling and playing with everyone.  After a while though, she just kind settled into a gaze and took it all in. 

 Now we are back to work and the cold, and Ruby is feeling more and more seperation anxiety, as she became used to both parents being around during her week in Florida.  Of course, she is adjusting and is hard at work on her crawling and her talking.   Hope the pics of the sun and surf bring you warm thoughts on a chilly November day!