For the first time in years, we took a real-deal, family vacation.

Before we had Iris I loved to travel – whether for work or for fun. From road trips to flights to Mexico, I always looked forward to the next adventure. Once Iris was born, the thought of leaving her for a business trip made me tear up, but if I thought about bringing her with me, I still teared up (that’s a lot of work on top of work). When she turned two I started to get the travel itch again, but in a different way. Sure those girls trips to Vegas were a blast, but experiencing a new place through the eyes of a toddler takes travel to a new level. I knew that I wanted our first real vacation to be to the beach.

In January I started researching properties on VRBO and finally settled on this cute little carriage house in Rosemary Beach, Florida. I counted down the days and started packing about a week ahead of time. Rosemary Beach is about a 15 hour car ride away (with all the pit stops), but it was well worth it. Thank god for the Frozen on the iPad.

Rosemary is beautiful. Simply lovely. There are no chain restaurants, lots of families, tree lined streets, white sand beaches, stunning buildings and homes, hidden pathways, and amazing community pools. We rode our bikes or walked everywhere, spending our days at the ocean and pool, with lots of food and drinks in between. Iris loved – I mean LOVED – the water. Typically she’s afraid of getting her head or eyes wet, but watching her play on the beach was pure joy. I could have sat there in the sand and watched her forever.

This trip is something I’ll always look back on with such fond memories. My hope now is that we can make it a tradition.

VACATION in INSTAGRAM