As my husband is driving us (at least part way) back to Kansas ..from our first ever spring break trip to Santa Rosa Beach, Florida with our four adult-ish kids. I am realizing just how lucky we are to get to head to the ocean.. for a second time while raising them! The last time was ten years ago!! Our oldest, Keith is now twenty-one, Landon is twenty, Ike is eighteen and Aleah is soon-to-be seventeen!!

My advice is to wear the shorts and/or swimsuit.. even if it’s not your jam, do the things you maybe wouldn’t normally.. your kids are gonna remember all the little extras!! ..Even if they act like little asses at the time! It’s impossible for them to all be completely self-absorbed at the same time.. right?! The hard parts will be overlooked! The funny parts will be remembered.. and the best memories of your life can be created~ if you believe and do your best to allow it to unfold. Knowing there will be good, bad and different parts!

My husband said, “it is such a learning process to realize it’s up to us to create our own happiness!” We can be bitchy because our kids are crabby from staying up too late or we can set the tone, let it roll off and find joy in all the chaos!

I honestly, for the first time feel like I have myself in check, as far as not feeling responsible for others actions! I am at the calmest state I’ve ever been! It’s taken a lot of concentrated effort and determination! I love to help and make others happy! I also know that happiness is something we can extract from common things in our lives!

Yes, I am writing about extracting happiness in the normalcy! In a normal work day, in a common experience! I am also here to say that a trip can be as beautiful and happy as you decide!

Not gonna lie, I was not feeling happy or beautiful when we first arrived to Nashville on the first leg of our trip!! I was over-exhausted and needed rest! I pulled it together to be able to go down to the restaurant at our hotel and get on the thirty minute waiting list. My husband, John, who is a realtor had a contract addendum to submit for some clients. He had also received the news that his mentor/broker was getting ready to draw up a contract on a home he agreed to show John’s clients. Who would have thought they would want to make an offer, after seeing it for a third time, while John was out of town?! .. so exciting! I knew it was important to set the tone and end our first night on an up note! We ended up getting a front row table to watch an adorable artist/musician, Drea Gordon sing her little heart out! The kids and John said that was one of the best memories of Nashville for them!

The trickiest part of traveling with a family is all the luggage! Johnny and I are a good team! I get all the stuff ready and he has loading it down to an art! We have to laugh when we want to scream at the constant loading and unloading of our stuff! Hey, at least we have stuff!! Yes, I am the queen of overpacking.. my husband has accepted it! I know as long as we have food, we will have happy-ish kids! Snacks are their jam!

There were plenty of parts that weren’t perfect on our trip! Nonetheless, we feel blessed and fortunate to be in a position to take our family on a vacation! I can only remember taking two vacations growing up and both times we visited family while on our trip! My husband grew up traveling quite a bit more than me because his dad sold farm equipment internationally. He also has family and Mexico and Canada and had the opportunity to visit while growing up!

Some of the funniest parts of this trip include, Keith falling asleep at the beach and getting a sunburn that has a spot in the middle of his chest.. from where he had is phone laying on himself!😆 We also played Cards Against Humanity.. it’s one of the raunchiest games ever! Although, it’s fun to have our kids at an age where we can enjoy a “grown up” game together! Landon made it all over Nashville and Florida without complaining at all.. just days after having surgery on his ankle from a skateboarding injury! Today is officially a week from his surgery! He is tough and didn’t let his situation keep him from enjoying the beach, etc. He found some creative ways to cover his cast! Including, a drawstring bag and a beach towel!😆 Ike loved the beach and is officially convinced he wants to go to Jamaica for his Senior trip with his Dad and I!! Aleah is a doll and of course had me get some adorable Instagram photos of her, as well as, taking some pictures of the rest of us! She looked adorable in her hot pink bathing suit! We got to experience two nights in Nashville. St. Patrick’s Day and Johnny-Dad’s 39th birthday were celebrated in Florida! I am determined for us to still be able to renew our wedding vows! We will see how the rest of our break plays out! After twenty years of being married, I know that it’s best to let my husband feel like he has some say-so😉 ..so I guess trying to renew our vows on the beach when the wind is blowing extremely hard, with sand hitting you in the face and not being able to hear each other.. probably isn’t the best!

I just want to say that you should do whatever it takes to be calm, live your best life and be happy! I am forever working towards being the best version of myself! I have come a long way! I have made necessary changes in my life .. the biggest is loving others with boundaries! It’s important to protect your own well-being and heart!

I am over a year sober and three years free of prescription diet pills. I recently decided I needed to go to a doctor after having a couple of panic attacks! I am on 25 milligrams of Zoloft.. seems to be just enough for me to be in a good state of life! I am not embarrassed to say that increased serotonin is something prescribed and purchased for me!!😜 I also am a firm believer in talk therapy!! My husband and I have been going monthly for about three years! Communication is everything in a relationship! I thought I was a good communicator. I learned otherwise! I am a work-in-progress!

Embrace whatever chapter you’re in! Do your best and forget the rest! Keep your eye on the prize! Life is what we make it! If we are willing to work hard.. we can party hard!~ “Work hard, party hard”, is actually my mom’s motto! I would say it’s officially my life’s motto too! I am living it out in my own version! You can too!

Love you peeps!

Stay Rosy, Amber