Ft. Walton Beach Trip 2007

Our friends Stacy and Bill Baker celebrated their fifth wedding anniversary this year. Five years ago, they got married at Ft. Walton Beach, FL in front of many family and friends. This year, they wanted to celebrate just as big. Since we were not able to make the wedding, we were sure we would be there for them this time.

Steven always leaves it up to me to plan our trips, so for this trip, I decided that we would fly Southwest to New Orleans, where we'd rent an SUV and road trip it to Ft. Walton Beach. It was so fun. No regrets at all... besides the fact that I left my camera in the car and didn't realize it until we were already in the airport. Guess I'd just have to buy a disposable when we got there, or bum pics from our friends.

This was be Kylie's first time to fly, and the flight attendants really made it special for her. She got a first flight certificate, her first flight wings, an announcement over the p.a. system during our flight from DAL - MSY, and t.l.c during the flight from her daddy because mommy had to sit in the fourth jumpseat. Needless to say, there were only two seats left for non-revs, which booted me to the rear of the plane. I was upset that I didn't get to sit by her on her first flight, but relieved we all made it aboard. MSY or bust! Yeah!

We made our flight from DAL - MSY, and we had an awesome road trip from New Orleans to Ft. Walton. Upon our arrival to The Breakers condominiums, Steven took Kylie down for some much anticipated beach time (this beautiful beach was nothing like the yucky Texas coast we had seen in July), while I stayed up in our condo to beautify myself for the dinner that Stacy and Bill had invited everyone to that first night... via a Hummer limo. Here are some pics of the beautiful scenery.

The Baker's had everyone meet in a big conference room prior to leaving for dinner. While were were waiting for everyone to show up, and the Hummer limo to arrive, my other super duper dear friend Stacy Drennan and I decided to walk right outside to the beach with our girls Kylie, Elise, and Carly.Then we headed back to the front of the condos where our awesome black Hummer limo was waiting for us. The girls had never been in a limo before. It was fun to see their faces when they saw how huge it was. (It took about 4 trips to get everyone from the condos to the restaurant.)

The next day, we headed straight to the beach after breakfast. Kylie had her sand toys that The Baker's had left for her in our condo, and her friends Elise and Carly to play with as well.Around 3 in the afternoon, this scary looking thunderstorm came rolling in. We decided to pack up all of our stuff really quick and head to our condo for safe ground. Check out how dark the sky got.

That night the Bakers provided everyone dinner at the condos. It was a night full of great food and drinks, friends, and most of all celebrating with Bill and Stacy.Check out this crowd!We got to go on a great dolphin cruise the next day. Everyone had a great time. Kylie loved the boat. I was sure to grab some of the Dramamine once we launched from Stacy. My stomach doesn't sit well on boats. Still, I got a little woozy while out on the water as some of the ride was a bit choppy. Kylie and Steven did great!One of my best friends in the whole world... Gwen Carpenter, soon to be Milentz.Kylie and I coming up from the glass bottom boat. How neat is that?Another best friend Mrs. Stacy Drennan. I just adore her... too bad she's so far away. However, when I go visit we'll be feasting on some Beignets and coffee at Cafe Du Monde! Yum.Whoa... here are the dolphins. That was the neatest thing ever!A pic with my cutie!Awww, the family. Please note: I was holding a beer for Gwen.I just adore this pic. Priceless!Each of the kiddos on the boat got a change to steer real quick, and get a pic with the captains hat on.And another pic of the huge crowd that came to celebrate with Bill and Stacy.Under the sunset before we left the next day to head home. So sad.

And a final pic with our hosts, Stacy and Bill Baker. We sure did have a great time, and definitely plan on returning for another vacation to Ft. Walton Beach, FL. (Plus, Stacy and Bill say they are doing this again in 2012 for their ten year anniversary. We'll be right there with 'em.)