beachy keen

one of the things i loved about the last three houses we lived in was the closeness to some of the most beautiful beaches. at a moment's notice we could head outside, walk for 5-10 minutes and enjoy the sand, waves and sea mist. gosh, i miss it. there's something truly therapeutic about being able to leave everything else behind, physically and mentally, and focusing on your senses while being in that moment. it's cool and calm. plus, i miss watching our pup-pups anxiously squirm as they wait for us to release them off their leashes so they can bolt down the shoreline, barking as they race to catch seagulls. finding sand in every crevice later in the day is a small reminder of the fun and tranquility that was had earlier in the day.

prior to moving to alabama we decided to change things up a bit, opting to live more in the country than by the water. after all- it'd only add minutes and a short car ride to our beach commute. a short little 15 minute drive isn't too shabby. truly a testament of how little we knew about lower alabama. that short little drive is actually a minimum of 45 minutes to the nearest beach. what the what?! we were really spoiled prior to this. 

just about every weekend we trek 45 minutes to almost 1.5 hours- depending on the beach- to get our salt water fix. we've come to find that florida has some of the most beautiful beaches we've ever seen, and love that it's become a mini-vacation every time we go. d and i cannot get over how flat the beaches are here in alabama- the terrain and waves. no matter which beach we visit the 80* water gives us some cooling relief from the humid summer heat.