the sailfish beach resort (most commonly known as simply, the sailfish) on anna maria island in florida, has been in my mother’s family since her parents bought it in the 1970s. i’ve been going there at least once a year since i was born. it’s changed through the years –the width of the beach, the color of the building, the throw pillows on the couch– but it still always seems the same. the freshness of the air, the softness of the sand, the crisp water, the warm sun. jp and i took ramona and some of our favorite friends there this last week of april. what a glorious and much-needed break it was.

we spent our mornings on the empty beach, drinking our coffee while watching the little ones run around. by 11:00, when the heat started to get serious, we’d explore the island (there’s a free trolley!), grab lunch, siesta. by late afternoon we were out back in the waves, building sand castles, reading books while lounging on beach chairs, taking turns watching the babes so each person had a chance to go exploring on the rented paddle boards. paradise, really.

it’s a simple little four-plex that is rented out during the year. the amenities are everything you need: king bed, sleeper couch, full bath, kitchen w all major appliances, and a cozy front living room that opens up to the patio that looks directly onto the gulf of mexico. there’s lots of great restaurants on the island, but this place is also two blocks from a publix so we did most of our cooking and eating at home. perhaps consider it next time you’re looking for an easy family vacation!

forgive all the baby bum photos: we were having too much fun in the sand and water to take many. these are from our last morning there. thank you, overcast sky, for waiting until our last day to show up. i’ll be snagging some from our friends to show off later 😉