I realzied recently that I never shared about our vacatoin back in April. Part of why I share it is so you can enjoy it but also so I can look back and see what we did as we plan future vacations! We were gone for nine days so I'll split it up between two posts.
We really didn't think we would be able to make a trip to Gulf Shores this year - it wasn't even on the radar. Darryl and I were chatting one day in mid-March both saying how much we needed to get away. Well, I said quietly . .. .lets go to the beach; I think we can do it. It's what I want for my 50th birthday. I had been trying to plan something - a little get away - for my 50th. It was all I really wanted. I was checking out AirBnb's on Lake Michigan; Hotels with a lake view . .. but the cost for just 2-3 days was crazy (Lake Michigan prices are crazy!). Anyway, all it took was my little statement . .. and the planning begin. We shortened it a few days from what we did last year to save some money and just plain stopped spending money HA!
Here's a look back at the first half of our trip:
We loaded up early on a Saturday morning and hit the road. Well, not super early - our goal was to be on the road by 8:00 and we were! So thankful for our "new" vehicle so we didn't have to rent a vehicle this year!
We enjoy making stops. We saw the sign for Uranus Fudge Shop and thought it was funny. We all said we wouldn't make any jokes about it while at the store because we were sure they heard it all. Well, I'll just say that the joke was on us! The employees said every joke and then some . .. the shop was pretty "PG-13" actually. While the Taffy and Fudge we purchased were some of the best I've ever had - we all agreed that we wouldn't stop again ;-) LOL It's all about the memories, right?
Love this bridge :-) We also love checking states off of our list. We decided to make day 1 our longer day and go all the way to the bottom of Tennessee before stopping. Leaving just Alabama for day 2 (which is the longest, most boring state ever!)
I don't remember where I took this photo - maybe when we stopped for dinner? Or at the hotel? I will just say that the four of us love being together. We laugh a lot.
We stopped for lunch and got Subway/McDonald's (they were right next door to each other making it easy!). Then we headed on to our hotel. We planned well - there was a Waffle House and a McDonald's in the "parking lot" of the Hotel making dinner choices easy.
After a good nights sleep and breakfast at the hotel, we hit the road. This was our shorter day! In six short hours we'd be at the beach!
Just over the border into Alabama is the welcome center/rest stop. It has an awesome Rocket on display. We missed it last year but stopped this year. It's got lots of info not only about the rocket but it was also an area that was a trail used by pioneers. I love learning our history!
The rest of the day was uneventful. We played several rounds of the Alphabet Game to pass the time.
It was great to arrive at our amazing condo on the beach in Gulf Shores. We checked in, unloaded, and then headed out to dinner and to Walmart.
Our first dinner was at a favorite we found when we were Pensacola Beach and visited Gulf Shores called Neptune's. It's so nice to eat outside! And, the food is amazing. From there we headed to Wal-mart to pick up some groceries for the week.
Now, this is a view I could get used to waking up to every day! I just love the beach and sitting out on the balcony! Most mornings (I think every morning actually) I'd start with breakfast enjoying this view. Then at least Nate and I - sometimes Darryl and Joshua would join - headed to the pool(s). Our favorite was the indoor pool because it was heated! The out door pool was super cold! We would spend a few hours in the pool before getting ready to head out on adventures for the afternoon.
We made our main meal "lunch" and would head to a restaurant around 2:00 every day. This is by far a favorite - Shrimp Basket. I love their coconut shrimp and seafood queso! Joshua tried the crab claws and loved them.
I planned one thing each day. On Monday we headed out on a nature walk. It was short and built up with this walkway. I'll be honest, the reviews were a lot better then real life. Yes, we enjoyed it but we didn't see much "nature" - it was pretty dry and brown.
We did not see the alligator . . .but we did look!! A few months after we were there a friend who lives in Gulf Shores shared a video of an Alligator crossing the main road just down the road from here so I guess there really is one that lives there!
Since we ate our main meal at 2:00 I planned simple meals/snacks for the evening. This was Monday's snack. These little boards are so fun!
Tuesday Morning! :-) We did make it down to the ocean a couple of days to check it out. Most days it was a red flag so we were thankful for the pools to enjoy swimming.
Lunch was at Lamberts Cafe - "Home of the Thrown Roll". Yes, they really do throw rolls to you from across the room and they are all you can eat and are amazing!. This was true down home, southern food. They also have all you can eat sides like fried okra, macaroni and tomatoes and fried potatoes PLUS you get sides with your meal! It was a crazy amount of food. We all enjoyed it enough that we went back a second time later in the week. I had a steak the first time and their "famous chicken salad" the second time. Both were great!
Our "excursion" today was go-karts. Joshua and Nate have never driven before so this was a fun thing to do. They had a blast and were the only two on the track during their ride which made it nice for the first time.
That takes you through the first part of our vacation! Check back next week for part 2 (which includes my birthday!!)
