Gulf Shores 2020

Last week was a week I hope I never forget. It was our first long distance trip, our first white sandy beach, our first wade in the water until a wave crashes in experience. Our first time at Gulf Shores. And it was wonderful. 

Months ago, when we all hoped that Covid would be over by mid summer, Doug and I booked a trip to Gulf Shores, AL and crossed our fingers. We are at a sweet spot right now for traveling and knew next year with a baby things would look a little different. This was the summer to go. For months we called the trip "Roll Tide" so the kids wouldn't know what we were talking about. We followed the news, talked to people we knew from the area, and even though it seemed like Covid cases were trendy up instead of down, we decided we could social distance safely on the white sandy beaches of Gulf shores. We asked Nana to tag along. We knew she loved the beach plus more hands on deck the better. We left last Sunday for three days of fun in the sun.

We decided to break up the drive down to Gulf Shores and drove just to Birmingham on Sunday. Nana was always on mask duty, we attempted to keep our stops short and sweet (and sanitized) and we finally made it to our hotel around supper time. Who knew Alabama was such a big state? Also who knew that Bennett would cry and demand "tandy" for the duration of Alabama travel. Next trip I am only packing candy. 

That night we had the whole outside hotel pool to ourselves. We ordered pizza in and picked up some gourmet popsicles (yes they are a thing and yes they are amazing). I can't decide if the highlight of Sunday was the popsicles or the jumping in contest we created. Em won biggest splash, Aug won best form and B won cutest jumper. 

Monday morning we hit the road with plenty of time to get to the beach early....and then we saw a billboard for Bucky's. I doubt anyone reading knows what a Bucky's is, but these three, Auggie especially, are the biggest Bucky fans around. Bucky's is a chain of gas stations (you read that right) mostly found in Texas. They are huge and have everything under the sun. When Douglas was traveling for work he brought the kids back little Bucky the Beaver key chains. Auggie and Emery both sleep with theirs--really Auggie's is rarely out of his sight. Going to a Bucky's has been a dream of theirs for the longest time....who knew there would be a Bucky's right on our route!! Em and B now own bigger stuffed Buckys and Auggie is now a proud owner of a Bucky boogie board and Bucky t-shirt. Major highlight of the trip....kids are so easy to please. 

We finally made it to Gulf Shores Monday afternoon. We stayed in a cute little condo right across the street from the beach. Being able to walk to the beach was a must for me and our little place did not disappoint with it's kid approved bunkbeds and pool too. We packed up our wagon, put on our suits and couldn't get to the beach fast enough. Seeing Emery, Auggie and Bennett see the white sand and crashing waves for the first time is something I will never forget. 

Emery Kayt, our mermaid, was immediately at home. Just like I knew she would be. 

She found a million shells the first day on the beach, boogie boarded, jumped over the waves and just took it all in. I want to give her a million more beach days. 

Doug and I were worried about Auggie on this trip. The unknown has recently caused him to have what I am just going to label as anxiety attacks. He needs to know exactly what something is going to be like before we do it our you can bet the experience will start with around an hour of screams and tears. How exactly do you prepare a child for endless water and sand? Even just two days before the trip he asked me how he could jump into the ocean... "Can't I just go up on the sides?"...well Buddy, there aren't really sides at the ocean. It is safe to say I was really watching him the most when we arrived to the beach that day. And you know what he did? Smiled his ornery smile and raced into the water first out of all of us. 

This is how I will remember him this trip. Being brave and mastering the waves. He had his fair share of not so happy moments too (shoes and sand just do not mix for him) but overall Doug and I worried about him for nothing. 

Bennett Lee is as brave as the come and has become quite the fish this summer. He spent his time on the beach holding on to whoever would help him jump into the waves, covering my legs with sand and building kicking sand castles. 

He might not remember this trip but when he looks back at these pictures I hope he can feel how happy he was. 

We spent the entire afternoon and evening on the beach. That night we got seafood and burgers and ate outside. I think the seafood from the Pink Pony Pub was our favorite from the entire trip; Crab cakes for me and big shrimp for Nana and Doug-yum!

Tuesday morning it was back to the beach; I was glad it was so easy to walk over from our condo and stake out our own big spot for the day. The waves were rougher Tuesday, but we still had plenty of fun. After beach snacks and eventually getting tired of sand, we went back and swam in our pool before our next adventure. 

Our Tuesday afternoon was booked with a Dolphin Cruise. After boarding the boat everyone got to meet Lucy, the Captains parrot. Bennett couldn't hold her fast enough....the other two kept their distance. Told you this one has no fear. 

The boat was two stories and only at half capacity so there was plenty of room to move around which made it even easier to see the dolphins. We saw 10 (!!!), and now I really want a baby dolphin. That's doable right?

The dolphins were absolutely amazing to watch but that was not all this little adventure had to offer. We enjoyed driving the ship, learning about the area and dolphins, feeding the seagulls, gazing at the beautiful (and $$$$) yachts and just experiencing something none of us had ever experienced before. 

I agree with Auggie on this one. Two thumbs up for the Dolphin Cruise!

After seeing the dolphins we opted for ice cream in the car for supper and drove down the beach to see all the colorful homes. Someday I need a house that looks out on the water. 

Emery Kayt || 7 years old

Loved seeing the dolphins, swimming, running around in the sand, and just being with her family (her words I swear). 

August Samuel || 5 years old

Loved boogie boarding, mini golf, jumping the waves and the cheeseburger he ate at Lulu's. 

Bennett Lee || 2.5 years old

Loved mini golf, swimming, sharing bunk beds and tagging along. 

I know if I asked my Mom what her favorite part was she would say all of it. She and I could both just sit on the beach and stare at the water all day. I know she is thankful she got to make these memories with us and we are thankful for that too!

Tuesday night probably ranks up there as our favorite night. After ice cream we ran home to get our flashlights and a bucket and headed for the beach. We had been told by friends that crabs come out at night and it is fun (and a challenge) to try to find them in the dark. It was so fun wandering around in the dark trying to spot these tiny things. We were failing until another group of crab hunters showed us what we were even looking for--tiny white crabs that looked impossible to see! No wonder we weren't very good at this. After that Doug and the kids spotted a few and all three kiddos were brave and held them. 

I never found any, but I enjoyed seeing all the flashlights dance along the beach as other families were out doing the exact same thing as us. I swear I could have slept on the beach that night; waves crashing on the sand has to be the most soothing sound there is. 

Our last day was Wednesday. Doug and I got up early for a little golf. Well Doug golfed, I drove him around. It was fun to get away for a little bit and after golf we had the best brunch I have ever had. We were ready to get back to the kids though and headed to the beach for the last time. 

Wednesday afternoon we got our names on a waitlist for supper at a place called Lulu's. I would say eating out was the only slightly difficult part of the trip; due to extra precautions, the wait time at restaurants was very long which was totally understandble. We wanted to eat out at a Gulf Shore's "Must" one time and decided Lulu's would be worth the wait. But before that.....we had some seafood to buy! A friend of Doug's told him that the little trip to Billy's Seafood on the back bays of Alabama was worth it. I know nothing about seafood, but I think he was right! It was interesting to see all the different fresh seafood. It was also clear to the owners that we were a little out of our element; after learning that we were visiting from Illinois, they were happy to help us pick out a big cooler's worth of seafood to bring home. I only care about the scallops we bought....Nana and Doug can keep their shrimp. 

The wait for supper might have been long, but it was fun. They had a mini-ropes course that the boys went on. Auggie with no help here. 

And Bennett with a little balancing help here. 

Emery Kayt shocked us all (like my mouth was gaping open) when she declared she wanted to do the the real, three stories high, ropes course. Who was I to stop her?!? She made it all around the first story course (which was higher than I would have done) and swears she liked it....maybe her face the whole time was that of concentration not fear like I thought. We were super proud of her for trying something scary and new!

Supper outside that night was yummy and fun. There was live music and we got to sit out on the water. The perfect meal to end on. 

We had promised Auggie we would mini golf, and even though the ropes course and supper went later than planned, we couldn't back down on our promise. So at 8:30pm, we went mini golfing. This golfing experience could (or should) have gone very badly....three sleepy kids, the heat, a pregnant lady with swollen ankles and a sunburnt Nana....but I guess our mini golf stars aligned just right and we actually had the best time. Still kind of shocked. Emery, Doug and Nana all got holes-in-one (B thought he did which is why he is in the pic and Nana isn't) and we all went home happy and hot campers. 

This was all of us Thursday morning. "Sleepy-butts" as Bennett would say. I would add sandy to that. "Sandy-sleepy-butts"--I don't see how they get all the sand out of the condo before the next people arrive.

As Doug and Nana packed and picked up, I peeked outside to find this. They don't know I took this and this moment will be remembered as one of my own personal favorites. All three were drinking their morning milk in silence, just taking in our little speck of the water off in the distance. I watched them for a minute or two before the noticed, and I asked if they were going to miss this place to which they all nodded yes. Three kids can be chaos; this quiet moment was super sweet between them. 

After that we hit the road and made the whole trip in one day. We made even faster stops than the way down, Bennett only cried for "tandy" for an hour before taking a big nap and we somehow managed to only bring home a small pile of sand with us. Count it all as a success. 

Gulf Shores you were so fun. We are very thankful that this trip was able to happen and we can't wait for our next big (or little) adventure.