I figured I better sneak in a post about how we spend Independence Day before the entire month got away from us! We usually end up with quite a crowd around the pool on July 4th, but so many of our favorites were traveling, that it ended up being a very low key day. The kids all wore stars and stripes and we spend almost every second of our day swimming, eating and playing dominoes. The forecast was a little iffy for the evening and we debated a picnic at Morgan Creek (like last year) right up until we left the driveway. The kids ultimately decided for dinner and dessert and we grabbed a quick red, white & blue photo op in the driveway before we left. /p> We opted for a selfie since Ella was struggling to manage the big camera. As usual, Ella's favorite part is to snap a ...
Collaboreads | Eleanor & Park
It's time again to link up with the always fabulous Amber and Rachel to share an book review. They introduced us to #collaboreads in May and today is the day we get to link up and share the books we read in July! The concept is simple - there are only five steps: Visit their blogs and see the prompt for each month's link up. Go choose a book. READ {you get 30 whole days}. Write a review to link up with Amber & Rachel. Do it all over again next month! The criteria for July was to read a book with the character's name in the title and just like last month's review, I chose a book that I purchased almost a year ago and never got around to reading. Since I read Landline by Rainbow Rowell earlier in the summer, I was hoping to find Eleanor & Park just as ...
My People
I had something completely different to share with you today, but then my sister sent me the album with our beach pictures last night and I just couldn't resist shifting things around a bit. Because she's an amazing photographer and because she's my sister, I have no shortage of beautiful photographs of my children's lives, BUT, this might be my favorite photo session of all time. It helps that we were happy as can be in our favorite place ever. Since we do beach pictures every year and I absolutely do not want them to be those khaki pants + white shirt quintessential beach sessions, we decided to try something different this year. There is a nature trail on a boardwalk, just over the bayou from our favorite ice cream shop. The lighting was perfect and there wasn't a soul around. Our only ...
How We Camp
Warning: Affiliate links appear in the following post. Although shopping the embedded links won’t cost you any additional dollars, using the links below to shop may result in a small commission for me. Thanks for supporting the brands that make this blog possible. I feel like a get an eye roll every time I talk about “camping”. It seems there is a spectrum for camping and our summer vacations fall somewhere in the middle. Those of you who backpack or go on primitive camping adventures think that we may as well be staying in a four star hotel. And for those of you who are accustomed to condo life and a jetted tub, our idea of roughing it probably sounds detestable. No matter where you fall on the spectrum, I’m guessing it’s hard for you to imagine exactly how it all goes down. I ...
Bohemian Camping Mat Tutorial
Warning: Affiliate links appear in the following post. Although shopping the embedded links won’t cost you any additional dollars, using the links below to shop may result in a small commission for me. Thanks for supporting the brands that make this blog possible. I had no idea when I brought these nine mats home whether the finished product would look anything like it did in my head, but I had to give it a try! And based on the Instagram comments and emails, I'm guessing you might be interested in how it all came together! One of things on my "to buy for camping" list this year was a polypropylene mat for under the awning. It isn't that they're pricey, but they aren't exactly beautiful and I never love to spend $50 on something that isn't positively adorable. It's a curse! One ...
Just One More Time
Right after I left the beach {on Sunday}, I packed my bags and hit the road again for work. I drove WAY too many miles in the month of June. I worked out of town for three days and somehow managed to get my entire forty hours in before arriving home on Wednesday night. As much as I hated to leave Josh at home {again} for a few more days, he encouraged me to drive back down on Thursday morning to surprise the girls. This place was a sight for sore eyes! I was on the road shortly after 5 o'clock and pulling into their campsite by 9:30. The girls had no idea I was coming and they were so excited to see me! It was dreary and raining, but I had already decided that even 3 more days in the trailer with a good book was worth the drive. Sophie could not wait to tell me all about Bible School. ...
Beach Bums
I guess one of the biggest differences between vacationing in a condo and camping, is the long list of fun things we get to do around camp. With the exception of the water park, we don't usually do go carts, mini golf or arcades. We are homebodies and usually stay somewhere between the campground and the beach for most of the week! This is our pretty pool! It is huge and has a shallow end on both sides, along with plenty of shade under the pergolas and a huge splash pad on the other end. There is a fountain in the center and several concrete diving pads around the perimeter. Our kids favorite thing about the pool is the snack bar! Nothing beats $3 ice cream cones while dipping your toes in the water. I hate it, but I have exactly zero photos of Ella on her bike this year. We took her ...
Let’s Hangout for Breakfast
Since we've been vacationing in Gulf Shores for all of my thirty-five years, it's hard to come up with something new to do every time we visit. We have our favorite places to eat and things to do, but otherwise we stay close to camp or live on the beach. I have had several friends encourage us to visit The Hangout for breakfast, but we had never been before this year. Let me go ahead and say that The Hangout is one of our favorite dinner spots. For atmosphere. It is super family friendly {until 11 o'clock at night}, offers great bands, a beautiful view and lots of fun things for the kids to do while you are waiting the {requisite} two hours. BUT, the food is not my favorite. It isn't bad, there are just better places to eat for what you spend. We still go at least once during our stay, ...