Best of the Beach

Our favorite destination for a quick, or preferably less-than-quick, vacay-get-away is the Alabama Gulf Coast. The hubs and I have both been frequent coastal visitors since childhood. We married and honeymooned there and have made the drive atleast once a year since. On this year's Summer vacation, I decided to document what we consider the best of the beach. 

Best Place to Stay;

The Beach Club, Fort Morgan

Off the beaten path, away from the crowds of Gulf Shores, The Beach Club resort in Fort Morgan is an ideal haven for relaxing. With 4 large outdoor pools, kiddie pools, hot tubs, an indoor pool, arcade, playground, parasailing and resort-hosted activities for everyone including everything from water Zumba to belly flop contests, there's also always plenty to do for fun. Get a schedule from the clubhouse on your way in (you do have to pay extra for clubhouse access and activities, but IMO it's worth it) and you can be in-the-know of all the goings on. There's also a mercantile, two restaurants, creamery (hello, ice cream!), and pizza delivery on the property. While it's quite a little drive from town, if you hit the supermarket at the end of Fort Morgan Rd on your way in, you could spend your whole vacation here without ever having to leave. If you do want to venture out, there's a great restaurant, Tacky Jack's, nearby. 

Best Gumbo:

Blalock Seafood & Specialty Market

One meal of every Gulf vacation is dedicated as the Wright Family Shrimp Boil. Blalock Seafood & Specialty Market (there's one in Gulf Shores as well as Orange Beach) provides the gumbo, shrimp and bread. We take it to the condo, boil the shrimp and we eat until it hurts. It's never a bad idea to pick up a cooler of gumbo packed to travel on the way home either.

Best Extra $5 EVER

Kangaroo Encounter, Alabama Gulf Coast Zoo

The Alabama Gulf Coast Zoo, located in Gulf Shores, has been featured in a 13-episode Animal Planet series titled "The Little Zoo that Could". The zoo has recently decided to become the world's first environmentally sustainable zoo built from the ground up. It's also the perfect zoo-venture for my animal-loving, short attention spanned, girl-child. While you can see and do everything in an hour to an hour and a half, there is plenty of cool stuff for kids and adults alike to enjoy. The zoo has a petting zoo, daily shows and most awesomely, animal encounters. For just a little extra dinero, you can get in on one of these encounters such as the kangaroo encounter where you can not only pet, but also hold, baby joeys. There's also a reptile encounter with an anaconda, a lemur encounter and (by reservation only) a tiger cub encounter. The tiger cub encounter was a bit more costly, but all others were $5-$10 each. Seeing the girl-child's face as she was "kissed" (licked) by a baby kangaroo = priceless! 

Best Fun with a Side of Food

LuLu's 

Owned by and named for Jimmy Buffet's "crazy sista'" Lucy, LuLu's is hard to best for fun and food for the fam. The kids LOVE the sand and games during the wait. (Be warned, they are extremely likely to leave wet and sandy.) Over the years, LuLu's has been the backdrop of many favorite Wright family memories. In 2010, we had our wedding reception at LuLu's and enjoyed celebrating with family and a couple close friends while dolphins played in the Intracoastal Waterway running alongside the diner. That's hard to beat. In 2013, we enjoyed the annual Noon Year's Eve party at LuLu's, where we early birds and kids rang in the New Year at 12 noon, complete with countdown and beach ball drop. But it doesn't take a holliday or special occasion for LuLu's to get to rockin'. With live music daily, the Bama Breeze Bar and super-fun atmosphere, there's always a great time to be had. Last but certainly not least, LuLu's serves up some yummy food to go with all the fun. The hubs loves the mahi tacos while I stick with the Cheeseburger in Paradise, add grilled pineapple and 'shrooms, please! 

We love, love, LOVE (did I mention we love?) the Alabama Gulf Coast. There are hundreds of places to visit and things to do that I could recommend. However the absolute BEST thing to do while at the beach, in my opinion, is always to just enjoy the beach. Jump the waves, grab a light and chase crabs at night or just relax and let waves wash the worries away!

Packing for Dummies

  Please don't take the title of this blog to mean that I am packing for a bunch of dummies. That's not what I mean. I called it "Packing for Dummies" because much of what I am about to tell you may seem obvious or be common knowledge, but somehow, I managed to miss out on these helpful hints until I had two kids and it became imperative that I lighten our load when traveling. So, "Packing for Dummies" refers to the instruction of packing for those of us who didn't already know and for those of us who have done things like take a seperate suitcase just for our shoes on a weekend trip from north Alabama to Miami, even though we would be in the car longer than at the actual event. (Well, I should actually say I PACKED a seperate suitcase. I wound up leaving it sitting outside my apartment building and not realizing I'd done so until I was hours away. See? "Packing for Dummies" really is an appropriate title.) 

1. The List:

 

   The first thing I have learned to do is to start making a list ahead of time. I use our chalkboard cabinet (see many various Pinterest pages for instructions) and just add to it during the week(s) before the trip when you remember something you need to bring. It's not necessary to get extremely specific (yellow shorts, white tank top, etc.) but it is a good idea to remind yourself to pack iPads, chargers, sunscreen, etc. I never start the actual packing until the day before. If I start sooner, I will need something I've packed or forget what has/hasn't been packed, so while I may start gathering, I never actually put things in the suitcase. Once I do start packing, I erase the items from the board as they go into the suitcase or car.  Before we walk out the door, we make sure the board is completely erased.

2. For the kids:

   The best idea I ever ran across on Pinterest was from tipjunkie.com. The idea is to put kids' outfits in gallon zip-lock bags, 1 outfit per bag. Include underwear, shoes, accessories and when  you are at your destination, kids just grab a bag and get ready each day. It's all right there for them.  (Take it easy earth-friendly friends. I have been using the same gallon zip-lock bags for years. I just store them inside the pockets of the girl's suitcases where they will be handy for the next time I pack.)

   Also, use a backpack instead of a diaper bag. I don't know how it took me two kids to figure this one out, but it's much easier toting a baby with a backpack on then while trying to keep a diaper bag on your shoulder.

3. The big folks: roll your clothes instead of folding. It saves space and reduces wrinkles. 

   Also, just as with the kids, set limits. Kids get the usual electronic gadgets and books plus 1 small stuffed animal each and mom gets 3 pair of shoes. (Give me a break here. I have come a long way since the Miami shoe suitcase days, but a girl still needs black, brown and running shoes.)

  I always overpacked because I was so afraid I'd need something and not have it. However, up until this point, I have never been anywhere where I couldn't get the item I've needed. Make your list ahead of time and stick to it. No throwing in extras you "might" need! Also, keep in mind, the less you pack, the less you will have to unpack!