Weekend +2 Trip

Johnny had to attend a crisis prevention training in Biloxi this past Monday and Tuesday so we decided to leave Friday afternoon and spend the weekend in Dauphin Island, AL. We left after Johnny got off work on Friday so we were going to arrive late. We drove to Mobile and stayed the night in Sam's parking lot (in our camper of course!) At the back of the parking lot was a really neat store with lots of history from the early 80's. It was Bebo's Car Wash. It was obviously a state of the art place when it was constructed. It won lots of awards. They had newspaper articles and a chronicle of the history of the place inside. It was pretty neat!

I am still amazed that we can just pull over, cut the heat on, watch a movie, cook, and sleep so easily! Anyway, we got up early Saturday morning and drove a few minutes to Dauphin Island. We checked in the campground at 7:30!

Once at our site and plugged in, the adventures started. Of course, the first stop was the playground for imaginary adventure.

After playing, we headed to the beach. We rounded the corner and noticed that the pavilion (the building with wi-fi access) was filled with retirees. I mean--the inside was packed and the outside. How strange, I thought. Turns out, they were having a garage sale. 

 Jackson bought a dolphin.

John came home with a vintage 1979 JCPenney 10 speed with all original parts. If you know John, this is the perfect fit for his little eccentric personality. It was free :)

After the excitement of the garage sale, we continued our walk to the beach...well after a stop for a photoshoot with the dolphin of course!

Finally, we made it to the beach.

 Adult play at the beach!

The boys and I walked down the beach while Johnny had a little alone time!

 What? That giant male foot by mine is my 10 year old's?

When we got back on the beach we headed out for a bike ride! Johnny adjusted John's handlebars. AND FINALLY--Jackson let us take the training wheels off for good. He has been able to ride without them for a while, but just hasn't had the confidence.

By this time, the sun had warmed everything up. So into the shorts and t-shirts, and off on a ride we go!

We rode to Fort Gaines and ended up going and exploring in the Fort. The boys imaginations were in overdrive by this point!

 We got to see a musket and a cannon be fired.

We watched a blacksmith make a nail, a hook, and a decorative horse.

My favorite picture from the fort.

After the bike ride and visit to Fort Gaines, the boys headed back to the playground and made some friends. As a matter of fact, at 9:00 that night we had to send all the kids out of our camper back to their own!

 We arose early on Sunday and enjoyed the warm sunshine!

Then, off on another bike ride--along the other side of the island.

 Taking a break!

 Then, off to the beach one last time at Dauphin Island.

After visiting the beach for some time, we headed back to camp for lunch, packed up, and headed to Biloxi for 2 days of hotel living. You know what--the hotel was actually an inconvenience. I really prefer to be in my camper. I can't tell you how many trips we made back out to get plates, cups, napkins, etc... Everything we need is in our little quaint space. Originally we thought this would just be a short-term trip sized camper. We have decided that we definitely could live in it. 126 square feet is plenty for us!

I bet you can't guess what we did before 7:00 on Monday morning?

A little later, Anna Brooke and her mom joined us and we went to the playground. My boys were not in their normal imaginative mode. They pretty much complained and just sat around the whole time we were there. Not sure what was up with all of that!

A little later in the day, we went back out to the beach and the boys were back to normal.  The next day, we all headed to the Lynn Meadows Discovery Center. They all three had a blast. 

Oh my goodness...have I ever told you all how much I love these boys?

It is here that most of our time was spent after lunch at Lynn Meadows. The boys introduced Anna Brooke to the world of Zombies and survival. We raced from house to house as attacks came.

And just so you know, Anna Brooke can hold her on against the zombies!

Sadly, we eventually got the call the training was over. We headed back over to the hotel, picked up Johnny and we headed home. We were all pretty sad. Thankful we have a home to return to but sad our time on the road had to end...maybe one day!

Live a Meaningful Life!