Gulf Trip

Brian and Katie Beth at Orange BeachWe are back from our trip to Fairhope and Gulf Shores, Alabama.  You can see our pictures here (remember “friends” and “photos” are the username and password.)

Day 1

We had a nice drive down to Fairhope, Alabama.  We stopped a long the way so Katie Beth didn’t have any accidents.  Katie Beth loved playing in the play area at the Chick-Fil-A. (Side Note: Every time we pass a Chick-Fil-A or any restaurant with a play area, Katie Beth now goes crazy wanting to play.) Katie Beth played in the water at the Greenville rest area.

When we arrived at my Aunt Ann’s house, we found my cousin’s Ashley and Little Alfred.  Soon, my Aunt Ann and Uncle Alfred arrived home.  Ashley’s family came and joined us for hamburgers.  Ashley even brought over Reynolds’ wooden train set for Katie Beth to play with during our visit.

Day 2

We dropped in to visit my mother’s Aunt Dorothy and Uncle William.  We had a nice time chatting.

Next, we headed down to Gulf Shores, Alabama so Katie Beth could play on the beach.  She had a great time, but she screamed with sheer excite the whole time she was running in and out of the water.

After our visit to the beach, we returned to my Aunt Ann’s home for dinner with all my aunt’s children and my Uncle Tommy.  We played Apples to Apples.  We had a great time.

Day 3

We went to the Fairhope Beach Park where Katie Beth got to feed the geese, ducks, and seagull .  I’m not sure who ate more of the bread Katie Beth or the birds.  In the video clip below, you will see to Katie Beth asking Karen for more bread with sign language.

Katie Beth had a blast at the large playground in downtown Fairhope.  She was able to climb all over, under, and through the equipment.

That evening, everyone came back together for Uncle Alfred’s and Aunt Ann’s great gumbo.  They have the best gumbo recipe that I have ever had.  (A great roux is the key to a great gumbo.) My Uncle Alfred worked on it throughout the day.  Karen even enjoyed the gumbo, which says a lot.  You can see it simmering in pot.

Gumbo

Day 4

We joined Stacey and Sammy Wilcutt for Palm Sunday mass and then we started our journey home.  I think we all had a great visit.  My Aunt Ann and Uncle Alfred were wonderful hosts.

We stopped and visited with Paul Ronning (Karen’s brother) and his daughter Lea Moore on our drive home.