Shoals Marriott Trip

We just got back from 4 nights at the Shoals Marriott in Florence, AL. I never thought I would go on vacation in Florence, AL! We went with Jason's sister's family and our friends, the Rings. The boys (Jason, Todd and Brock Currey, and Chris Ring) played tons of golf on the Robert Trent Jones Trail (the whole purpose of this trip) while we ladies and kids stayed at the resort pool. It had zero entry and a cool water slide. It was the biggest hotel pool I have ever seen. Jason's sister, Denise, and I got a massage and facial. The spa there is top rated. It was a great present from my hubby! Chase played in the pool and took a lot of naps so I was up in the room a good bit, but it was a great room so I didn't mind. We enjoyed some great local food and shopping, but mostly stayed at the hotel. Friday night, they showed a movie on a giant screen at the pool and had fireworks Saturday night. Down from the hotel was an awesome playground and sprinkler park. It is a great place for a weekend getaway or for a week's vacation!

Chase loved the pool. Since he can walk so well now, he thought he could just walk right into the pool. He discovered Sara Beth's Noodle and that was it! It was bigger than him so we had to cut it down to his size. He carried that thing all over. The pictures will tell the noodle story!

The "Noodle" love begins!

Noodle cut down to Chase size

All of the kids: Sara Beth, Anna Garris, Anna-Laura, Chase, and Brock

Me and my little man

Holley and Anna Garris Ring

My nieces, Sara Beth and Anna- Laura

My adorable family (in my opinion!)

First Burger King Visit

I love Burger King if I have to eat fast food.  I just think a whopper is great!  Jason, however, hates it and loves Wendy's, which I hate so that is obviously a problem!  I never get Burger King because I always give in to Wendy's on the occasion we do stop in to get something quick.  Anyway, that being said, on the way home from Gulf Shores, we stopped in Meridian to eat quickly and there was a Burger King. The ladies that were working in there just thought Chase walking around was the cutest thing.  They put a King Crown on his head and I was able to get him to keep in on long enough to get a great picture!  He did great both going and coming home from Gulf Shores.  Vacationing with a baby was not as relaxing as vacations have been in the past, but I would not trade anything for those little moments that will be memories forever!  

Gulf Shores-Rest of the trip

We have had a great trip for the most part.  I hate to leave this condo, but Chase is ready to go home.  He misses his daddy.  He is walking everywhere and has learned to flush the toilet!  He has done well on this trip, but has had a few melt-downs here and there.  He hated shopping at the outlet mall.   I have never shopped so fast in my life and am not even sure if what I bought will fit me or Chase.  I got some birthday gifts and shower gifts and I hope I got the right sizes in everything.  

Chase really enjoyed the zoo and the pool, but not the ocean or mall.  It was been a great trip, but I have learned a lot of lessons about traveling with a baby....major one...they do much better in their own environment and not out in strange places!  Every year will get better! 

Here are a few more pictures! 

Gulf Shores Part 1

My mom and I arrived in Gulf Shores about 2 pm yesterday. Chase actually did really well in the car.  He whined a bit and slept for 2 hours of the 5 hour car trip from Tupelo, but overall, he did much better than I expected.  This kid flips out if he has to ride for 30 minutes sometimes so I was not looking forward to the ride. We had rented a condo from the www.VRBO.com website and it is was beautiful.  I have decided that renting from the owner directly is the way to go for the best price and decor.  It is a 2 bedroom in San Carlos, which is a new complex.  It was professionally decorated and we are in heaven on the 17th floor!  Floor to ceiling windows in the living room and master gives us an amazing view of the water.  For those of you who don't know, my mom and I have done this mother-daughter trip to Gulf Shores since I was about 2.  We have gone other places every now and then,  but Gulf Shores is tradition that we always come back to and I hope to keep it going for as long as I can.  It is something special that she and I have to look forward to every year.  

Chase did not like the beach so much.  He liked the water and played on his blanket for about 30 minutes, but hated the sand.  He really loved the zero-entry pool and thought he could walk right into it.  He is a wild man in the pool, which I am not sure is a good thing or a bad thing.  We plan to go to the Gulf Shores Zoo tomorrow for part of the day.  It is a small zoo, but is supposedly really nice.  I will get the outlet shops in too, before we leave.  

Here are a few pictures so far of our trip:

Chase didn't mind sitting in the sand, but touching it, not so good! 

He was not happy at this point, but the wagon helped. 

This was the first time his feet touched the ocean.

He had to explore his new house for the week! Those of you that know Chase, know he has a major thing for opening and shutting doors and closing himself in rooms.

We will be here until Thursday so I am sure there are many more adventures to come! 

Summertime Update

School is out and we are all relaxing and enjoying our days.  Jason has started summer ball and has two weeks of baseball camps.  Chase and I will go to as many of his games as we can this summer.  I am trying to get Chase used to the ball field.  I will be leaving on Saturday for the beach with my mom and Chase while Jason is doing camp for the older group of kids.  After that in a couple of weeks, we will go with Jason's sister's family and our friends, the Rings, to Muscle Shoals and the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail and stay at this awesome Marriot Hotel that has a wonderful Spa.  The boys golf and we will swim and spa.   I am working some this summer doing some teacher training, but other than that, we are doing absolutely nothing!  I will upload some new pictures of Chase when I get a chance!  Happy Summer!