There’s just nothing like a road trip to Gulf Shores with some girlfriends to recharge your batteries and just enjoy some good ole’ girl time. We all love our hubbies, but this trip was all about us. We got to do exactly as we pleased, stopped as much as we wanted while we were driving, shopped a whole lot, and ate girlie food. Oh, it was fun! These ladies are very sweet and I’m so glad I’ve gotten to know them these last 2 years since moving to Birmingham. This was our first time going on a trip together and it really turned out great. We had a blast, took walks on the beach all 3 days, sat and sipped coffee in the morning over good conversation, and relished the peace and quiet pace of the beach. And the napkins that Maureen had at her beach house said it all…Just us Girls!
We carpooled down in 2 vehicles and stopped plenty of times. One of our many stops going down was at Priester’s Pecans, a legend in this area for their abundance of pecans and candies.
We popped in upstairs to see the candy making process in person. I didn’t take pics, but on the way back home, we stopped by the Russell Stover store and bought their blooper chocolates. And man, are they good! My hubby was happy to see those when I got home.
And who knew there were SO many variety of pecans. I sure didn’t!
Next stop, Wisteria Cottage in Fort Deposit, AL. A couple of the girls had been here before, but it had been awhile.
They have lots of home accents.
And apparently, they are party central in this area for pageant dresses, prom dresses, and all around party wear.
These slip-on OKA sandals are very popular in the South. Do you have these in your area? They are very comfortable and the ribbons can be changed out for other colors. I don’t have any yet, but I just bought my first pair of Yellow Box flip-flops at Belk this week. The black and white polka-dot ones will be great for my wardrobe this summer.
Wisteria Cottage has lots of monogrammed items, like these hand towels.
Lots of birds and nests.
And an abundance of bunnies. And no, I didn’t buy this lamp, as much as I loved it.
This tall lantern was very nice.
Birdsnest and a painting.
This iron item was very unique and would look great on a large island in the kitchen. What a fun piece to have for parties. If you’re in this area sometime, stop by Wisteria Cottage. You’ll enjoy it!
And so, after a few stops on the way down, we finally arrived mid afternoon at Maureen’s beach house. I showed lots of pics of this last year, so if you’d like to see the whole tour of this beautiful beach cottage, click here. It’s a 3 story beach house and absolutely beautiful. With 4 bedrooms and baths, we all had our own space.
The large back deck looks out over the back bay area. A total Coastal Living moment.
Their dock, complete with boat and Waverunners. It’s a bit chilly yet to be in the water.
Since we had sunshine the first day, we figured we had better take advantage of it. Good thing we did, as we didn’t see it again the whole trip.
So, we enjoyed a nice breezy walk on the beach late afternoon on the first day.
The beach was practically deserted this time of year. Isn’t it pretty? Come summer, things really get hopping down here.
We watched a couple of guys on these balloon skis flying through the air. There was plenty of wind that day, so it was no problem for them to fly across the waves.
And we stopped someone along the way to take a pic of the girls. That’s (L to R) Sandy, Tricia, me, and Maureen, who owns the lovely beach house we stayed in.
For dinner that night, we went to Calypso Joe’s and it was really good. I got shrimp and grits and we all enjoyed our seafood. When at the beach, you gotta get seafood.
Maureen, Tricia and me before dinner.
Since the weather didn’t cooperate, we had to find something to do the next day. Rain threatened and it was black and cloudy. We didn’t let that dampen our spirits though. A girl’s gotta do what a girl’s gotta do. When it rains at the beach…what do you do but go shopping?! We took off to the Tanger Outlet and spent all afternoon there and had dinner at Lulu’s the second night.
After walking on the beach that morning, we all decided that our hair would just have to wait. You can see I went curly since that’s what my hair does naturally and after walking around in the humidity, it’s almost a losing battle at the beach, I’ve learned. We were all whining about our hair, especially me.
Lulu’s is a lot of fun, if you’ve never been there you must try it. I got my fill of some fried seafood that night and we all had some luck at the outlet shops. I bought some Gap jeans and a cute top from Ann Taylor and we all came home with shopping bags.
On the way home from the beach, we took some time to stop at more fun places and I’ll share those with you in the next couple of posts. There are some great places down there to browse and the best time to do that is without our hubbies, so we took advantage of the time and had a ball looking at everything. Can’t wait to show you some of my favorite new shopping haunts. I’d love to go back to a couple of them for sure, so stay tuned for more great shopping and a few pretty beach houses too!
Thank you ALL for stopping by the giveaway. What a great success it has been. I’ve got so many new readers to visit and I’m really trying to catch up with all of you, but it’s just about impossible these days. I SO appreciate you all taking the time to stop by and see me and I just run of out time to visit you all. The fab giveaway below ends on Friday night at 6 pm Central time, so there’s still time to comment if you’d like to get in on it! Winner will be announced on Saturday morning.
I think your hair looks lovely! Mine curls at the first hint of humidity. Since I live in middle Tennessee, that’s practically all summer!
Oh, you made me feel like I was there! I’ve been to LuLu’s many times. LOVE IT and Gulf Shores! Have fun!! Have you eaten at Lambert’s and thrown a roll. Also, check out a place on Orange Beach past the Phoenix condo’s called Tootie’s or somethng like that. Sorry I can’t get closer to the name, but it’s a really cute shop.
this makes me want to call my girlfriends so we can take our own girl trip!
Thanks for posting – love everything you share with us all!!
Fun, Rhoda! Looks like a great time!
XO,
Sheila 🙂
What a fun trip!
How fun! I know each and every one of those places very well. I love Calypso Joe’s. The blackened tuna salad is to die for!:)
There’s nothing quite that good as some girl time! Can truly make you forget all problems while basking in some sheer fun!
Oh, and that little store looks amazing!
Dear Rhoda,
I love your blog. I only found you recently, but you’ve opened a whole new world to me. I live on the coast of Maine, and today is cold and rainy. We still have snowbanks melting on the sides of the roads (inland is worse), the baseball fields are so muddy that the Little League baseball teams have just started practicing on blacktop parking lots until the fields dry out, and my tulip leaves are just poked about 1 inch out of the muck.
But you inspire me all the same. We just painted the dining room walls taupe, and I’ve cut forsythia branches to force (can’t wait to see them against the taupe), and I have a few little bunnies tucked here and there. Now I think of you when I glimpse them! Thank you for your lovely blog and drop by if you can get a chance……..
WendyBee
http://www.wendysbees.blogspot.com
Hi Rhoda,
Sounds like y’all had a great time…and you’re right nothing like girl time…I remember that beach house from last year..what a beauty !!!
I have to get down to your neck of the woods…I would want to plan something before it’s gets too HOT..April or May would they be best ???
Pls show your new sandals, I have not seen anything like those up here, I LOVE flip flops….
I think your hair looks nice curly, my daughter’s does that and she hates it too, guess the grass is always greener, mine just gets straight as a poker and SHE thinks I’m the lucky one..
Its a rainly yucky day here…but the grass is getting green and my flowers are starting to peak through the ground…they make my heart sing…and every year at this time I feel a rebrith !! I hate our Winters, but can’t imagine living without our other 3 seasons !!!
Glad you’re bateries are recharged, I bet you’re getting excited about your new kitchen…I don’t know if I mentioned but I love what you did with your shelf 🙂
All the best,
Kathy 🙂
Loved this post! Thanks for mentioning OKA sandals. I bought some in Savannah in October and gave them to a friend. Then I wanted to get another pair for me and couldn’t remember the name. I couldn’t find any here in California. So now I can order some on line. I love the bows and being able to change them out.
Hugs, Susan
Rhoda, You do find the nicest places to shop. How nice to be able to go along with you !:D I cannot find any birds, nests or nice liite bunnies here in Canada. I soooo want to go to the US to shop. Thanks for the fun!! Hugs ~CINDY S~
Looks like it was a good time. I love those flip flops (haven’t seen them here yet, but I’ll be on the prowl) and that iron piece is great.
Nothing like a little girly time!!
What fun and at the beach to boot.
Have a great weekend!
T
Girly time! I love that no matter what the weather, you all know how to enjoy a good time!
Yellow Box Flip Flops are the BEST!!! you are going to Love them! I’ve got about 5 pairs from over the past couple years.
Girls Rule!!!
I love the Oko shoes. They are really comfortable. They are definitely popular down here-I’m in Atlanta.
Looks like y’all had a great time and that’s so needed.
What a blessing our girlfriends are to us as we get older! So happy for you that you had time away with yours, Rhoda!
I always like what you post in your blog! I love that bunny lamp! Because I enjoy your blog so much I have an award for you on my blog. Have a wonderful day.
Sincerely,
Sandra
Love the Red Star.