Vacation Trip: Day 3

It was raining, raining, raining today! Pouring down rain, constantly. So, we decided to go to Lambert's Cafe and catch a few throwed rolls.



Reed did a few dances while we were at Lambert's. He really enjoyed the rolls.



He also enjoyed a few bites of Okra.



Reed also loved a few bites of cole slaw. He loves cabbage.



We enjoyed a few minutes being silly.



They gave us too much food, as usual.



After we ate, we went to the outlet mall in Foley. It was so busy and it was raining off and on. Reed was excited to see that they had a carousel.



He then pretended to drive a car with Garfield in it.



Uncle Bill told him to put his arm around garfield and drive. This is what we got.





After Reed nearly 4 hour nap, the sun came out and we decided to go to the pool. Unfortunately the mosquitos were treacherous and were all over us so we didn't swim.



We decided to walk down to the beach and Reed had a great time.



Then the bugs started biting on us down at the beach too!



It turned out to be a beautiful evening.



The waves were wild.



Next year will be even more fun!

Vacation Day 2: Getting to the Beach

Reed woke up this morning around 6:30 and said "I'm done sleeping now."



He was ready to get to the beach. In the 4 hour drive that it took us to get from the hotel that we stayed in last night to the beach, he probably asked "Are we going to the beach now?" about 300 times.

That doesn't count the last hour that he was asleep!



As soon as we got to the condo, Reed wanted to go to the beach. We had to unload the groceries and unpack first though.



As soon as we got to the pier leading to the beach, Reed literally started running towards the water.



Don't be jealous of my straw hat. I need all of the light out of my eyes!



Uncle Bill, our resident kite flyer, did his part to get the kite into the air as quickly as possible.



Last year, Reed was really timid around the water. This year, it's a bit of a different story.



He eventually got the kite HIGH in the air.



Reed enjoyed running from the water.



And into the water.



And me chasing him from the water.



And Mama chasing him from the water.



He also enjoyed destroying and semblance of a sandcastle that we could make.



We're so thankful that Uncle Bill brings us along on his beach vacation.





Abbey wrote "Will and Nash" in the sand in honor of our boys.



Reed would have never done this last year.





He ran like crazy. It was hilarious to watch him play in the water. He even enjoyed the "wittle" pool that was his size near our condo.





There is some sort of little "shellfish" that washes up on the sand in a shell and has a little finger that digs its way back into the sand. Reed loves those things!



Reed loved destroying Uncle Bill's creations.





He is definitely a beach bum.



And adorable beach bum!

Vacation Day 1: Hotel Fun

The other day we were on our way home from work when my carpool partner Trudy asked me when we were leaving to go to the beach. I told her that we planned to leave on Saturday morning. She suggested that we leave on Friday since we anticipated that we could leave work early on Friday.



I liked her suggestion, so I checked my hotel points and had enough to get us a room along the way. I found a room in Birmingham, so we booked it. That means tonight, it's Reed, Abbey, Uncle Bill, and I in a small, but well-appointed hotel room. The good news is that it was totally free because of my points.



Uncle Bill told us about a place that was called the Irondale Cafe that was really great home cooking. The place used to be called the Whistle Stop and has lots of Fried Green Tomatoes memorabilia, and serves fried green tomatoes of course.



We went and it was delicious, but Reed was much more impressed by the train tracks that were right outside the restaurant. Thankfully, they had a great area that you could stand and watch the trains from. There were plenty to watch.



Reed loves trains.



I think Reed thought that his vacation would be perfect just to sit and watch the trains all day. I am not sure that I have seen anything keep his attention like those trains did.



He wanted to know all about the trains. He was sure that he saw Ben and Percy and Diesel, but they didn't have their faces on.



He was especially excited when one of the engineers blew his whistle and waved at him.



Tonight we went to Wal-Mart and bought Reed his first pair of flipflops. He wanted red which is no surprise to anyone who knows Reed well at all. He loves red.



We'll take off in the morning headed towards the beach! Woohoo!