We enjoy the beaches in AL and FL and have been to several all up and down the Gulf coast, but sticking close to the FL panhandle is the quickest spot for us to reach if we are driving from OKC. With our last minute planning, I ended up finding an Airbnb at Perdido Key which we've visited in the past with the kids and really enjoyed!
It's doable in a loooong day from OKC, but for this trip I wanted to take the time to make a few stops along the way so we decided to split the drive into two days. The first stop I wanted to make was in Laurel, MS, to see the cute small town where Ben & Erin Napier live and film their show Home Town.
Ben is a craftsman and has a wood shop where he creates the pieces that he makes for the show, but they've converted the rest of the building into the Laurel Mercantile/Scotsman General Store full of custom cutting boards, trivets, and other handmade and made in the USA products. It was fun to see the shop and the building that we've seen bits and pieces of in various episodes and experience the rebirth of this quaint small town.
We took a little bit of time to walk around some of the downtown area too. We barely scratched the surface but I really enjoyed a shop called The Laurel Leaf- Ray said if ever there was a store for Jennifer Griffin that was it, and he was right!
We were also ready for lunch by that time and randomly picked Pearl's Diner (I'm not the best at researching details of a trip before we go, we just go and wing it and it usually turns out ok!). Probably the best fried chicken we've had and my side of pinto beans was also super yummy!
We have dear friends that we've known for almost 30 years. He was the pastor at the first church Ray served at as the Youth Minister- FBC Roanoke, TX. He was an incredible mentor to Ray, teaching him many of the practical lessons of ministry that you just don't learn in Seminary and that Ray still draws on to this day. It's been good to stay in touch with them over the years and they live near Mobile so we were able to stop and visit with them for a little bit as we made our way to the beach. So thankful for the lessons learned from both of them, back then and still to this day! (Long time readers might remember our visit to his retirement ceremony on board the USS Alabama- he also had a long career serving with the military.)
I'd also hoped to stop and spend a few hours in Fairhope, AL, which I've heard about for years but we've never had a chance to visit. By the time we made our other stops that day we were arriving in Fairhope as it was getting dark. Most of the shops were closed and we needed to get on to our spot at the beach before it got too late so we didn't get to do anything but drive down the main street and see the tiniest bit of the town. But, we saw enough to discover the charm and know that we definitely want to come back, with a solid plan to spend much more time there!
Our days at the beach couldn't have been better. We love it in September/October- the heat isn't as intense and the crowds are more manageable. The weather was absolutely beautiful. Perdido Key has several nature preserves and some National Park shoreline so those are nice to visit for a break from the beach. It's also near the Naval Air Station in Pensacola, so there are often military aircraft doing training flights along the coast which Ray and Caleb always love! And the Blue Angels are based there, so if you're there at the right time you can watch them practice as well- we did actually see them practicing their show in the distance while we were on the beach one day, so cool!
I know many people enjoy the experience of eating out on vacation, but that's not a big deal to us and we usually try to cook most of our meals in (extra money for more traveling!). All that to say, we didn't eat out much while we were there so I don't really have restaurant recommendations for you but any time we're in the area we always make a stop at Doc's Seafood in Orange Beach (the original on Canal Street- any others aren't as good!). Nothing fancy but you'll see by the crowd it's the perfect joint to get your seafood fix!
We are so grateful for the time away- there's nothing more relaxing than a beach vacation where you don't feel like you have to be going anywhere or doing anything! I'll add it to an upcoming book list but I read this while sitting on the beach and really loved it.
One last thing I wanted to mention- unrelated but didn't want to you to miss taking advantage of this sale! Many of my favorite staple pieces are from Old Navy, and they are wrapping up a big 50% off sale. I just received several of these things from a recent order and included a few more of my tried and true faves in the graphic that are on sale as well.
My favorite jeans are under $20- they come in multiple colors in a large variety of sizes and lengths. I have every length is various colors- to wear with heels, flats or sneakers, and these are the jeans that I love to cut for a raw hem just above ankle length. I just added the dark wash to my closet. I'm wearing them here on the day we visited the Biltmore Estate (I'm working on the tour to share with you!).
The SLEIGH and JOLLY VIBES sweatshirts are adorable for the upcoming holiday season (pop a plaid collar shirt underneath!). I have this sweater in 4 colors and it's such a great basic sweater under $20, and there are also several really cute fair isle sweaters here and here. Lastly, my staple ON button up shirts are 14.99!
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Thank you for sharing your trip. It was so interesting to see all the sites!
ReplyDeleteSo glad you enjoyed the tour!
DeleteGorgeous photos - now I’m missing the beach. We are fans of the Outer Banks in North Carolina. As my fashion influencer, I had to order the blue checked dress. It looked great on you. And just bought the Sleigh sweatshirt and the cream colored fleece pullover and pants. Glad you enjoyed yourselves.
ReplyDeleteWhat a great trip you had -- gorgeous area. The fried catfish looks delicious -- and the beans -- yum!!
ReplyDelete