Beach Trip 2012 Continued...

Day 2 on the beach was perfect. Constant breeze, sun, ahhh....


We ate at LuLu's that night and admired our fellow rednecks around the Redneck Riveria. We also went shopping at the Tanger Outlets and got Cold Stone ice cream for dessert. I love being with my family :)


Day 3 wasn't not the best beach day BUT we tried our hardest to enjoy it because, after all, we were at the beach! Sadly, we only lasted a little over an hour on the beach before the wind was unbearable and it got cold (for the beach, that is). 


We spent most of the day in the condo/on the deck after that. I wore a hoodie most of the time. (#coldnaturedprobz) We went shopping at a place called The Wharf and then to dinner at Wintzel's. My dad likes this place because he ate at the original Wintzel's when he was growing up as a kid. 

Wintzel's "theme"

I tried my first fried pickle (where have those been all my life?!?!), we almost lost Joshua, and my dad told my mom that she had a lazy eye.


Let me elaborate....


We were just enjoying our meal and talking about the day, the trip, and what we were doing next when Joshua announced that he had to go to the restroom*. 


*Sorry...if you think that is TMI, you don't know the Garland's.


Anyways, he takes off because he says he knows where the restrooms are. We watch him and he stops and talks to our waiter who was walking towards another of his tables in the same direction Joshua was walking. My mom tells my other brother Clark to go after Joshua to make sure he finds his way. Clark mumbles that he will, spends about about one extra minute stalling at the table because he was glued to his phone, and then gets up to go find Joshua. Not ten seconds later we see Clark look at us, hold his hands up as in "I don't know where he is", shrug, and walk towards the restrooms to find him. Then a few minutes pass...then a few more...THEN we see the hostess/waitress that greeted us when we arrived, walking around the corner with Joshua. Clark wasn't far behind. She tells us she found Joshua OUTSIDE walking down the sidewalk. 


OUT.SIDE. 


Did I mention that there is a pond outside of the restaurant and it is 8:00 at night so it's dark out and that said pond has a sign that says not to get too close because there may be ALLIGATORS in it? 


She tells us that she found him outside walking down the sidewalk (BY THE ALLIGATOR-INFESTED POND) trying to get back to the entrance of the restaurant. Apparently even after the waiter told Joshua where to go, he still got confused and turned around, and ended up going through a door that leads to the patio outside....long story short, he found his way to the sidewalk and was going to come back into the front door. My parents are mortified because they think they must look like awful parents letting their Downsy son roam around without their knowledge. 


LAWD.....


So once we all have a big laugh because it really IS funny after you get over the whole he-could-have-fallen-in-the-pond-and-been-eaten-by-alligators part and I decide to take some pictures because it was a memorable time.


Not to mention that Joshua later says, and I quote, that "If I had fallen in the pond, I would have fought off the alligators because I know how to fight, like Dad."


 Whaaat?


#1) my dad doesn't fight
#2) back to the story...


I take my dad & Joshua's picture (1 and done) and then ask him to take one of Clark, my mom and myself. The first one he takes, he looks at the screen and says "Okay, here you go." and hands my camera back. I look at it and I don't know WHAT happened to my mom but her face and eyes are doing something hilarious. I start cracking up, zoom in and show Clark, my parents, and Joshua. This is when my dad makes the "lazy eye" comment about my mom. Obviously she doesn't have a lazy eye, she just wasn't ready for the picture. Then he makes a comment, all in good fun, about her looking like she had been drinking (my parents do NOT drink ever) which for some reason is even funnier to me in the heat of the moment and I crack up. 

My dad (halfway smiling) & Joshua

The "after" picture. Teary eyes and huge smiles. Hilarious.

Tears-in-my-eyes laughing so hard. 


So the (above) picture looks like I have been crying...which, I guess technically I have been. 


Everyone gets a good laugh except Joshua...he gets all offended because he thinks that we are laughing at my mom in a mean way (which we totally weren't) but it was funny that he got mad about it! 


Today we got up and around, loaded up the car, and headed back to Arkansas! Just in time too, because there have been bad storms and tornado warnings in the gulf area since we left! The trip didn't feel as long because my dad and I found a fun new GPS app (how nerdy are we?) to play with the whole way home!


All in all, I had a great week with my family. I am so blessed by them.


However, I am BEYOND ready to see my husband. 5 days is TOO long! Can't wait to see him tomorrow and our little Marley-pup!


Here comes a storm, time for sleep!
-Holly

Beach Trip 2012

Since my husband had to work long hours all week (their busy season is starting), he let me go to the beach with my family for my Spring Break. He was going to be busy and thought I would be bored all week. "He's so thoughtful that way..." Wicked reference anyone? 


We left on Sunday at 7:30(ish) aka 7:42 am. We were close enough to the intended time that my dad didn't talk about how we were going to make up those 12 minutes for TOO long....only two-three hours. Regardless, it was a pretty smooth road trip. 


Best quotes of the trip thus far go to Joshua.


1) When we saw the USS Alabama (ship) on the way in:  Joshua - "Ooooh look the Titanic." and then after a brief second of reflection, "I thought it sank when it hit that iceberg, he-he-he!"


2) Once we could really see the ocean in AL:  Joshua (out of the blue) - "I bet I could outrun a shark on land...they aren't AS fast on land." (whaaaat?!?!?!) 


Let's just say he is hilarious. I want to write a book with all his Joshua-isms, as I call them. It would be a New York Times Best Seller.


We are staying at a place called Pelican Pointe in Orange Beach, AL. We have stayed here before and it's really nice around Spring Break because it's more of a family beach than a high school/college party scene. 


I woke up early on Monday morning because I am as white as a ghost and I couldn't wait to get my beach tan on. Sadly, it was strangely fogging ALL morning until about noon and we went down to the beach around 1. I laid out the entire 3 hours we were down there and I'm pretty sure I don't have a tan line. I think my skin is rebelling against me for all the years of life-guarding and laying out at the pool when I was younger. I used to get so tan...(sigh)


We ate at a place called the Original Oyster House in Gulf Shores (like 30 min down the road from OB) and it was very good! I tried my first oyster last night! It was fried...but still....baby steps. One of my goals for 2012 was to start trying new things. I really want to try a lot of new foods so that when we travel different places I will be able to find at least one thing that I like on the menu. I wish I could say the same for Aaron- LOL! :) I had a crab meat stuffed flounder filet and some fried shrimp- deeelicious! Anyways...we decided to go to a place called Scoops for ice cream last night. My dad said "Do we have any ice cream at the house?" and we said no because my mom and I didn't get any when we bought groceries, so we decided to get ice cream. I asked my dad if he was going to get any and he said no! What the heck? Wasn't he just the one suggesting it? Weren't we going to get ice cream because he wanted some? Oh how I forgot how funny my family is....oh yeah, and he ended up getting ice cream anyways. Lawd... :)


Walking through the parking lot, I saw a car with a OBU Swimming sticker and thought "Oh, well maybe I will know them!" THEN I saw that the license plate was from Illinois! I just knew it had to be my friend (since we were single digits) Caitlin Boren! We walked in and there she was! So exciting to run in to her! She is a senior at OBU and was there with some swimmers from her team on their break. I have known Caitlin, like I said, since we were single digits age-wise! We swam together on the Searcy Sharks for years. I was so upset when they moved to Carbondale, IL my junior/her sophomore year and then so excited when she came to swim at OBU. We came back and watched Puss in Boots and according to Joshua, "It wasn't a bad movie..." but it was good to watch it as a family. Well, I say that, but at one point I looked up from the movie and 4/5 of us were on our phones while "watching" the movie. Oy vey!


I am happy to be with my family, thankful they let me come with them on this trip, and thrilled to be at the beach, BUT I really miss my husband. This will be the longest time I have been away from him since we got married! Speaking of marriage, our 10 monthiversary is Wednesday! :) One year will be here before we know it!


Day two is already looking more promising! I woke up before 7:00 am (on a vacay!) and watched the sun rise a little bit. I will post pictures of that later! It is breakfast time :)


Enjoy today,
Holly