Home Sweet Home

We left Orange Beach, Alabama bright and early on January 24th and arrived home this afternoon, the 26th. We had a good trip and went almost 600 miles each of the first 2 days.  Coming up through Iowa in to Minnesota proved to be a bit challenging though as we were driving in to a snow/ice storm!  There were some bad roads, but thankfully God kept us safe and we made it to our hotel in Albert Lea, Minnesota.  At one point the traffic was completely stopped on interstate 35 because of a stalled vehicle across the road.  It was nice to sleep in some this morning since we had a shorter day ahead of us (only 300 miles). 

This family road trip was such a blessing, lots of fun, and many memories were made.  Now it's time to get some rest, and start dreaming of the next adventure! 🚗  

Recovering

Mom and I are continuing to recover from our colds.  We enjoyed some time sitting out on the balcony today soaking up the sun.  Maybe the vitamin D will help get rid of our sickness 😊   Dad and I went for a 2 mile walk on the paved trail close by and enjoyed seeing new bridges over areas of water on it.  We were told by other walkers that if it had been warmer we would have seen some alligators there!  It was about 65 degrees today and the humidity was down quite a bit which was really nice.  

Good Night Orange Beach

A Day of Rest

Today we took it easy and got some rest as mom and I are still trying to get over colds.  After being in a tornado watch this morning and a thunderstorm the sun came out this afternoon.  It was VERY windy today.  Your pictures for tonight are of the waves at the beach and the sunset!  

National Naval Aviation Museum

We had quite a downpour of rain this morning, so decided to go to the laundry mat and get a load done.   Then this afternoon we drove over to the National Naval Aviation Museum by Pensacola.  It was absolutely amazing!  If you are ever in the area I highly recommend it.  It is huge!

This display in honor of Fallen Florida Soldiers was so moving and really made you stop and think of the great sacrifices that have been made for our freedom. 

Blue Angels

 Visiting this museum was a wonderful experience and such an amazing reminder of all the heroes who have played a part in making our nation what it is today and protecting our freedoms.  We ended the night with some tasty pizza overlooking the ocean :)
   

Exploring Orange Beach & Gulf Shores

Today we explored around Orange Beach and also Gulf Shores.  We started out the morning with a 2 mile walk on the Backcountry Trail.  It was a pretty humid but it was good to get some exercise!  We had our picnic at a really nice park in Orange Beach that overlooks a bay.  It was a beautiful view and a peaceful spot. 

Hugh S. Branyon Backcountry Trail

We had our picnic lunch overlooking Wolf Bay in Orange Beach

Blue Heron

There was a father and his two sons fishing off the pier

There were quite a few surfers out tonight

In the afternoon we drove around Gulf Shores more and went in a huge Dollar General.  They had $5 t-shirts ;)  We came back to the hotel and enjoyed some time at the beach watching the sunset.  I found a few new shells for my collection as well.  It was an enjoyable day :)  

Florida State Parks

Today we crossed over in to Florida and went to Big Lagoon State Park and Tarkiln Bayou Preserve.  It was a nice warm day in the 70s, and I can definitely feel that I got some sun on my face!

Sunrise from the hotel lobby

Walking to the observation tower at Big Lagoon

It was a beautiful view from the top!

It was a .5 mile walk out to this bay.

It kind of reminded me of a lake in Minnesota!

Back to the beach at the hotel for sunset :)

That's the thing I love about sunrises/sunsets is that each one is different.  You can watch them every day and the experience will be unique each time.  Today we saw so much of our Creator's beauty.  The vast array of landscapes and nature in our country is another reminder to me of the greatness of our God.  Good Night!