Downtown Mobile

My parents and I took the kids to Mobile one of the days Luke was working.

This is at the museum. They had a pirate exhibit that the boys just had to see.



Downtown

Historic Mobile

Downtown Fairhope

Spent an afternoon in Fairhope.
Fairhope Pier on Mobile Bay during the day and at sunset.

Downtown

So many neat shops.

Emmalyn just had to smell the pretty flowers :o)

Owen's school

This is the park we visit often. The kids love it and Uncle T does too...LOL!

Graduation

I know, I know, I've been procrastinating again. Well I'm going to get you all caught up. May was a busy but exciting month. Luke graduated from fire academy and my parents came down to visit. We did all sorts of fun things so I'm going to break up this post to show off some pictures of their stay.

Graduation was great something Luke and I had been anticipating for 18 weeks. It was emotional, I was so proud of him. It was very awesome watching his dream come true.





I got the pleasure of putting his badge on :o)

Dauphin Island

A few weeks ago we took the kids to Dauphin Island. It's about an hour drive. It's a neat island connected by a very long bridge. A ton of beautiful houses to see and we found a small aquarium for the kids. It was filled with everything you'd find in Mobile Bay.

Surprise Summer!

Well about a week after Luke's parents left the kids and I went up to Michigan. Erin was throwing Summer and surprise birthday party and I didn't want to miss it. I was also part of the surprise so we did everything we could to keep her from knowing I was coming to MI. She was shocked and the party was so much fun. It was a really great night which even included a limo ride!

The rest of the week the kids and I spent bouncing around trying to see everyone we could. It was a very busy week so I think the next trip we will stay longer. There just wasn't enough time.

Going back to MI was really good for me. It made me realize that Alabama is now our home. Of course I still miss all of our friends and family like crazy but I can finally settle in here.

Saying good-bye was hard but not nearly as bad as when we moved. I see now how easy it is to take a trip back and see everyone. Well, I guess I shouldn't say easy because my trip home wasn't so easy. I'd say it was a combination of the GPS and my not paying enough attention but somehow I ended up in Chicago heights. Oh what a nightmare! My knight in shining armor (Luke) came to the rescue (over the phone) and talked me through it all and got be back on track somewhat. I ended up on a couple rural highways through Illinois until I hit 65 in Nashville. It was kind of nice to see something different. We drove through Metropolis, IL the home of the tallest Superman statue. I just had to stop. There was a Superman on every corner. It looked like a neat little town but we only stay a half hour and checked out a few shops then we were back on the road. Well my 16 hour trip turned into 22 hours but we made it home safe and sound. I felt really good to be home!

In-laws visit

At the beginning of March Luke's mom and dad came down for a visit. It was so great having family down here. They stayed in Gulf Shores in an amazing condo. It had an unbelievable view of the ocean and the bay. The kids and I stayed there one night and it was so much fun. Mom, Gracie, and I played on the beach and built a sandcastle while dad and Owen went off exploring. We really appreciated them taking the time to come all the way down to see us. We had a blast with them here but I sure wish Luke had been able to get some time off while they were here.