Shopaholic in Alabama

It was the day after the 4th of July. I was the only one at my parent's island home who had to go to work. Everyone else played on the boat all day - here are the results!  My husband, father and brother in law went deep sea fishing, about 30 miles south of Dauphin Island, AL. These are trips I normally do not miss, so I was sad about that. However, we are planning to have a fish fry tonight so at least I'll be able to enjoy the fruits of their labor!                        Hubby with two nice Red Snapper he caught             My Father with a Cobia and Red Snapper he caught                Brother in Law with my nephews and their dog Last but not least, here is my favorite picture of the day. The husband insisted they wait to clean the fish until I came in from work, so I could "see them". HA! So we were on the dock taking pictures, an...

Happy Wednesday, Shopaholics! Please forgive me for the lack of posts here. As you know, I blogged about going to Dauphin Island over the weekend. Little did I know, the internet was out, and the backup internet was out! I was stuck for three days with no internet . No emails . No blogging . No online shopping . We returned home late Monday, and lucky me! Now I'm sick with a raging sinus infection. Today I got a 10 day round of antibiotics. I'm hoping they work quickly, because I'm a pretty miserable pup! While we were on the island, the boys spent a lot of time fishing off the pier. The DH, BIL and my two nephews all had a great time!  The nephews are 6 and 3.5 years old, and they are so much fun! I wanted to share some of the photos, hoping they would bring a smile to your face today! This heron wanted to get into the ice chest - which was where the boys were storing all their fish. Every time he got close to my beach bag, I would get a little concerned as I didn...

Happy Saturday, Shopaholics! Today we're off to the Gumbo Cookoff on beautiful Dauphin Island... The Food Network's very own Alton Brown is making a special appearance, and will be handing out the ribbons. Hopefully your weather is beautiful (our forecast is 81 degrees) and you have a Super Saturday planned! Days like today are why I'm thankful to live on the Gulf Coast!  :-) Have a great day!

Hello Shopaholics! Hope your Sunday is wonderful! Yesterday we attended our first Mardi Gras parade of the Carnival season! It was a small parade on Dauphin Island, but lots of fun! A few "Fun Facts" about Mardi Gras that you might not know: Mardi Gras originated in Mobile, AL. I know, I know. You thought it was New Orleans. It wasn't. NOLA doesn't really like to admit that, but it's true. Support from our friends at Wikipedia: Mardi Gras in Mobile, Alabama is the oldest annual Carnival celebration in America, having begun in 1703, over 15 years before New Orleans was founded (1718). From Mobile being the first capital of French Louisiana (1702), the festival began as a French Catholic tradition, celebrating until the start of Lent on Ash Wednesday, until midnight on Mardi Gras day (French for "Fat Tuesday" or Shrove Tuesday). However, Mardi Gras in Mobile now has evolved into a mainstream multi-week celebration across the spectrum of cultures...

Happy Wednesday, Shopaholics! Hope everyone had a nice holiday weekend and is now fully recovered. :-) As you all know, we went to my parent's home on Dauphin Island, AL. The hubby is on vacation this week and we'd planned fishing trips for Monday and Tuesday - then planned to spend the rest of the week on our lovely beach here in Gulf Shores, AL. What is it they say about "the best laid plans"? Yeah that didn't work out so well...the oil spill had other ideas. We did make a quick fishing trip on Monday. Me, DH, Dad, BIL and my 5 year old nephew Jake went redfishing. This was just a short run for us and normally when fishing for this type, we don't keep any redfish we catch. (DH and I are big into conservation - our rule is don't keep what you won't eat or weigh in a tournament). The fishing trip was my nephew's first trip "out" that far. I'm pleased to report that Jake and I both caught redfish. While out fishing, we heard fr...

Happy Memorial Day Monday! We are enjoying time with family and friends during the holiday, and remembering why we celebrate the day! What are you doing to celebrate? We are supposed to go fishing today and Tuesday (start of red snapper season), but..... Life as we know it is getting ready to change around here, as our "oil forecast" now has oil approximately 10 miles off the Alabama coast. The whole deal has put a huge damper on our spirits and our celebration, but we're going to enjoy the next few days and take them one at a time. Congratulations BP, you've managed to kill the Gulf of Mexico. We'll be lucky if it's not a dead zone for the next fifty years. I'm pretty disgusted by your behavior and "management" of the situation. Then to find out you are having food trucked into the coast from far far away, rather than dine in and provide much needed business to local restaurants. Seriously, where does your God-complex end? Not only is that...

Happy Memorial Day weekend everyone! I had planned to actually blog from here at Dauphin Island - maybe I mean Gilligan's Island though! The internet connection is awful - to use my laptop, I have to get in the car and go to a "hot spot" (code: seafood market) to get online. Ugh. I'll be back to civilization soon and have lots of fun things planned. Until then, have a great Memorial Day holiday and don't forget why we celebrate the day. It's not just about the beach, boat and barbequing! Thank a veteran this weekend! p.s. Need your suggestions - how do I handle shopping next week while the DH is on vacation!?!?!? Ugh - so much "together time". Code: how do I pull the UPS boxes inside without him seeing them? Help! XOXO

Happy Friday, Shopaholics! I soooo wish I could say I am looking forward to the weekend, but at this point I'm filled with what can only be described as a growing sense of dread. It's no longer a question of "if" this oil spill makes it to our shores, but when. NOAA is now officially predicting Sunday for the Alabama Gulf Coast, and Saturday for Bumpkin on a Swing on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. Today we are heading to Dauphin Island, which is the barrier island you see on the above map (Alabama coast, west side of Mobile Bay).  I am also inserting a map below which Bumpkin put together a few days ago, with both of our locations marked. This will give you an idea about Gulf coast geography if you're not already familiar! I will likely be without internet access most of the weekend. Let's say this - Dauphin Island is a tad "remote". It's not "Gilligan's Island" (there are 2 gas stations and working telephones, even a few restaur...

Happy Wednesday, Shopaholics. When I started this blog, I made a promise to myself that a few topics were "off limits" and would not appear on my blog. The three topics are: politics, religion and sex. Naturally I have my opinions about these topics, but as my buddy over at Bumpkin on A Swing  says, "it ain't happening around here". However, I must share a huge concern with you all! You already know I'm a coastal girl - after all, I left the big cushy $$$ making job to return to my beloved Gulf Coast several years ago. I love everything about the coast - the beach, the boating, the tourism, the seafood industry, the wildlife. Last week, there was an "incident" in the Gulf of Mexico. I'm going to give you some information - and this comes directly from http://www.noaa.gov/ . This gives the background info, as well as what is currently being done to "control" the situation. Background:  The incident involves a deepwater drilling p...