Shopaholic in Alabama

Happy Weekend and Happy Easter! I hope you are enjoying a wonderful time with family and friends. This weekend I am feeling especially grateful because my dear hubby is at home, and we are concentrating on spending quality time together. Today we are planning to attend a "Worship On The Water" service before driving over to Mobile to visit both of our parents and families. The service on the water is very casual, so I won't be dressing up today. This feels a little strange for me, even DH is wondering "what should I wear"? HA, feels weird to go to "church" on the sand.  Saturday we spent the day at the beach (after I went for my 4 miles, which I haven't been doing lately). The day was gorgeous and temperatures were in the low-mid 70's. I captured some pictures to share - hope you enjoy!  How are you spending this holiday weekend? Hope it's a great one! 

Source: bing.com via Lori on Pinterest Source: countrymusicfans.tumblr.com via Lori on Pinterest You all might remember - I have been looking forward to my three day weekend that started on Friday! And wouldn't you know it? As I write this post, it is pouring outside! We were planning to go boating today, and possibly do a little fishing as well, but so far it's not looking too good!  Source: Uploaded by user via Lori on Pinterest Source: jacklail.com via Lori on Pinterest Here's hoping the sun will peek out - if only just for a few hours! In the meantime, enjoy some images of our fabulous Alabama beaches. Hopefully I'll have "real" photos of my own to share again soon!  Source: google.com via Lori on Pinterest Enjoy your Saturday! 

Happy Thursday! Today I will be busy cleaning house and preparing for work tomorrow. The DH is arriving home late Friday night. He's been away for two weeks and I have really missed his sweet self. :-)  We have big plans celebrating my BFF Ashleigh's 40th birthday this weekend here at the beach. However, before I can enjoy the party - I have a civic duty to perform.   Saturday, September 17, is International Coastal Cleanup Day. This will be my third year to participate. As you all know, we love the beach. It's part of my soul and I spend a ton of time there - not to mention all my "pavement time" spent walking/running. When I'm out and I see trash that has been left behind by tourists, spilled out of garbage cans, or washing up on the beach - it ticks me off. I always have an extra trash bag on hand at the beach and always pick up trash I see - even if it didn't belong to me/us. There is nothing worse than a child stepping on a piece of broken glass...

Happy Weekend Everyone!  Who remembers my friend LG over at Caroline Grace Jewelry ? You know, the jewelry designer who makes the fabulous cuff bracelets such as THIS one? She is headed down to the beach as we speak (hence my post going up in the middle of the night, I don't want her to see on the iPhone while driving!). To celebrate, I stocked up on some of our favorite drinks - wine, Mojitos and Skinnygirl Margaritas. In addition, my friends at the Publix bakery made her a beach-themed birthday cake; I insisted it be trimmed in pink and green with the exception of the water scene on the top. Add some fresh flowers and we're ready to go!  Do you like the cake?  I'm hoping she will be surprised - LG has no idea I did all this! We plan to spend all day today and tomorrow on the beach - working on our tans and solving all the world's problems (LOL, we wish). BFF Ashleigh will be joining us and it promises to be a great time!  Fingers crossed for abundan...

Happy Monday, Shopaholics! Are you looking for something preppy, practical and stylish for the Mr. as an Easter gift? Here are a few suggestions, from this Shopaholic who lives on the coast!  Costa Del Mar Sunglasses, Triple Tail, Tortoise Frames with Blue Mirror Glass, $199 MSRP (available HERE ). Although we love other brand glasses for "style" - these are wonderful to wear while deep sea fishing, boating, or sitting on the beach. Everything looks better while wearing Costas! The DH loves these - and I'm picking up a pair this week for moi! Coast Apparel, Winyah Polo, Jade Cream, $72.50 (available in a ton of colors HERE ). Made from Peruvian cotton with a touch of Lycra, these polos are a new Shopaholic favorite. The man in your life will LOVE this polo. My DH looks fantastic in greens and blues. Don't be surprised if this one finds it's way to coastal Alabama very soon. But ssshhh don't tell him! :-)  Coast Croakies, Available in Navy, Red or Roy...

Happy Monday! The calendar finally made it official - spring has sprung! Here's the weather we will be enjoying on the Alabama gulf coast this week! Aren't you happy to see spring arrive? How is the weather in your town? Shopaholic confessions: I've been to the beach twice in the past three days. With weather like this, can you blame me? Have a Marvelous Monday!

Happy Tuesday! Hope you've had a wonderful start to the new week! Yesterday was a little crazy, as evidenced by some of the comments received here...I've never had as many anonymous comments as I received Monday. I made the decision to leave them all up and not delete any; as I truly believe most folks will draw their own conclusions anyway. Additionally, I was very excited to receive dozens of supportive emails - both from readers and a few high level executives. Moving right along - I'm getting tired of the cold. I don't know how those of you who live in really cold climates like MA, MI, WI, etc make it through the winter. My town is packed with snowbirds that are down here to escape the bitter cold. I have a theory: the birds can fly down to the Alabama coast, rent a house or condo for $1500-2000 per month - and that is probably cheaper than their heating costs/utilities in many major metropolitan areas. What do you think? Join me in wishing for an early spring...

Happy Sunday, Shopaholics! Hopefully you are enjoying a lovely and relaxing weekend! How are you doing on that holiday shopping??? Earlier this week, I was getting close to nervous breakdown status. The remodel, the mess, the DH.......it was all driving me crazy. My sister intervened (bless her heart) and we escaped to Destin for a quick "girls trip". We had a blast! A few of the highlights of our trip included: The fun began with dinner at Louisiana Lagniappe. I truly believe there isn't much in life that can't be solved by Fried Eggplant, covered with lump crabmeat and hollandaise sauce. Served with a glass (bottle - we split it of course!) of pinot and a twice baked potato. The next morning, we stopped by the beach to take a few quick pictures. When DH and I lived in Destin (2.5 years ago), we sat on this exact stretch of beach anytime we could. Britney Spears has a condo in the highrise building in the background, just thought you'd find that entertain...

Happy Hump Day, Shopaholics! Imagine for a moment - you don't have any children and you are babysitting a favorite nephew who has the "day off" from preschool. Other than a steady supply of Thomas the Train toys and DVD's, how do you keep the little fellow entertained? Did I mention he has LOTS of energy??? :-) If you're me and DH, you take him to the beach. We already know he loves the beach! So here's what we did. We let him play in the sand... Running in the sand is also fun....because either me or DH has to chase him down... He was fascinated by a washed up jellyfish... Even I was amazed by this man of war jellyfish...it's actually pretty, even though they will hurt you. This is what "mostly cloudy with a little sunshine" means on the Gulf Coast of Alabama...I thought it was a beautiful photo... Clouds rolling in on the beach never cease to amaze me... A perfect day with two of my favorite men on the planet. What more could...