The flight home

Flying home we flew out of Mobile Regional Airport.  Maybe the smallest and most empty airport I have ever been to.  However, it had a very slow security line, the TSA agents were very nice and chatty with everyone it was kind of hilarious.  Southern Hospitality I guess.

We rode a ferry from where we were at the beach to the mainland, that was really fun. It was kind where you drive your car right onto the ferry and then you can get out and look around.

We had a lay over in Memphis that was only supposed to be an hour but ended up lasting all night.  We had all boarded the plane, where after a short delay (maybe 30 minutes) they informed us that we couldn't take off because of some electrical problems.  Then they let us all off of the plane.  At this point I knew we weren't going to make it back to Philly that night, they never let you all off the plane.

We flew on Delta, so they gave us a hotel room for the night and some food vouchers so we weren't really complaining.  Just one more night of vacation.  By the time we got back to the hotel though it was about 9:30 and I was tired so we didn't take a cab into downtown (20 minutes from the airport) to explore.  It seemed like 10:00 wasn't really a prime sightseeing time.

So I guess I can say I have been to Memphis because we left the airport, but not really.  Hopefully I didn't miss anything too awesome.

Vacation Miracle

So while at the beach in addition to relaxing and managing not to get sunburned we also witnessed a miracle.

Before we left for the beach I had gotten a new pair of sunglasses from H&M for the occasion.  

One day at the beach I took Izzie out into the water to play in the waves on her noodle.  Everything was going well until all of the sudden we got some big waves that were a little bit to tall.  So in an effort to hold Izzie up above the waves and stay on my feet my sunglasses got knocked off and were lost to the ocean depths.  I was definately more traumatized than Izzie she wanted to get right back in the water.  I needed a little break.

Then we took our afternoon break and headed inside for lunch and naps.  When we came back out hours later that afternoon my Dad was there fishing, he looks down and there in the little pool Uncle Judd had dug for the girls were my sunglasses.  They had somehow been washed back up from the ocean depths and weren't damaged in any way.

It was a vacation miracle.

Beach Time

Monday morning we woke up bright and early and hit the rode for the beach.  We were going down to the Gulf Shores area of Alabama.  I was a little skeptical because I have never been down there before but I was pleasantly surprised.  Our house was just a short walk to the beach, so we spent the rest of the week relaxing.  We went running in the mornings (it was so hot and humid down there, I was not expecting it), then down to the beach.  We would go in for lunch to take a break from the sun to take naps and watch some pretty terrible movies (chic flicks that I loved, Joseph hated) and then went back out to the beach for more.  We were really secluded and had a lot of beach to ourselves.

 This is my favorite type of vacation, no activites planned except for sitting on the beach and playing in the waves. So fantastic. It had been a long, cold and busy winter and this vacation was the perfect remedy.

Birmingham Sunday

Sunday in Birmingham was also Mothers Day.  But because of the tornado's they had just had down in Alabama all of the men in the ward (Joseph included) headed out early to help with some of the clean up efforts.  It really is sad and scary what happened down there, and I am glad that Joseph was able to go and help with some of the relief efforts.

 After church we (me and the kiddos) took naps and then went downtown to the Civil Rights Museum.  It was a really interesting museum and I learned a lot.


After we got done at the museum my parents and Sarah and Izzie had made it down from Charlotte so we headed back to the house for dinner and to spend time hanging out together.

It wasn't really a traditional mother days but it was a good day.

Vacation Time

Hello internet world. Did you miss me? I am sure that you did.

Joseph and I have been on vacation this past week and it was fantastic.  It has been a long, cold and busy winter and we were in serious need of a vacation.  So we packed our bags and headed down to Alabama. We flew into Birmingham and spent Saturday and Sunday seeing my sisters hood, her new baby, and seeing the Birmingham sites.

Saturday: We arrived in Alabama at 11:30am, we got picked up from the Airport  after riding on one of the worlds smallest planes.

 We headed downtown (which term should be used lightly since it was small, and not a person to be seen anywhere) to get some lunch at a local spot Jim and Nicks.  We got pork sandwiches with coleslaw, mac and cheese, and baked beans.  It was really tasty.

 After lunch we headed over to some botanical gardens they have close by.  I was really impressed, the gardens were really big and nice and totally free.

 After the gardens upon Josephs request we drove across town to go to Rickwood Field.  It is the oldest baseball stadium in America. It was so cool, we were able to walk right onto the field, and into the dugouts.

PIFA

On Saturday there was the Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts street fair.  I had read that it was going to be a Parisian style street fair, it had potential.

They closed down a large portion of Broad street and set up booths and stages for mediocre street performers but the main attraction was a Ferris wheel and the Eiffel tower of lights they had set up in the Kimmel Center.  Both cool but also both somehow lame at the same time.

Mostly it was just really crowded, there were not crepe stands galore as I had envisioned, in fact there was very little food in general, and it was crowded.  So after fighting our way through some crowds for a while we decided to head home.

While walking home we came across some people have a sidewalk sale selling all sorts of random things.  I bought this yellow pot for 2 dollars, it seemed like a good deal.  I am waiting until we get back from our vacation next week to plant something into, since I won't be able to give it the obsessive care that a new plant needs.

Travel Tips

Sorry, I am not offering you any travel tips.  Instead I would like you to offer me some travel tips. 

I have a little idea brewing.

If you were to take an extended vacation, what are the top ten places in the world that you would go to? Or if you have already been to some awesome places, what are the top ten must see places in the world? Any specific things you would do in these locations?

Lets hear it.

Alright, that is all.

Happy Monday.

Also, while I am happy that we have finally seen the demise of Bin Laden and I can understand the sense of pride and of feelings of accomplishment and that feeling of WINNING but for some reason it still feels weird to me that people are gathering to cheer on his death.  Am I the only one feeling like this?