Our friends said, “Come see us.” So we did. And that trip in March will go down as one of our all-time favorites.
Last week, I wrote about the first part of our journey seeing and staying with friends in Mississippi, from Hattiesburg down to the coast. Today’s post is about our visit with some friends in Alabama.
After leaving MS, we drove for about an hour to Spanish Fort near Mobile to see Myrna and Stanley Brown. Myrna works for WORLD News Group, one of Mart’s consulting clients, where she co-hosts the daily podcast, The World and Everything in It, and often appears on WORLDWatch, a video news show for kids. Stanley is a long-time employee of Hewlett-Packard. The two of them also host and produce a podcast called Blended Covenant Living for blended families.
When we arrived at their house, Myrna showed us around their house, including her home office and studio that she uses for the WORLD podcast. Then the two of them took us to lunch at a nearby marina restaurant. Sitting on the sunny back porch, we shared an appetizer, ate some seafood, and talked about our lives. We also planned our afternoon: a visit to Gulf Shores, about 45 minutes away.
On the way, Stanley and Myrna pointed out historic homes and good restaurants while we talked about our children, churches, and careers.
Soon the beach came in view. It was a sunny, breezy, and busy day there. We walked along the boardwalk, talking and watching families frolic. Several women’s college beach volleyball teams competed, and a few guys flew frisbees. Pretty soon, we kicked off our shoes and joined the happy crowd walking through sparkling white sand down to the water.
I was thinking, hmmm…what would it be like to live this close to the beach? Not too shabby…
Pulling ourselves away from the beauty there, we headed back to the house to get ready for dinner. The Browns had invited some neighbors over, too, and one of them brought a gorgeous salad filled with nature’s bounty.
Stanley pulled together a fun family favorite: flatbread made to order (you order it, you make it-ha). With vegetables and meat toppings, even the non-cooks among us came up with creations as pleasing to the eye as to the palate. Boy, was it good! I vowed that we would make it for dinner for a crowd when we got home.
Early the next morning, we sat with Myrna on their covered deck overlooking their trees and back yard. But yesterday’s beautiful blue sky turned dark-gray, dumped buckets of rain, and sent bolts of lightning that shook the house. We picked up our coffee and tea, scurried inside, and began packing up.
The storm didn’t last long, though. After big hugs all around and several “see you soon”s, Mart and I loaded the car and pointed it toward Fairhope, our last stop. Along the way, we talked at length about these friends, who had somehow become dear to us in a very short time.
Have you ever been on a road trip like this? Do you have any travel plans this year? Let me know in the comments below. I would love to hear!
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Couple holding hands photo by prananta haroun on Unsplash
Marina photo by Ed Jones on Unsplash
Kids in water photo by Caroline Pasarin on Unsplash
Pizza photo by Les comptoirs mitoyens on StockSnap
Amazing salad photo by Nadine Primeau on Unsplash