After a super relaxing and refreshing week away, I’m BACK! We headed out to Gulf Shores Alabama for the week of Thanksgiving with Nick’s family and it was such a blast in every possible way! His sister’s had the best idea to mix things up a bit this year and head out of town for the Thanksgiving holiday! So, that’s exactly what we got to do. We got to take the week off to escape to our happy place! If we could’ve stay there forever, we definitely would’ve in a heartbeat! But, it sure was super fun to soak up every last drop while we were there. We’ve never been this late in November and to our surprise it couldn’t have been better weather wise! We expected it to be extra chilly but we lucked out and had sunny upper 60’s days filled with tons of beach walks, tennis games and plenty of front porch sitting. Looking at these pictures only makes me miss it more! Here are a few of the pictures from our week away with some of our most favorite people on the planet!
Nick’s sister found the most amazing house for all of us to stay in for the week! It was beachfront and had the best layout for all 15 of us there. That double deck was one of our favorite parts, but not to mention the adorable little beach neighborhood it was nestled into. It couldn’t have been better!
This view was everything and more of what we loved waking up to each day.
We got in a daily beach walk, even a 5 miler one day! Plus plenty of tennis games with Nick’s brother and brother-in-law Andy & Mahmoud! It was too fun and reminded us we need to add more tennis to our lives! Even though I need to brush up my tennis-playing skills-it was really fun to play! Oh and did I mention the soreness that came with that? Yeah…running & tennis are totally different sports that’s for sure! Ha! 🙂
One of our walks led us to the pier that we had fished at a few years ago! We hadn’t been to Gulf Shores/Orange Beach for a few years and it was one of our very first ever vacations we took together 4 years ago! It was so fun to walk down memory lane and go back to spots we visited in the very beginning of “us”.
We also loved all of the Christmas trees and decor around town this time of year! It was so crazy seeing Christmas trees up at the beach, but so neat to change things up and see the beach-y version of the holiday season!
The seashells were EVERYWHERE! We came home with a few more to add to our collection! Nick’s cute niece collected an entire bowl full while we were there.
The view we had each morning walking out to the sand wasn’t too shabby either. It’s just like seeing paradise when you walk over the little bridge to get to the ocean, especially when the sun is out in full force and the beaches are extra bare!
Another beach favorite: The sunsets. We lucked out and had some of the best one’s we’d ever seen–all viewed from our perfectly placed beachfront porch.
Seriously, have you seen anything more gorgeous? Those colors just kept getting better!
Plenty of front porch sitting went on, but our intense game of Taboo was definitely my favorite! We hadn’t ever played that game, but oh my goodness it was just too much fun! The hints were hilarious and got better and better as the night went on!
Front porch sitting at it’s finest! Warm blankets, fuzzy socks and plenty of wine at the beach might be my new favorite combination!
Just soaking in the stunning views each day!
…and getting in our fair share of all the seafood goodness! We had shrimp from a local seafood market and it was the best shrimp we had ever had. Perfectly seasoned and delicious!
The whole Fotioo crew! Nick has such a sweet family and we had the best time soaking up all of our days we got to spend with them! The memories we made will last a lifetime and we couldn’t have been more lucky to be there with all of them at the same time! Unplugging and un-winding in the best of ways, all with great company and amazing views–definitely made for a Thanksgiving to remember.
Before we knew it, it was time to head home again. Nick’s family stayed a few more days while we had to head back a little early to celebrate my family’s Thanksgiving. Coffee was definitely a necessity as we headed out bright and early Thursday morning to be back in time for Thanksgiving dinner.
Home sweet home!
What a fun Thanksgiving we had! Now if only we can find a way to get our hands on one of those beach houses so we can go anytime we’d like! 😉
I hope you enjoyed every last drop of your Thanksgiving and got to enjoy plenty of family time! It’s so much fun to change things up a bit and head out of town for the holidays. We’re definitely going to plan on doing that more often!
Questions for YOU today: (Comment below with your thoughts!)
What was the favorite part of your Thanksgiving this year?
Are you a beach-y person?
What is your “happy place” for vacation?
