Fun in Gulf Shores

Some of our good friends own a condo in Gulf Shores and they were so kind to let us spend the weekend there this past weekend! We woke up bright and early Friday and drove down. The ride down couldn't have been any better! I really get nervous on rides like that with Riley Rose. She hates her car seat, and her sitting in it for 4 hours made me a little anxious! I packed an abundance of toys and DVDs for the ride (poor Kaylee was stuck having to watch Elmo and Barney most of the trip to satisfy RR). It worked out great.....Riley Rose was so consumed with Barney, that she didn't make a peep. After lunch (our 1/2 way point), she slept the rest of the trip :)
Usually our beach trips consist of us taking our travel trailer down, we stay at least 2 miles from the beach, and we just shop a lot and eat out a lot. Most of the time, we don't even go to the 'beach'. This has mainly been because RR was so small, and she couldn't really enjoy it. Well, now that she is old enough to walk, and play, and have fun, we thought she would love it! She hated it! She did not want her feet in the sand! She didn't want her hands in the sand! And she didn't want to sit in the sand! All that excitement for nothing. So Kaylee and I waited for Riley Rose's nap time, and we sent her and Randy up to take a nap and we enjoyed the beautiful weather and sand :)
We had dinner Friday night at LuLu's (our favorite). We love it so much because we can sit right by the Intercoastal Waterway and watch all the boats go by. They also have a fun playground for the kids to play on while they wait for their food (Again, RR was not interested in the playground because sand was involved). Saturday we spent the day at The Wharf and The Tanger Outlet Mall. The Wharf has a great BIG Farris Wheel that we rode. Kaylee loved it! Riley Rose was scared to death! Poor baby was clinched to me the entire time! The Outlet Mall has just built a playground (covered- no sand :) ) with a 'splash center' as well. Mommy shopped while Daddy stayed and played with the girls. Saturday night we went to 'The Hangout'. It's a new restaurant that was built exactly one year ago Saturday. They also have lots of fun things for kids!
Overall this was our BEST Family (mini) Vacation!!!!!! We have already booked our next trip!