My spoiled husband

I love being a teacher. I absolutely love what I do. And I love having the summer off. However, I realized that my husband enjoys me being out of school even more than me. During the school year, we are both so busy. He has a long commute and I have long hours and work to finish at home. While school is in session, things around the house don't get accomplished like they should. Things are messier, the laundry piles up, the refrigerator becomes empty, and my husband is busier. He gets up and makes breakfast and packs our lunches, makes the bed, and he unloads the dishwasher.

But now that it is summer, he is getting so spoiled. I do everything. I love that I get to take care of him and give him a break, but I worry that he will become accustomed to this lifestyle. Perhaps I should stop doing so much. Yeah right, I secretly love being able to do so much for a man who is so good to me. Besides, I don't mind making the bed, especially if that means I can get back in it when he goes to work.

I married a good man. One who supports everything I do, who encourages me when I take on something new, who motivates me when I feel discouraged. Spoiling him during the summer only seems fair. Besides, when school starts again, it's back to the grind for both of us. He should enjoy this while it lasts:)

Me and the spoiled hubby! 

Dolphin Tour

This weekend, while we were at a great seafood restaurant in Gulf Shores, we found a flier that advertised dolphin tours. I grabbed my phone and looked up the prices on their website, and finding them to be affordable, we decided to give it a try. We spent hours and hours on the beach on Saturday, so around 2:00p.m. I was ready for a shower and a nap. My husband then called the dolphin tour and got us a reservation for the 4:00p.m. tour. I was excited until I realized it was 3:30 and the boat we were to board was in Orange Beach. 

We raced out of our hotel and headed to Orange Beach. Neither of us had our phones or an address to the place and pretty soon 4:00 came and went. I was so sad:( I wanted to see dolphins! We decided to keep looking for it and ended up in Florida. We saw some very unusual things along the Alabama/Florida state line as well. 

This was the name of a local newspaper. 

We quickly realized that this was not the place for us!

This is when we realized we had gone too far. 

My husband decided to take me out for Dippin Dots since it was clear we had missed the boat. We asked the ice cream lady if she knew where the place was, but she had no idea either. While we were enjoying our ice cream of the future, we decided to keep looking so we would know where it was for the next day and could make another reservation. Next we ended up at an arcade to ask for directions. We looked in their phone book, got an address, and programmed it into our GPS. It directed us inland. We should have known that we were going the wrong way. We stopped at a scuba shop and asked again, and this time we were given good directions. It was 5:45 and we were back in Gulf Shores. The boat was going out for it's final voyage of the day at 6:00. So, hubby thought we could make it. We arrived at about 3 or 4 after 6:00. This was our view as we got to the dock. 

Yes, that is our boat. Leaving. 

Thankfully, the lady that was booking the voyages whistled and asked if they would come back for us. They agreed and we had to jump onto the boat. An onlooker told my husband that he should be thankful that I was with him, because they wouldn't have come back for a man. We boarded the boat and thanked the kind captain for retrieving us. We took the only seats left which were right in front. Turns out, we had the best seats on the boat. 

Our perfect seat!

As we left the dock and pulled into the bay, I was anxious to see the dolphins! We passed some amazing homes built along the water including Dale Earnhart, Jr.'s house, or so the captain said. Then we passed this lovely item:

AaAAarggg! It's a pirate ship! 

Then it was off to the dolphins. I was wondering how they could guarantee dolphin sightings. They go out and find shrimp boats who are dragging their nets. The dolphins stick close to the boats looking for some snacks, and if they are lucky the people on the shrimp boats will feed them.

What most of my pictures looked like. The dolphins we so fast! My camera couldn't keep up. 

Got one! 

See the shrimp boat? 

Sadly, this is the best picture I got. 

 After we viewed these dolphins for about 20 minutes, the captain decided to take us out into the gulf to watch the sunset. It was gorgeous! My absolute favorite part of the tour was when we sailed under the bridge and headed into the gulf. The waves were huge and the boat was going really fast. I felt like we were airborne and I was standing up, holding the railing. It was amazing.

 After snapping these last few pictures, my camera batteries died. But we were headed back to dock. It was incredibly windy on the boat and sailing into the gulf only made it seem windier. Check out this after photo of my hair:)

That's what 2 hours on a boat will do to ya! 

If you are ever in Gulf Shores, I highly recommend that you find a dolphin tour. This was one of the best parts of the trip. I feel like we really got our money's worth out of the trip. As we got off the boat, there were a lot of fishermen bringing in their catch and having it cleaned right in front of us...needless to say, we didn't have seafood for dinner:)

Life's a Beach!

I love the beach! My husband took Friday off and whisked me away to Gulf Shores. We stayed in a great hotel, visited great restaurants, went sight-seeing (some intentional, some because we couldn't find a certain place!), but my absolute favorite part of the trip was the time we spent at the beach. It is so relaxing to just sit or lie there watching the waves crash into the shore. We collected shells, found sand dollars, walked along the beach, swam, spotted dolphins from the coast, had a picnic, and my new favorite thing, coffee on the beach. We spent time at the beach on Friday, most of Saturday, and Sunday morning. Saturday was the best. I am an early riser, so I convinced my honey to get up and go early. I am so glad we did! When we arrived at the beach, it wasn't even 8 a.m. There was hardly anyone there. It was so peaceful. We walked and talked and drank our coffee. I am sure I will share a little more of our adventures later, but for now, here are some photos of the trip:

Saturday morning at the beach. So peaceful! 

This is how excited my husband gets about the beach! 

ahhhhhhhhhh! 

My beach treasures! Such lovely shells!

 BEST. MORNING. EVER. Coffee+Beach=one happy me! 

We had big waves on Friday! Hubby likes to body surf. I like to watch people get washed ashore:) 

The longest hike EVER across sand. Yellow flag=big waves! 

Beach graffiti

That dark spot is a dolphin. We saw them every day from the beach. 

Our view from the boat Saturday night. 

What an awesome weekend. I am so thankful that we live so close to the beach. I love to go and spend time with my husband. It was such a blessing to be able to get away. We are so thankful for the resources we have been blessed with. This trip was just what we both needed.

Popcorn Night

Wednesday night is popcorn night. It is one of my favorite things. My husband works really long hours and on Wednesday, it seems longer. He usually gets home around 7:30 in the evening, so during the week, we eat dinner together when he gets home. Except on Wednesdays. By the time he gets home, I am already at church. He comes and sneaks in late and by the time we get home it is 8:15 or later. We don't get to have dinner together on Wednesdays at all. He and I pick up something separately and dine solo.

This is why we have Popcorn Night. It is a scheduled part of our routine, and we work hard to make sure that neither of us have any work to finish during that time. After church, my husband pops a huge bowl of popcorn (the good stuff, made on the stove). Then we settle in for some TV, a movie, or sometimes we just sit and talk and catch up. This time on Wednesday evenings has become one of my favorite things. I look forward to it. It breaks up the week. It feels like a date night stuck right in the middle of the week. We catch up, make weekend plans, talk, laugh...all while eating some delicious popcorn.

This morning, as my husband kissed me good-bye and headed off to work, he said, "It's Popcorn Night". I love how we both look forward to spending even just a few hours in the evening together. So, if you need me tonight, you know where to find me. I will be sitting with my man, watching some silly show, eating some awesome popcorn.

Yumm-O

What do you do to stay connected when life gets busy?

Sunscreen 101

I have fairly fair skin. I can tan, and I do tan, but I have to ease into it. I wear sunscreen most of the time. I usually always put it on my face and ears and shoulders when I am in the sun. Or I go for the whole-body application if I know I will be out in the sun for most of the day. I even reapply. I have used all kinds of SPF. 4, 15, 20, 30, 50, 70, and even 100. Yes, there really is a 100. It is for people who are slightly see-through. I feel a sense of responsibility as I am slathering on this lotion-ey goodness. I even believe that if I use it often, I will grow old gracefully and not look like a 40 year old handbag in a few years.

This weekend I picked up some new sunscreen at the local drugstore and as I was applying it, I noticed that it was sweat proof and water proof. Good thing, cause we were at the pool and it was a zillion degrees out.

Just as I was finished applying the goo to my pasty skin, I turned the bottle over to read the back (because I am obsessive and read EVERY thing on bottles, boxes, and inserts). Well, to my surprise and dismay, look at what the same sunscreen says on the back.

Do you see it? "Rinse with water to remove."

Seriously?

Things that drive me crazy

I try very hard not to let things I can't control get to me, but sometimes a girl just can't help it. Currently, there are a few things that top my list of things that drive me crazy.

• "Cold" water-I have learned that if you want cold water in Alabama, you have to refrigerate it. You can turn on the cold water and wait for hours, but the water isn't going to get cold. The closest I can get is lukewarm. 
• The term "occasional table"-What is that anyway? There is a commercial that plays all the time here that advertises occasional tables. I need more of a commitment than that. I need at least a frequent table, or better yet an always table. I need to know I have a table that I can count on. 
• Bumpy sidewalks-You know, those sidewalks that look like Legos. I am sure that they serve some kind of a purpose, but they were clearly designed by a man. Ever try to walk on those in heels? or thin flip flops? 

• Incorrect grammar-It must be the teacher in me, but when I hear or see poor grammar, it really bothers me. I don't like when the words to and too are switched. Or your and you're. Or there, their, and they're. I can understand if you mix up lie and lay. Those are the tricky ones. However, if your Facebook status continually says things like, "wow, I can't wait to go their" or "there shoes were ugly", I will hide your status from my view. 
• Text speak-Perhaps this one makes me old, but I would rather write out the word "people" than ever put "ppl". If my husband were to shorten his "I love you" to "ily", I would not be happy. I see beauty in the English language, and it really bothers me to misspell things. To me, text language is misspelled. Plus, as I mentioned before, I must just be old. I can tolerate the occasional "lol", but only in a text. Please do not tell me in a face-to-face conversation that something made you lol. That is unacceptable. 

These are just a few of the things that drive me crazy. What things drive you to the crazy place? 

Pecan Chicken

I love the summer time. I love not having a lot to do. I love the great summer vegetables and fruits that are available. I do however, hate planning meals in the summer. I love to cook, but it is so hot in the summer that I want to just eat Popsicles for dinner every day. I am always trying to find new things to make in the summer and new ways to use the delicious fresh things I find at the local produce stand. This is a recipe that I have used forever, but I have only made it once since I got married. Last night we had a great dinner of pecan chicken, asparagus, and sweet potatoes. It was delicious. The pecan chicken is very simple to make.

What you need:

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1 egg white
salt and pepper
low fat honey mustard (we like Newman's) for dipping

Place the egg white in one shallow bowl and pecans and parsley in another.

Dip the chicken in the egg white and then into the pecan and parsley mixture. Put on a baking sheet and then add salt and pepper. Bake at 350 for 20 to 25 minutes or until the chicken is done.

Since I was heating up the oven for the chicken anyway, I decided to put some sweet potatoes and asparagus in as well. The asparagus was so delicious. I brush them with olive oil and lemon juice and then add a little salt and pepper. The asparagus only takes from 5 to 10 minutes to cook, so I put it in when the chicken was almost ready.

mmmmm!

As soon as my husband came home, dinner was ready. We had a delicious and relaxing dinner. I think that we will have it more often!