85 Years Young

 As of yesterday, my precious Grandmother is officially 85 years old.  So what's the most logical thing to do when such a special occasion occurs?  Well, duh...you pile 12 Simpsons, including a new son-in-law, a cute boyfriend, a birthday cake and watermelon all in one condo in Orange Beach for a weekend of course!

It began for us Friday afternoon with the longest drive of our lives from Columbus to Orange Beach, through rain and wrecks, and state troopers watchful eyes....finally landing at an unknown restaurant, Lester's, for dinner with my family and G-mother.

 Who of course got her first sweet treat of the weekend to begin the celebration!  A chocolate and peanut butter bread pudding with six spoons....

 It was clear from the moment I got there my sister missed me.

 All jokes aside, one thing is VERY clear.  I am my sister's biggest groupie!  When the band upstairs at Lester's started playing a song...but forgot the words, my oh-so-shy sister stomped up the stairs and the next thing we heard was her voice on the mic!  HA!  She came back down in a few minutes, joined us "little people" for dinner, and informed us she'd been asked to open their next set for them!  So Jeff and I hung around after dinner (I acted like a total psycho fan with a camera) while my sister snagged this guy's awesome Gibson guitar and played the ENTIRE set and sang her little heart out!  (They sang for her as backup!  HAHA!)  Yes, she is available for "gigs"....contact me for bookings.

 Saturday morning it wasn't clear exactly if the sun ever rose, for all the clouds in the sky...but we were just happy it wasn't raining!  And this cute cousin was itching to show off his mad wakeboarding skillzzzzz.....so off we went!

 And I just loved being on the water that I love with the people that I love!

 Grandmother even took her spin on the boat, and I know she loved every minute of it.  She loves the water like I do.  I suppose she and Granddaddy are where I get it.  I can tell she loved every minute of her birthday weekend (not because she keeps calling and telling me) but because of this sweet smile on her face!

 We all got cleaned up for dinner later and headed to Cobalt, where cousin Lindsey used to work and she and Uncle Pat had the hook-up for a swift jump to the top of the waiting list where NOWHERE at the beach takes reservations.  We got a great table with an awesome view, but before sitting of course we took the necessary birthday girl pictures with her grandkids. :)

 And mama with her boys.

 And then we ate!  I had swordfish, I believe for the first time.  I will definitely add this to the list of things I want fresh off the grill at home.  And this yummy appetizer of tuna and avocado.  Why is food so important to me....sheesh.

 Oh look....another food picture.  Grandmother's cake was from Columbus Corner Bakery, tasted like heaven, and looked like the beach.  Topped with a scoop of vanilla Bluebell, it wrapped up the night perfectly.

 I love these people to the moon and back.  I'm so glad we were able to get together and make this happen for Grandmother.  She deserves a special day, and I think we gave her just that.  Happy 85th Grandmother!  I love you!

Oh, and for the sake of documenting all events....Jeff and I again drove home in a monsoon...making yet another 5 hour drive 6.  This time it might have had something to do with the potty break (I only needed one!!), gas fill up, a necessity every beach trip....roadside boiled peanuts (and I think we've finally found the winner at "The Peanut Shack" east side of 431, south of Dothan, whoop whoop!).  And that last little stop to some random antique store we thought was just a pottery place.  We went in for some pots for the patio....came out 45 minutes later with 4 GIANT pots, a well bucket (yes, like ol' timey going to fetch the water well-bucket, it's amazing....) and last but not least, a chicken.  for the kitchen.  and believe it or not, that was all jeff. 

Oh, and had cereal for dinner. Life.