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Polk Summer Vacations in Gulf Shores Alabama

Peach season is in full swing in South Georgia and I love fresh peaches.  We live in the heart of fruit and vegetable farming and fresh peaches are only a few miles from our home and we often go to Barney GA peach sheds to buy peaches and eat peach ice cream which is sooo good. 

Peaches always remind me of our family vacations to Gulf Shores. Daddy had planted a peach orchard on our farm and after mama had canned and frozen all we could eat, we sold them. Daddy would pick them before he went to work and we would put them in baskets and sell them by the peck and bushel at ridiculously low prices compared to today. 

When we had sold all the peaches, we would use the money for our summer vacation to Gulf Shores Al.  This was the highlight of our year.

Some of our friends would go to Gulf Shores, AL, others to Panama City, FL, or to the mountains. But until I was a teenager, our summer vacations were to Mississippi to visit our grandparents. This changed as we grew older and some of our grandparents died and we began the annual Gulf Shores trip.  

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There was a little motor court or motel just across the inland waterway into Gulf Shores and we always stayed there.  Can’t remember the name of the lady who managed it but she always had us a loaf of homemade bread in our cottage.  Of course, Daddy carried her fresh tomatoes and other vegetables from our garden so it was a good swap.  It was not fancy or the closest to the beach but it was not expensive and very clean.  We thought it was wonderful for we didn’t stay in motels very often.  We didn’t mind the short drive to the beach or the walk if Mama and Daddy were too slow getting ready to play in the water.

The beaches on the Gulf Coast are beautiful with white sand and blue waters and we swam and played in the surf for hours.  Mama would insist we go back to the motel about 11 o’clock, eat dinner, take a nap and go back to the beach about 3 or 4 PM.  She had this idea that you couldn't swim for about an hour after you had eaten and we would grumble a little but you didn’t argue with our mama.  So lunch and a nap it was.  

We carried lots of fresh tomatoes, cucumbers, onions and other fresh vegetables from the garden and tomato sandwiches and other goodies that Mama had baked were so good.  We seldom ate in a restaurant but that was OK with us because our Mama was an excellent cook.  The treat for the week was when Daddy would go to the shrimp boats and buy fresh shrimp for Mama to cook.  Some were fried and most were boiled for us to enjoy and eat too much.  It was good eating!!!  That was one of the highlights of the week. 

At night we would go down to the beach to the small entertainment area and ride in the bumper cars.  Daddy would have a big old stinky cigar in his mouth and would drive like a demon with a big grin on his face as he tried to bump us off the track.  He enjoyed this immensely and we would all laugh and laugh at him but he was enjoying himself and we were too.  Mama would stand on the sidelines and laugh but did not ride. Not sure why but I think she thought it would be unlady-like. Mama was a real “Southern Lady” from head to toe. 

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One of our side trips during the week would be Fort Morgan.  These are the remains of this Confederate fort which helped guard the Mobile Bay area during the War Between the State. It was always cool wandering around the ruins and chasing each other through the echoing passages.  Arvin and Sam, my brothers, would play like soldiers with sticks for guns and have battles of war.  Fun and funny because we had super imaginations and could see the bullets flying and hear the sound of the guns.  Of course, the Confederates always won.

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With all these fun activities, the beach was the main attraction and loved every minute we played in the Gulf.  Our vacation was always too short and we would hate to leave but we were anticipating the next year when after the peaches were gone, we would head back to Gulf Shores for the best week of the year.  

That’s all for today,

The Georgia Peach 

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Gulf Shores Birthday



Gulf Shores, AL 2012

 

Good evening I know it has been awhile but have not had the time or inclination to write anything.  Haven't been cooking much so I don't have any new recipes and haven't been doing much so nothing to talk about.  We have had 2 events this past month which we enjoyed - our annual trip to Gulf Shores Alabama and celebrating my 70th birthday while we were there.

 These are 3 of our GREAT nieces from Houston which we met for the week and we always have a wonderful time with them.  This is Morgan, Taylor and Katelyn and they are a total joy. 

This year I taught them to knit on their fingers and I think lots of people will get beautiful scarves for Christmas.  It is amazing how quickly they learned the skill and were soon busy making long scarves of colorful yarn.  I love to pass on a skill to them and next year I hope to teach them how to crochet or knit so they will have another valuable skill and hobby.  They are soooo smart.



  
 This is Martha, my sweet sister-in-love who is the MeMaw for the sweet girls.  She and Taylor spend a lot of time together and when MeMaw is present, the rest of us do not exist.  They are making the first of 2 banana puddings for us to enjoy and it was delicious.  I think Taylor is going to be a good cook like her grandmother for she is getting lots of good instruction.

We have known Martha most of her life for she is from my home town and was my brother's girlfriend in the 4th grade and on and on.  They were happily married for many years before lung disease took him Home  but she is my sister and we love each other and wish we lived closer together.  Houston is a long way from Adel, GA but at least we see each other once a year at the beach.

This is my niece and her family which we have met in Gulf Shores for the last 2 years for a vacation.  This is Beth, Gregg, Katelyn, Morgan and Taylor from Houston, TX.  It has been a complete joy to meet them at the beach for that is our favorite place to go and this beach is where we went when we were children and teenagers growing up in Camden, AL.  Beth used to go occasionally when she was a little girl and now we are continuing the Polk tradition of enjoying a little piece of heaven here on earth. 

Our daughter, Becky was able to come down for a few days to relax and help celebrate my birthday.  You notice there are no candles for we didn't want to burn the house down and not sure they would have all fit on the cake.  We ate supper at our favorite seafood restaurant in Orange Beach and my daughter made sure the waitress knew it was my 70th birthday which was announced to about 1/2 the restaurant and they all sang "Happy Birthday" and I got a delicious slice of real key lime pie which we all shared.  Good food, good time and lots of fun and love to share.

 

This was one of my favorite moments with Becky for we are doing what we both love - standing by the sea, watching the waves, and just enjoying being together.  Love the beach and love that girl.

 

 

Turning 70 was not that bad and I think I look pretty cool for a 70 year old!! It is the beginning of a new decade for me and it has its perks.  You get discounts without asking and your taxes go down.  Best of all, you have learned who you are, what you want with the years you have left, and you can live how you want to and not worry about what other people think.  These "other people" will overlook forgetfullness, unusual behavior, strange outfits, and other weird behaviour for they will just shake their heads and say, "Bless her heart, she is getting old."  Freedom is mine to be who I want to be, act like I want to act, say what I want to say and mix plaids and polka dots without worrying if it matches. 

 

I look forward to the coming years and without sadness realize they may be many or they will be some, and they may be few but that's OK for I plan to live each day fully and enjoy what I have.  Life is good and thank you Beth, Gregg, Martha, Becky, Katelyn, Morgan and Taylor giving me a great birthday.  Love ya'll. I just hope more of the family can come next year for it was wonderful but we missed those who were not there. 

 

Nuff said,

 

The Georgia Peach







Gulf Shores Vacation

Good evening and it is good for we have just had a nice rain shower which we needed greatly. Our area is heavily agricultural and rain in a dry spell is most welcome. Our poor yard and pond are drying up and I hope the fishes last through this dry period.

I know I haven't written in a while but I have been going through a brain dead, writer's block, plumb worn out time period and have not wanted to write anything. This is most unusual for me since I usually have something to say about everything so after the rest, I am ready to go again.

As you can tell from the pictures, we have been to the beach - Gulf Shores, AL. This is the beach we went to as children and we paid for it with selling the peaches our daddy raised. We also carried out children there when we could and our grandchildren have also been there. It is a special place for us to visit and we have great memories of our childhood there.

Daddy used to love driving the bumper cars with a great big cigar clamped in his mouth and bumping into everyone. We would try to outrun him with no luck and he would be having a ball and laughing hilariously as he bumped us. Most of the time I would wait until he had his fun and had bumped and jostled my brothers before I would get in a car. I can see that big cigar and grin now as he raced around the floor. Mama would just shake her head and say, "Ott, quit acting like a child" but he was having too much fun. It was not often we saw our daddy just relax and have fun so those days at Gulf Shores were special.

Last summer while we were in Texas visiting our families, I suggested to my niece that it would be fun to meet somewhere for a family vacation and she planned a trip to our favorite beach and we invited all the family to meet us there. It was impossible for some to come due to other responsibilities but those who could come had a great time.

This is Katelyn, our oldest great niece and we had a great time together. She is a very good softball player and loves the water. She is growing up so quickly and is becoming quite a young lady.

Morgan, the middle sister and second great niece is a loving, early riser. She was usually the first one to greet us each morning as we drank our coffee with a great big smile and hug. I totally enjoyed the loving and sweet smile.


Taylor is the baby girl but is no longer a "baby." A sweet, quiet, little girl with a wonderful personality who loves her Me Maw more than anyone except her mama. She was like a little sprite flitting around the house full of fun and giggles.


This is me with 2 of our nieces on the beach. We had fun collecting shells, driftwood, making bracelets, drawing and just chilling out. I sure wish we lived closer together so I could see them every day but I am afraid I would spoil them rotten for I enjoy them so much.

The couple at the beginning are the parents of these lovely children and they are doing a great job in raising these girls. Greg brought fresh boudin sausage from Louisiana and made the best sausage and scrambled eggs I ever eaten. He is a great cook and we enjoyed a wonderful breakfast every morning along with the waffle and pancakes from Beth. We ate well every day and weight was gained by all.

Listening to Greg play the guitar and sing out on the porch, talking with Beth, Martha and Lane, playing with the girls, visiting with a friend from long ago and sitting with my sweet husband on the porch made a wonderful vacation. New memories were made and old ones remembered. We really missed those who could not come but maybe next year more of us can be together for we plan to meet somewhere on the Gulf Coast next year.

It's good to talk to you again and tomorrow I will share a good recipe I used last week - quick, easy and delicious and best of all chocolate.

Ya'll take care.

Nuff said,

The Georgia Peach

Thursday's Memories

Good morning, ya'll. Come on in for a fresh cup of coffee. I had to make another pot for my sweet and lovable husband got up before I did and drank all but 2 cups. Now by this time ya'll know I cannot rev my motor on 2 cups of coffee. I have to have at least 3 and sometimes that is not enough to get my caffeine for the day. At my age it takes a good bit of the stuff to jump start the body.

It is a tad chilly today and going to get down right cold tonight. Don't mind though for I'll just snuggle up to my sweetheart and he'll keep me warm. Our cat is a good bedfellow and besides the warmth he sings you to sleep with his purring. Gotcha! You thought I was talking about Roy didn't you?

Looking forward to next week for we are going to the beach. This is the closest we can get to heaven here on earth, as far as we are concerned and it brings back lots of great childhood memories. Our family would go to Gulf Shores, AL most summers for a week and a great time was had by all.

We funded this trip with the money we made selling peaches from our peach orchard. We would pick them, pack them and sell them for not a lot. I can't remember what we charged, but I know it was not as much as I pay now. They were really good peaches for our daddy grew them and if he grew it, it was always good.

After the peach season and using the peach money, off to Gulf Shores we would go. We stayed at a little motel or travel inn run by Mrs. Lolley. I can't remember the name of the place but it was about 2 miles from the beach back on the canal or inter coastal waterway. It was not fancy, but it was clean and had room for 5 and Mrs. Lolley always had 1 or 2 loaves of homemade bread waiting on us. She only did this for her favorite customers and we always looked forward to it.

The small, cement block cabin painted a faded pink was wonderful. It would have that fresh-cleaned smell plus the salty air of the beach. To me that smell was stupendous and I still think it is. We would immediately hurry to unload the car, for we brought all our food with us except for the fresh shrimp we would buy from a shrimper for the "big feast."

As soon as we had it all unloaded and in place, we began to beg to go to the beach! Bathing suits on, towels in our hands and ready to go we would jump up and down waiting on mama and daddy. They would take forever to get ready but finally we piled in the car and headed for the beach and it was always the best day of our year to see the water, waves and sand. We would run, jump, swim, make sand castles, collect shells and play in the water until dark and had to leave.

By then we were starving to death so back to the cabin for tomato sandwiches with tomatoes we brought from home and usually mama's pound cake. This was great but then we had to go to the bumper cars and miniature golf course. Daddy would have a cigar in his mouth driving a bumper car and would like look a smoking speed demon as he tried to hit everyone in his way. We would laugh, scream and drive like crazy trying to get away from him. This was a daddy we seldom saw and we loved every minute of it. Mama would stand at the railing laughing her head off. She wouldn't ride but she had a great time watching us.

As we grew to our teen years, we would go to the Hangout. I am attaching a link so you can see what it looked like then. We have watched and danced many hours at the Hangout and when I would carry a "boyfriend" with me, we would dance the night away - until 10:00 that is. That was my curfew and beach or not, that was a cardinal rule, not to be broken. But a lot of dancing could be done before that time plus walks on the beach in the moonlight, drinking cokes and watching the other couples dance. Of course I was being chaperoned by 2 younger brothers who kept a sharp eye on their big sister and would report all events back to THE PARENTS. There is nothing like little brothers to hinder activities.

This was always a wonderful week for us. Even the year after I was married and I ate too many boiled shrimp and was a little sick - a lot sick. Didn't eat any shrimp for a while after that, but that feeling is long gone and I look forward to eating some fresh shrimp and oysters next week. Those memories are like a jewel in my jewelry box of memories. The long ride, crossing the bridge of the inter coastal highway, smelling the salt water, greeting Mrs. Lolley, the first view of the beach, the sunburns, the bumper cars, and the Hangout.

It didn't take much to make us happy and I will cherish these memories until I can't remember any more.

Nuff said,

The Georgia Peach