DOGWOOD ACRES, 12/29/09

Live Seahorses at Estuarium...fascinated me!

A special sea shell find called for close examination.

Granddaughters got new Carrhart jackets for Christmas;

they have come in pretty handy on this winter beach vacation.

DOGWOOD ACRES, 12/28, 2009, ELANE CRUM

Hello friends. Hope everyone had a Merry Christmas and is recovering from big Christmas dinners. The kids and I had a big Country Christmas breakfast at Bill and Mary Lou’s and late Christmas dinner at Waffle House in Jonesboro, AR. Nothing was ordinary about Christmas, because of the uncertain weather and our travel plans.

We made plans to travel to Dauphin Island, AL, leaving after Mary Lou’s Christmas Breakfast. Well, that is what we did, but it was after noon before we left. Several things contributed to the late take-off. Rick had gotten a bad cold with sore throat and cough and decided that he and Little Fox would stay home. Due to other unexpected activities through first part of the week, all of my Christmas wrapping, laundry, and packing for the trip was done on Christmas Eve. Got most of it done before going to bed at 2:00 a.m. on Christmas, but then overslept and was late getting over to Bill and Mary Lou’s. Rick and Little Fox were curled up on the couch and I felt bad leaving them behind, but, knew they would be safe and warm. There was very little snow at our house and even less as I drove east. I finally got there, had Christmas, a late breakfast and we were on our way. As evening approached, we began to get hungry and started looking for a place to eat. There were plenty of gas stations open, restaurants were all closed, and then we spotted a brightly lit Waffle House. Everyone there seemed to be happy just to have found food, servers were wearing Santa hats and the mood was festive. After leaving with full tummies, we got back on the road and decided to drive straight through.

According to my Garmin there was still five hours of driving time. After a few stops for gas, soft drinks and other amenities, we got here about 2:00 a.m. Driving directions to our beach house were detailed, but we had not been forewarned that the streets were flooded. It was kinda spooky driving a skinny island with strange streets that were dark and water covered. Roads were flat, Neal could see the yellow line and we finally found the right house. It has been an adventure; we are six miles from the mainland and about 20 miles from grocery stores. Surrounded by sand and beaches, the girls soon had a stash of huge clam shells.

There are four churches on the island, Baptist, United Methodist, Catholic and Episcopal; we were Sunday morning visitors at the Baptist Church where we found friendly people and good preaching. Sunday afternoon was sunny and warm enough for some good shell hunting on the beach, but sharp winds came up Sunday night and have continued to blow throughout the day on Monday. Monday night temps are expected to be near freezing and we expect sunshine and weather in the fifties on Tuesday.

Rick got to feeling a little better, so he and Little Fox drove on down. They also got here in the middle of the night and had quite an adventure trying to find the house. We got out with them today for some Dauphin Island sightseeing at Ft. Gaines and the Estuarium, an aquarium at the Dauphin Island Sea Lab.

Little Fox found a huge bone in the sand behind our house. Erin brought it inside for her and then threw it in the floor when a spider crawled out. To kill spiders, we soaked it in a sink of bleach water, but it no longer smells like a bone. Trying to revive her interest in the bone, I am cooking it in the oven with a couple of bacon slices. The house stinks now, but we will know tomorrow how it all turns out. Bye for now.