We arrived in Pensacola, Florida on Sunday at 2:30 and Dale (Dawn's Brother) picked us up. He took us on this amazing scenic tour of the Alabama coast, and all the farmland that they have. I am sure that we sounded like Idiots asking all these "touristy" type questions, but he humored us just the same, and let me tell you, Alabama is absolutely STUNNING! Beautiful white sandy beaches, sweet bay side boardwalks, horse farms, Pecan orchards, Cotton fields, and so many other things... Here is Downtown Fairhope... just minutes from Mama Lou's. There is a beautiful pier and shopping there, and an art district that would put Seattle to shame!
Then we finally got to the house to see Dawn, and I was so anxious that I could hardly sit still, but when we got there, Mama Lou and Papa Dale welcomed us with Open arms! Then I got the hug and kiss that I traveled 3000 miles for! Dawn gives the best hugs, and even though she was in some pain, she gave me the best hug ever! Over the next day and a half, we had some very valuable conversations about marriage, children, and life... She gave me so many things to think about, and so much insight... I don't know how you can pack everything that you want/need to know from Dawn in 48 hours, but I think that we did a pretty good job :) Sometimes we just sat in silence, other times we laughed really hard, and I herd that cackle laugh that Dawn is notorious for, and we also cried.. really hard sometimes, and we hugged each other. All of us were together... Tammy, Mama Lou, Dawn and myself... it felt as if I was in the company of my family and best friends. This was the most Valuable Trip I have ever taken.
As for Alabama... well lets just say that saying "sweet home Alabama" is an understatement! I have NEVER been in a place where people are so welcoming... and I am not just talking about Dawn's family... I am talking about the people at the airport, people on the boardwalk, and even people at the Publix Market! Everywhere I went, I felt welcomed, cared about, and I felt like I belonged there. Fairhope is a place where people smile at you for no reason, where they open doors for you and call you Miss Jesica... this is starting to become redundant, I know, but I LOVE ALABAMA! At night, when everything calmed down, I went outside on there wrap around porch, sat in the porch swing, and I called Kyle to catch up on the boys and to see how everything was going... it was so peaceful... so serene and HELLO, I was in the deep south and sittin on a front porch swing...I get why they do that now! When we drove through Alabama that is one of the first thing that we noticed - Everyone has a rocking chairs or swings on their porch. It is sure a great way to live, I will tell you that!
Mama Lou and Dale are AMAZING! I don't think that anyone could take care of Dawn the way that they do. Mama Lou is so caring and attends to Dawn in such a sweet manor, and Dale is always there for his little girl. I had some really amazing talks with both of them while I was there, and I loved hearing their stories and listening to them talk... who doesn't love a southern accent? But I didn't just love the sound of their voices, they are both such great story tellers! Dale told us about how they opened Mama Lou's Restaurant, and about all the unions in Alabama, and we also had a pretty good talk about church and gun control HAHA Glad we were both on the same page about that one :)
I am convinced that I would have made a pretty amazing southern belle, and that somehow I was born in the wrong state... I guess there is still time to move there and submerge myself in the southern ways...right? Well if I never get to live there, I will definitely be back to visit! Also, we ate some shrimp poboy's and fried blue crab claws that were out of this world! That by itself is a good enough reason to drop everything and move there!
So in 48 hours in Alabama, I was able to see the one woman who throughout my life, has always been there for me, and I got just a taste of her southern roots. The small bit that I saw was enough to make me see why she needs to be there... Alabama is the best place for her, and I am so blessed that I was able to be there to see her in person one last time... to feel her, to hear her and to really enjoy her. Dawn is determined to fight for this last summer to spend with her family and her sweet boys, and by gosh, you know Dawn... she is going to get it!
Thank you to Mama Lou and Dale for all of their southern hospitality, and to Tammy for accompanying me. I don't know if I could have emotionally made it though that weekend without her. I have been thinking of a way to do something here that symbolizes my trip, and while in Alabama, Mama Lou took us to this HUGE white Magnolia Tree... I have never seen and smelled something so wonderful. I looked into it, and if you do it right, you can grow them here... I think that I am going to plant a Magnolia tree here in my yard to always remember my time with Dawn and her family in the sweet state of Alabama.
This is Lou and Dale's home... Absolutely stunning!!! (I stole this picture from Tanners Facebook...Thanks Tanner!!)
Beautiful Magnolia Trees!!
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