Below you will find some photographic highlights of our trip which began with the arrival of a friend from Phoenix, Whitney , and her daughter, Sofia, on Friday, November 21st. We picked up Caroline and Reid early from school and headed south for Orlando, where we met Joel (who would arrive after completing a mission for a friend). Whitney and Sofia went to the Magic Kingdom on Saturday while our family went to Sea World.
On Sunday, we all visited Universal's Islands of Adventure and had a fabulous day!
Monday found us back on the road and heading north and west to Orange Beach where we met up with Dad and Cyndi for Thanksgiving. We experienced beautifully sunny, but cool days at first, but that didn't stop the children from getting in the ocean.
Whitney and I found the first morning a bit too chilly for a bathing suit and H2O. Well, the bathing suits were on UNDER the sweats, and we were happy to ditch our clothing once we arrived at the indoor pool and/or hot tub. That was more our speed.
We also took some time for an informal photo shoot for Christmas card photos. You'll have to wait until your card arrives to see those!
On Friday, we left the beach heading north for Demopolis to visit with Mom and Granny. By this time, the Florida tropical warmth had finally shown up, however a few days too late. We drove in misty, drizzly rain all day and arrived to temps in the 70s. Our only concern was whether or not the rain would go away for Saturday's BIG Alabama-Auburn football game. Unfortunately, our tailgating plans were in jeopardy, and that wasn't a cheerful thought.
Upon awakening on Saturday, the misty rain was still in place, and the tailgating plans had been canceled. Things weren't looking up, however, we decided that we wouldn't let it dampen our spirits as well, so we headed north to Tuscaloosa. Within an hour and a few minutes, we were on campus and parking the car! Shortly thereafter, we were listening to Denny Chimes announce 1:00 p.m. and standing in it's shadow (well, if it was sunny) listening to the percussion members of the Million Dollar Band.
Amazing sounds!
The band then gathered all of its members onto the steps of the Gorgas Library for the fight song. Singing along with thousands of fans and alumni will fill your heart with pride for the team for whom you root so loudly!
There were hundreds of fans under tents and enjoying a now rain-free afternoon. It was amazing, and we were very envious of their setups. We were sure that our originally planned "Roll Tide Christmas" theme would have been the hit of the party, ugh, tailgating experience! I'm also sorry to report that I don't have the previously expected photograph of our family in Crimson, White and Houndstooth with our "dear Santa" sign.....
It's our only wish, and it would be most cost effective for our family and the university! :-)
We did, however, have the great pleasure of meeting up with Big Al on the Quad, and he graciously allowed a moment with us.
Now wouldn't this make an awesome Christmas card?!We also spotted some cheerleaders, and they were thrilled to stop for a photo with our adorable Sofia. And Whitney and Sofia stopped for a shot outside Bryant-Denny Stadium just prior to kickoff.
Our walk continued among the joyous tailgaters, and began our quest to acquire a minimum of two tickets into the stadium. Pre-game prices were too much to fathom, so we decided to continue our trek across campus, stopping to visit with some friends and munching on some BBQ nachos! Joel has now acquired another BBQ taste. I don't think Dreamland will soon be serving these up, but the concoction was one that he enjoyed. I, too, loved it with lots of jalapenos!
There were many "scalpers" with tickets in hand, but still 20 minutes before kickoff, the tickets were still priced extremely high. Surely the price would go down after kickoff. However, that wasn't the case. There were many hopeful fans on the NE corner of the stadium. Tickets were still going for $175 to $250 EACH! Hopes were dashed, and our party found our way back to the car, where we were fortunate to be able to depart our parking space. We tuned the radio to the game and proceeded to listen to the first half of the game and arrived back in Demopolis in time to view the second half on the TV. Bella was even dressed for the occasion!
What more can I say? I think for all of us Bama fans, we only need to hear this, and if you were very fortunate enough to have witnessed this firsthand, enjoy it again and again right here:
In conclusion I would have to say, "..... and a good time was had by all!" It was an amazing week, and as always, it's hard to come to the end and say goodbye to a good friend for another year or so.
Thanks for joining me in this recap, and stay tuned to another Jenkins' jaunt - physical, virtual, or mental! Love to all!
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