Ahhhh.... Nothing Like The Beach Life

Every year our good friends invite us down to visit for a few days at their Galveston beach house, which I adore. They are such wonderful hosts and always have all kinds of activities planned for us. They take us to fabulous places to eat in addition to makng delicious, nouveau cuisine at the house. They also stock up on the things we like to drink and snack on. We have a cozy little bedroom that we sleep well in, so it's always a great stay.They are such a fun couple!

Our friends' house is so comfortable and beautiful that it's hard to get up and do something without some sort of motivation. So, they usually have some little excursions planned. Like, we visited the Bishop's Palace, which is the coolest historical home in Galveston. I love interesting architecture and Galveston is a dream for those of us who enjoy these things. Of course, no trip is complete without a visit to The Strand historical district for cocktails at a landmark hotel and oysters @ a popular seafood spot. There are so many things to do in Galveston that it could take years to actually do all of them.

During dinner with our Galveston friends last weekend, they revealed to us that they have just bought another larger house down the beach from this one. They have a very large family & at least 6 grandchildren now, so they can definitely use the space. I know exactly which house it is because they have admired this particular place since buying the first one. So, I'm definitely looking forward to our visit this year.

My most favorite place to go in Galveston is a little Mexican market that also has tables & chairs for you to sit & eat. They make the absolute best Migas I've ever had and their beer is always cold, and yes, on vacation I've been known to have the Breakfast of Champions, BEER. The thing I like most about this place is that it has the world's largest pork rinds for sale. The first time we went there they had one on the wall, it was so big. The last time we went, I guess someone had bought it or broken it, because it wasn't there. Talk about wall art, though. Whew! Anyway, this was the biggest they had the last time. It's about the size of a small dog.

We also go to the local biker bar, Woody's, to play pool & have drinks. No trip would be complete with a trip to Woody's. The crowd is usually kind of wild, which makes it all the more interesting. The bar isn't enclosed, so they don't have air conditioning, but the breeze off the ocean is usually enough. Still, you can't help but suck the drinks down.

Anyway, after visiting our friends in Galveston last year, I was racking my brain about what to get them for a thank you gift. We always have such a wonderful time there and I always like to give them something decorative that will go with their surroundings or something they will use. They don't like having a lot of clutter, unlike me, the *Clutter Queen*. So, with respect to that, I wanted to make it special. I finally decided I'd make them a shadow box of all the shells I was able to gather while there.

I went to the craft store and found a perfect white shadowbox and bought the glue necessary to keep the shells in place. Once I got them home, I started arranging the shells in an attractive display and then, Eureka! I decided it would really personalize it if I added a picture of them & one of us, all on the beach. So, I just printed out tiny pictures off the computer.

This is what I finally ended up with & presented to them on their next visit home.

Then, I liked it so much, I decided to make one similar to it, for us. It didn't turn out quite as nicely as the one we gave them, but I still like it. It's the memory that counts.

So, I'll have to come up with something new for this year's trip gift, but with a new house, I'm sure there will be lots of things they need.

I suppose they'd love for us to take the current beach house off their hands, (I'd love that but wouldn't ever want to leave) but that won't be happening. Not in this lifetime anyway. Hubby likes to visit, but doesn't want to own. Been there. Done that.