Biloxi Beach Part II

As I said in the previous post, the best part of the trip was getting to see my hubby. He wouldn't let me take his picture cuz he got a horrible (love him to bits but it was HORRIBLE) hair cut. I think he would have looked better with a shaved head and he has a really awful shaved head so that's saying something. Oh well while he's in school it's a definite high and tight and the stylist got the tight part too much so. I was ecstatic to see him bad haircut and all.

The base is gorgeous! Palm trees and sand and sun! It's like 3 blocks from the gulf and just beautiful. 

I didn't get pics on the way in I was too busy listening to the squawk boxes (Tom-Tom and Google Maps) for only the second time in the entire trip they were agreeing with each other.

As I came into Biloxi, I passed a little town called D'Ibervile (pronounced Dee Eye-ber-ville) then over the Back Bay of Biloxi, where off to the left you can see Biloxi Bay and to the right you can see Mullet Lake (yep definitely know your in Mississippi) 

The only pics I got were at night after we finished supper at a local Cajun/Creole place called Cafe New Orleans (I highly recommend them it was good!) 

 The lights in this pic are from Bienville Blvd (AKA Hwy 90) beyond the bridge is Biloxi Bay. 

Beyond the sand bars and islands in this picture is Mullet Lake. 

Hubby and I went to a swanky little oyster place (Half Shell Oyster House) in Gulfport the first night. Kinda pricey but super sleek and jazzy and very nice without a toddler! Then off to the Shoppette (base Convenience store) where we got milk shakes and a movie out of the Redbox. 

The majority of this trip was spent in hubby's dorm room, because he was working on homework, papers, and briefings (Air Force for speeches). He shares a bathroom with the guy next door. This dude cracked me up the entire time I was down there! The walls are soo thin you can hear everything. He would not shut up. Those of you who know me know I'm a talker (those of you who don't have read my blog posts and know this) this guy has me beat! He talked about Obama, the Bible, Religion, Reggae music, girls cheating on their men, Africa, CNN and I don't remember what else. At one point he was in the shower, and there were 3 male voices coming from the bathroom. Whether all of them were in the bathroom or he was talking to them with the bathroom door open was never figured out. His topics of discussion while in the shower Sumerian Law, natural disasters and some guy name Tyrone. I didn't get the pleasure of meeting him while I was down there, but I know where he stands on almost every current event in the free world. I also met the one guy he hangs out with the most, Jason, who's some kind of financial genius and is a 9 year Technical sergeant testing for Master Sergeant. He looks 13, but he's like 27. Like Will he's great with numbers but hates English and writing. That was basically my entire outside interactions while in Biloxi. 

Will was happy to have me down there to help him with his work, but also to give him a chance to relax and a break from chow hall food. In addition to the oyster house and the Cajun joint, we tried to local pizza place Bootlegger's Pizza. Again highly recommend, excellent pizza. Lots of reviews on Yelp and Urban Spoon said try the seafood bread, so we did. Not a fan. Will liked it but I didn't. I think it was the mayo-esque sauce on it that did me in. 

Aside from the culinary escapades the only thing that we did that was remotely interesting (well that you would find interesting) was the beach. Yes, it was January, but I have always found I don't care what time of the year I go to the beach I always enjoy it. It wasn't too bad, mid-60s light breeze and a beautiful sunset. Perfect! 

The water was gorgeous! The sand was very different than the other beaches I've been too, mostly because its been lakes and rivers. In Washington the sand is gray and grainier, plus it smells like geoduck. (Animal lesson- a geoduck, pronounced goo-ee-duck, is a large ugly clam type animal For more info )  

Anyway, the sand in Biloxi is white and fine and it was January and so I wore Cowboy boots on the beach. Or course, I took pictures cuz I'm kinda weird like that. 

I also took a couple selfies and tried to get Will in on the action again, but Mr. Bad Hair Cut refused. 

I've mentioned the water, but haven't really shown you any pictures so here they are. 

No trip to the beach would be complete with out lighthouses. I saw 2 in Biloxi. 

 

The first one is Biloxi Light. A 64 foot tall lighthouse located in the median on Hwy 90 at Porter Ave.

 

 

 

Built in 1848, it was one of the first cast iron lighthouses in the south.  It has a brick foundation and is encased in cast iron. What makes it special is that for the majority of its active years it was kept by female lighthouse keepers. The keepers house was destroyed in 1969 by Hurricane Camille. During Hurricane Katrina it was damaged some of the interior bricks and windows were knocked out.  It is open for tours and is an icon for the entire Mississippi coast.

The second lighthouse is the Broadwater Beach Marina Light

 

 

There isn't a lot of info on this lighthouse. It was built circa 1965 as part of the Broadwater Beach Resort and provided light for the marina run by that hotel.  The hotel was destroyed by Hurricane Katrina and all of the Marina buildings. All that is left is the Lighthouse and the concrete foundations of the marina.  The lighthouse is privately owned and supposedly still works.

 

It was an amazing trip. I haven't had a good road trip like that in a long time! I love to drive and I love to see something new. I'm having a blast being in the South again, and I love exploring Mississippi. I can't wait to go back, and actually see more of Biloxi.  Beauvoir, the post-civil war home of Jefferson Davis is right on the coast and would be really cool to see. We saw his house in Richmond, VA when we visited several years ago, so this would be neat. There was a sign for a Hurricane Katrina Museum and I would love to learn more about the city's history and heritage.

 

I never thought too much about Katrina's impact on Biloxi, so much was said about New Orleans and the damage and tragedies there that I forgot about the surrounding areas. After seeing Biloxi, I'm intrigued. I can't wait to go back!

 

Biloxi Beach Part I- Odd Mississippi

Will is at the NCO Academy in Biloxi, MS.(for my non-military friends that is the Non-Commissioned Officer Academy) This is the first step in getting promoted to Master Sergeant, the second step is testing. I know he is gonna rock the whole process. He's nervous about the papers and speeches in his class, but I know he will do great. This is part of the reason why we compliment each other so well. He is Math and Science, and I am English and History. This weekend was a 3-Day weekend because of Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Will was unable to come up, so I decided to go down there. I knew going down there that we wouldn't be able to do much because he has a lot of homework and presentations to put together, but I thought it might help take the edge off and be good for him to have a little fun. My big fear was being in his way or distracting him from his mission. I have been an Air Force wife for going on 15 years, and have always done my best to be the best Air Force wife I can. I want to support him and his career as best I can, that's my job. Anyways, I'm off topic a little. He wanted me to come down and have a weekend just the two of us. We get so few of them that when the opportunity arises, we jump on it. Plus its the beach!! I love the beach! I especially love it in the off season. No crowds, no traffic, just the sand, water and sun. It was a gorgeous drive down, 6 hours in the Jeep with the radio up and brand new views! I love a good road trip! This is the first time I've taken this long of a road trip without having been where I am going. I've driven on really long road trips before (Washington to Mississippi 4 days! or Kansas to Arkansas 8-9 hours), but always in a caravan or on roads that I have travelled many times in the passenger seat. This was my first time navigating all by myself. I'm proud of myself for figuring it out, lol. So enough of the back story right? On to the trip. I've split this trip into 2 posts. The focus of this one is the interesting roadside attractions I saw going down there and back. Mississippi has some interesting sights.


The first of which was a 120 ft. cross on the side of I-55 near Winona. It is called Christ's Cross at the Crossroads (I-55 and Hwy 82) and was built by a group of community churches to express their faith to the travellers of Mississippi. It's definitely cool. Pardon the picture I was driving as I snapped it.
 

 

I saw a sign that said Sanatorium. Ok? Apparently Sanatorium, MS is a town. The Mississippi Tuberculosis Sanatorium was located here from 1918-1950. The hospital and some of its original buildings are now a museum.

 

 

A Washington Monument replica? in Mississippi? Yep! It's a cell phone tower. The residents of Ridgeland, MS did not want to have an ugly old cell tower in their town, so they came up with the idea of building a landmark instead. I couldn't get a very good picture, but if you want to see it better click here.

 

 

 

 

I love odd road names, and found 2 good ones.

 

 



 

 

 

 

The drive was not the best part. Seeing my husband was and then going to the beach and hanging out in Biloxi was. More to come...

 

 



Never a Dull Moment

Another reason I started this blog is to record all the wacky things that Rhetta says and does on a daily basis. The kid has a very active and creative imagination. I've been documenting them somewhat on Facebook, but I need a more cohesive way to save these things. Rhetta's  first official Rhetta-ism was at about a year old. I can't find the recording at the moment it's on my hard drive but I am currently sans computer while I await a recovery disk from Asus and have to take the computer back to geek squad to have it overhauled. I digress, long story for another day. Rhetta said Mom-Mom and Dad-Dad from the beginning those were her first words. Her third word wasn't dog or cat or ball or something simple it was Bridgette! Yes, Bridgette or in her mangled baby speak Bidgette. We would go through Walmart or Safeway with her screaming Bidgette Bidgette at the top of her tiny lungs. People were like ok??!? I would stop and explain that her dog's name was Bridgette. That was the beginning of it all. Poor Otis was doggie for a long time I think until she was almost 2 and since then he's been Otie. He's her best friend now that she knows his name. Now that the history lesson is over and we've taken our stroll down memory lane. Off to this weeks highlights.

She asked me the other day if Dad was in the North Pole with Santa. I guess because Santa was no longer at Bass Pro Shop, and Will left Monday for NCO Academy  she figured if Santa went to the North Pole then Daddy must have too. I explained that he was in Biloxi and she immediately said that's in Missippi.

It's been non-stop shenanigans since Will left. We have such a fun time when he is gone which is what I want her to remember when's she grown. Dad was gone a lot but me and mom had a blast. We play and act goofy. It's a chance for me to be a kid too. 

We play dress up. she said she wanted to play with me so she gets a blanket And ran through the house with the blanket wrapped around her neck like a cape and hollered I'm a princess and Otie is king! Poor Otie is like ok just don't try and put clothes on me and we will be ok. I asked her what I was and she laughed and ran off screaming I'm a princess! I'm a princess! I guess I was a loyal subject. Lol

We played hide and seek yesterday. She's very good at counting to 12 (minus 5 cuz 5 apparently isn't a number 1,2,3,4  6,7,8,9,10  11,12. What about 5 I ask? No 5 she says 1,2,3,4 6,7,8,9,10 11,12) so I count to 10 open my eyes and here is where she hides 

Twice this is where she hides. The third time she waited til I counted to 6 and then ran circles around me til I got to 10 and then she yelled oh you found me! Ha Ha I tried showing her how your supposed to hide but she needs more practice. Oh well I like playing hide and seek as she gets older I can see it being very interesting. 

Earlier tonight in the bathtub she has this baby doll that swims. She picked her up, wrapped her in her wash rag and sang Oh Baby, Baby, Baby! Oh Baby, Baby Baby! As she rocked her back and forth. Then she pulled the shower curtain and told me to get out because she was nakey. You don't see me mom, I'm nakey in bath tub. This is the same kid who 20 minutes earlier pulled her skirt and undies off in the living room and did some toddler twerking. I don't know where she picked it up we didn't watch the VMAs or Miley Cyrus, but that's what it looks like and she only does it when he's not wearing pants. It's weird and we are trying to break her from this habit before she changes her name to Desiree and grabs a pole. 

Our house is never dull or maybe I am just easily amused. Like by the dog who at 930 last night caused a complete ruckus in the backyard. I'm like what the heck is going on I open the back door to yell at her and I find this 

Yep, that's a 40-ish pound dog standing on top of a frozen solid brick of ice, sand, and toys in a turtle sandbox. The commotion we heard was her digging at the ice trying to poke a hole in it to drink the water. She has a water bowl outside, but she hates it cuz it is a dispenser jug and it gurgles. Freaks her out but I get tired of filling up the water bowl 96 times a day so she can deal with it. Her solution to this problem is to continually knock the lid of the turtle so that the sandbox and little water moat fill with rainwater, cuz apparently that tastes better than the tap water from the gurgling jug. Silly dog! 

That is a glimpse into what our life has been like since Will left. It's highly entertaining a little frustrating and sometimes so amazing that I feel like I'm in a dream. Last night Rhetta is brushing her hair and she looks at me and says "Mommy I'm so pretty!" I say "Yes you are!" She says "Just like you!" I wanted to cry and jump up and down all at the same time. My whole goal in life is to do right by this kid and any future kids. My mom always told me and my sisters. "You didn't ask to be brought into this world. That was me and your dads decision, so we have to do our best for you guys! That's our responsibility." Not to get all preachy but that is what is wrong these days. Parents don't put their kids first. You have a responsibility to your children to be the best you can be for them and to guide them in the right ways to do things. Life stops being about your wants and needs the minute the second line shows up on the EPT. That's how I was raised and that's how I try to raise my kid. Ok I'll put the soapbox up and say goodnight. 

New Year New Blog

This is our family blog. The place where we can share our lives with our friends and families. It's 2014 and with the new year comes a new blog a new beginning of sorts. As you all know, we are trying for baby #2. It's been a year and nothing has happened. Granted we've only actually had 4 actual opportunities to get preggers. Wills flying schedule conflicts with my ovulation schedule quite often, plus no ovulation for 4 months makes for slim chances. We are seeing a doctor and I've been taking Clomid. It's been rough. I am trying to be positive and I hope that at the end of this year I can say the biggest thing that happened to us this year is we got pregnant! It probably won't happen til March because Will's at the NCO Academy til middle of February. In some ways this month is a reprieve. I hate Clomid!! It gives me hot flashes and I don't sleep good and I just feel horrible. So I get a break this month. Then we are going to up my dosage in February depending on how my cycle goes and if it might be feasible to conceive in February. I can't say I'm not disappointed, cuz I am. All I can say is that God has a plan and I will try my best to turn this issue over to him and let him work his magic. That is my priority in 2014. Things will be how they will be and there isn't a lot I can do to change that. I have to have faith and know that God will provide. He already has blessed us tremendously! We are the luckiest people alive! How many people can say they found the love of their life at 17! We were just babies, but it was meant to be. I can't believe that in 2014 we get to start on our 5 year plan. 5 1/2 years til retirement! I can't believe it's been that long. I love the Air Force and all the opportunities it has provided us. I am so proud of my husband, I'm hoping he makes Master Sergeant this year. I hate that he is gone this month, but I'm glad that he can get this school out of the way so he can be promoted. I wake up every morning and am proud of how my life has come so far. I'm an Air Force wife,and a mom to the most brilliant kid in the world! I am deliriously happily married to the man of my dreams. I love my life! So here is to 2014 and all the great things to come!