New Orleans & Pensacola - Day 3

I wish I could say that our 2nd night at the Sheraton New Orleans was restful but that would be a complete lie. Wouldn't ya know it, this morning we were awoken at 6 AM by the fire alarm. Awesome. I can't even tell you how many times this has happened to us in the middle of the night. Us Croziers and hotels apparently don't mix. Needless to say, after two very early morning wake ups after a long day of travel, we have a little complaint filed with the hotel and are hoping amends will be made.

Ahhh, but the show must go on. So we did what anyone should do, considering the circumstances, and returned to Cafe du Monde for more beignets and much needed COFFEE. This time we ordered 6 of the powdery treats because I'm pregnant and starving when I wake up. Magically, the doughnuts cheered me right up....until there was a minor miscommunication and Graham was no where to be found. Thankfully, he had his cell and I discovered he'd left to catch the bus to the airport to pick up our rental car. I for some reason thought we'd walk back to the hotel together and then he'd head off to the bus stop. Oops! Anyway, somehow I managed to push our not-so-maneuverable travel stroller, one-handed, while balancing my hot coffee in the other, all the way back to our hotel across the REALLY bumpy sidewalks of New Orleans. Let's just say my pregnancy hormones got the best of me for a brief moment or two.

Isla and I decided to hit the pool one last time while Daddy went to fetch the car. I taught her "Motorboat, motorboat go so slow..." and she wanted to do it "Again!" and "Again!" Graham called a little while later to report that there had been a screw up with our rental car reservations and they had us down to return the car in New Orleans, not Pensacola like we'd planned. Uh oh, this morning was not starting off so well. I'd booked and canceled and rebooked our car reservations a couple of times as the prices dropped (most quotes were $400+ for a three-day, one-way rental--we learned that the hard way after already buying our plane tickets!) Anyway, I'm not sure what happened with our final reservation but I'd found a bid that was much cheaper. Unfortunately, Graham had to fork over an additional $90 so we could drop off the car in Pensacola since that somehow didn't make it in the initial quote. Oh well. Move on and don't think about it.

Graham came back to the hotel to pick Isla and I up, we checked out and then took some group deep breaths as we loaded up the car. Let's start this day over! We had a rather uneventful drive to Pensacola, passing through Mississippi, Alabama and finally Florida. Of note, we stopped at a Subway in Mississippi for lunch and I was shocked to learned they didn't offer cups for water!!! Only then did I realize their soda machines didn't even have a tab for water! The gal working said they got rid of their water a while back. Nice. The dietitian in me screamed out a number of suggestions for the south's obesity epidemic but we'll save that for another time.

We arrived in Pensacola Beach around 4 PM and hit the beach immediately. Now this was the life! The beaches were GORGEOUS white sand, probably one of the prettiest beaches I have ever seen. The sand was super find and soft and looked like grains of salt when stuck to your skin.

We stayed at the Holiday Inn Express (which was far more pricey than any Holiday Inn I've ever been in). But all the rooms had a water view with balcony and a breakfast buffet was included every morning. They set out fresh-baked chocolate chip cookies every afternoon and had apples and bags of popcorn available for snacking. One day we ran out of sunscreen and went to the desk to ask where the best place was to buy more and they said "Oh, we have some here for you" and gave us a full-sized tube! This place, though technically  in stars than the Sheraton, gave us far better service!

We quickly learned that Isla does not like the feel of sand under her feet. Whenever we reached the beach, she'd said "Carry" and refuse to set foot on the beach herself. Once we set up our towels, she wouldn't budge, lest she have to touch the funny white stuff. She frequently asked to go on a "Walk" but then would say "Carry" as soon as we attempted to walk the shoreline. She's so funny!

 Relaxed once again after a rough beginning to the day. This was such a great family vacation spot!

After the beach, we jumped in the heated pool for a quick swim. Isla wanted to spend every second of every day from here forward at the "Cool." She had absolutely no fear and would walk into water way over her head, trusting that any adult nearby would "save" her.

We went to Peg Leg Pete's for dinner, a classic family seafood house with lots of personality. We had quite the wait upfront but they had a nice playground and Isla spent a good 45 minutes going down the same slide over and over. Apparently repetition does not bother her! I ordered the Snow crab and shrimp plate, complete with potatoes and corn cobs with butter for dipping. And I had a root beer which was such a treat. I don't know, it just sounded really good to me. So good in fact that I drank two huge glasses full. Graham had a creole burger with fries and a beer and we shared a salad. Isla was so tired by the end of our meal. I asked her if she wanted Daddy to sing her a song so she could go to sleep and she eagerly replied "Uh huh!" Without a moments hesitation, Graham burst into a lively rendition of the Canadian National Anthem. Isla was asleep in seconds. I found the ordeal so comical that I was in tears and gasping for breath through my laughter.

We had been trying to rush and finish our dinner since Isla was "expiring" but once she was out, we realized we could sit back, relax and enjoy our meal together. So we stayed until close to 10 PM, discussing baby names while I sipped root beer. All in all, a really very good day!