I was very pleasantly surprised when Alex took it upon himself to plan a short vacation for us before Baby Girl comes, so I kept it to myself that I was less than ecstatic about Babymooning at the beach. After all, we have the annual family Outer Banks trip coming up, and we do also live at the beach. I was skeptical when he told me that Highway 30A was no ordinary beach destination, but he was so right! I can't believe I don't hear more about this stretch of road along the panhandle, because it is fabulous.
There are several small communities along 30A. Each one is full of unique shopping and dining spots, and it's all carefully designed to be pedestrian-friendly. And I think the signs might be true when they claim these are the most beautiful beaches in the world! That's where we spent most of our time on Friday.
That evening, we explored the beautiful town of Rosemary Beach. The European architecture was so charming, and I loved that the landscaping was full of rosemary!
When we heard the sounds of this guy's saxophone coming from an adorable courtyard (and after we consulted TripAdvisor, of course), we decided that we'd have dinner at Edward's.
It was a great choice! The food, service, and atmosphere were excellent. I ate slowly to savor every bite because I didn't want this meal to be over!
Before heading back to the beach on Saturday morning, we hit up local favorite The Donut Hole. We are so spoiled by Tatonut that we were less than impressed by the donuts, but the savory breakfast dishes were absolutely delicious, and we enjoyed our experience a lot.
After a full afternoon of lounging, swimming, reading, and snoozing at the beach (and not getting sunburned!), we decided to explore the community of Seaside. It's famous for its design and is considered the capital of New Urbanism. I also learned that it's where The Truman Show was filmed! Everything seems so immaculate and perfectly placed, but in a way that still allowed for a relaxed and family-friendly atmosphere. Seaside is definitely one of my new favorite places.
"Jazz on the Lawn" was going on, and we were pleased that the headliner was Ike Bartley, the same great entertainer from the night before! We heard some good music at this lovely amphitheater right in the heart of everything, and Alex even enjoyed some 30A beer from one of the many adorable food trucks.
While we were wandering around, we came across multiple weddings--I actually lost count of how many brides and grooms we saw over the course of the weekend! What a dream to shoot a wedding in this beautiful place! That may go on my bucket list. I refrained from getting in the photographers' ways (I know what that feels like!), but you can see two of them hard at work in the background of the photo below. :)
We headed to The Shrimp Shack for a tasty meal with an amazing view!
There was so much beautiful scenery to take in. Isn't that the cutest post office ever?!
Alex was in such a good mood that he voluntarily went into this fancy toy store and picked up some sweet toys for our Baby Girl! He insisted on riding back to the hotel with her new rubber ducky on the dashboard. :)
On our way out of town on Sunday, we stopped by Eden Gardens State Park and thoroughly enjoyed strolling through the shade of the live oak trees.
We even did a little climbing! ;)
It was such a peaceful place--the perfect ending to our thoroughly relaxing Babymoon.
I'm sorry that I ever doubted you, 30A! I'll be back. :)