We “shore” had fun on our long weekend trip to Gulf Shores! It was one of my last weekends of “freedom” before starting my new position for Delta Airlines, and it was great to have some quality time with my two favorite fellas.

We drove in two Fridays ago, and immediately dropped off our things before grabbing dinner and drinks. Our AirBnB hosts had some interesting taste, that’s for sure…

We walked around a local park, where Lin immediately got attention and love from other dogs and people, before heading to a nearby brewery. We enjoyed some live music and nice conversation with a couple who lived in the area for the last decade or more. We always appreciate conversations with strangers and local recommendations! And of course, Linley got even more love and attention—not that he needed it haha.

Our dinner closer to the beach took forever because the weekend wait times were insane, but it was nice to sit down, relax and cheers to a great first evening of the trip. We met some kind wait staff and guests at the table next to us, who loved Lin and kept feeding him fries.

The next morning, we headed straight to the dog beach, which was not what we expected. But alas, we had fun before grabbing lunch at a local spot on the main beach. And although the dog beach wasn’t what we expected it to be, we had a blast watching the blue herons near us and watching Lin grab sticks from the water.

I wish we could’ve brought Lin on the main beach, because that was beautiful! I wanted to get on the water so bad, but we’ll save that for when we’re in Savannah this fall instead. Even being by that water was beautiful, and we had a blast sitting up at the beach bar. We enjoyed some mezcal drinks and delicious seafood, while, you guessed it, Linley got more love! It was cute to see him dig in the sand to cool off again, which is something I’d missed from all our Michigan beach adventures.

No Tracey vacay is complete without an afternoon nap, and that’s exactly what we did during the hottest part of the day. Once we woke up and freshened up, we all got some ice cream and walked around a cute shopping center along the pier. We got some cute dog mom, dog dad and a funny toy for Linley after we all enjoyed our desserts and a drink, and then walked along the water before heading out for dinner.

Our wait for dinner was so long, but we luckily found a great backup spot that was super dog friendly. The best part was that it was called “Cosmo’s” after the owner’s dog, and we couldn’t pass up the chance to visit. We enjoyed good seafood, live music (and the singer brought his chocolate lab, too!), kind wait staff and even a stroll through a local pet store after dinner.

My mental health hasn’t been the best with some family and friend stuff that’s come up lately, so there’s a part of me that felt really bad about bringing some of those feelings up during the trip (i.e.: I never want to ruin Alex’s time or feel like a burden). But I also know that these two make me smile more than anything in the whole wide world, and at the end of the day, that’s all that matters. 💛

Media taken Friday, June 6 & Saturday, June 7, 2025 in Gulf Shores, Alabama✨