Tales of the Traveling Tote December!
Happy December!
It’s time for another Tale of the Traveling Tote!
My traveling tote tribe and I all have the same large
Courtly Check MacKenzie-Childs tote
We share our tote travels
and adventures quarterly and celebrate
with a giveaway from MacKenzie-Childs
Our totes all have names,
and my tote, Miss Coquille {French for seashell}
is so named because most of our travels
are to and from our beach house
on the Gulf coast of Alabama
and our “city” house
in the suburbs of Birmingham
We have an annual family reunion every Labor Day weekend
Lots of swimming, boating and eating!
This year we had a Hot Dog Bar
and everyone enjoyed it so much
it is going to be a new tradition
Fall has been especially beautiful in Alabama this year
We have been enjoying football
and fires on the patio in the “city”
We gathered with Ole Miss friends and alums
for the Alabama/Ole Miss game
My tote is so handy for carrying tablescape items outside
The fire keeps things cozy when the sun goes down
We enjoyed beautiful sunsets on the coast
during a holiday weekend in October
The sea oats turn a golden pink in the late afternoon sun
One night the sky literally looked
like it had been painted orange
I always look forward to the seasonal displays at my favorite store
I found some MacKenzie-Childs look-a-like pumpkins
for a fraction of the price
and quickly scooped them up!
Miss Coquille and I headed back to the coast for Thanksgiving week
We lunched one day at our favorite restaurant,
Fishers at Orange Beach Marina
I couldn’t resist snapping a photo of a boat in dry dock
Isn’t Noah Genda the cutest name?
The day after Thanksgiving
I packed away the pumpkins and turkeys
and out came the coastal Christmas
Some beachy Santas and a Nativity
And of course our coastal Christmas Tree
DD managed to corral the kids
to snap a photo for holiday cards
We ended the fun filled family week
with the most exciting game in Iron Bowl history
Alabama squeaked out a victory
over Auburn in 4 Over Times!!
It was a nail biter!!!
Our giveaway is this adorable Highbanks Travel Mug
Please visit all my fellow Traveling Tote friends
and leave a comment on
Deb’s blog, Mountain Breaths to enter!
Patti, Miss Kenzie and Miss Tizzy @ Pandora’s Box
Deb, Miss Aurora and Miss Tassie @ Mountain Breaths
Emily, Miss Courtney Childs and Miss Lulu @ The French Hutch
Jenna, Miss Coquille and Hello Gorgeous @The Painted Apron
Linda P, Miss Lola and Miss Gigi @ Life and Linda
Rita, Miss Luna and Miss Penny C @ Panoply
Sarah, Miss Merri Mac and Miss Poppy @ Hyacinths for the Soul
Jackie, Miss Madi K and Miss Pansy @ Purple Chocolat Home
Ricki Jill, Countess De Monet, Miss Square Peggy @ The Bookish Dilettante
Cherry Kay, Carrie Ann Hall and Miss Waverly @ Entertaining Women
Thanks so much for your visit today!
I will be joining these fabulous parties and blogs:
Sundays on Silverado Love Your Creativity
What’s for Dinner Between Naps on the Porch
All About Home/ Common Ground Follow the Yellow Brick Home
Tasty Tuesday Oh My Heartsie Girl Turn About Tuesday
Full Plate Thursday Centerpiece Wednesday Creative Crafts
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Jenna, you sure stay busy toggling between two homes, but I love both and your enthusiasm for decorating each. Great score on the pumpkins (and Alabama’s win in the Iron bowl!). Great name for that boat, yes. And those kids are growing into little men and young lady right before your readers’ eyes! They are a good-looking bunch, learning how to love cooking and entertaining from the best mentors! Happy December!
Oh, thank you Rita, such a nice thing to say! We are so lucky that we can travel easily and often between the 2 houses and the grands love to go as much as we do. Have fun decorating your new home for the holidays!
The night sky photos are just amazing! The X’mas tree looks so lovely 🙂 Happy December
Thank you Angie! I can’t believe it’s December!
Good Morning Jenna, Love that boat name, so creative! Love seeing those cute grands too who are growing up before our eyes… it looks like a great Christmas card in the making. We were glued to the TV watching the Iron Bowl, what a game! I feel bad for those Auburn players and fans. 🙂 Looks like you had great weather for your Thanksgiving beach week. Merry December ♥
Thank you Mary, my son in law is an Auburn fan and my son had just shook his hand and conceded defeat when Alabama threw the hail Mary pass for the tying touchdown that sent the game into overtime! We were all screaming and my poor son in law was so depressed when it was finally over and Alabama won…
I gasped at the orange sky, Jenna! What a beautiful sight to behold. Of course, I always love seeing your cute grands and all your pretty decor. I had to chuckle at Noah Genda! What a clever name. You have a happy Luce between the city and the beach. Thanks for sharing your adventures. ❤️
Thank you Kitty! Yes, we saw some amazing sunsets this fall! We are so lucky to be able to go back and forth whenever we want, and the grands love it as much as we do. Happy December!
Orange Beach is and always will be a great beach escape for our family. I love your beach house and how you decorated both your homes for the holidays. I know how much you enjoy these family gatherings, especially Thanksgiving. The kiddos made such a cute photo for a Christmas card, growing so fast. The marina is always a favorite spot, fun names on the boats. Sunsets at the beach are always the best!
Thank you Emily, Orange Beach is a special place and it was nice and quiet over Thanksgiving week. I hope you get to visit me down there some time! We did see some gorgeous sunsets this fall and enjoyed nice warm weather last week!
Happy trails!
Thanks Dorothy!
Such a great way to move through life Jenna! The best of both worlds for sure. Loved the boat and I can’t wait until we are in that place where we have no agenda other than a beautiful day on the water. Your Grandkids are adorable and that picture will make the perfect Christmas card. Thanks so much for sharing your adventures. Happy holidays to you!
Thank you Denise, yes Noah Genda sounds great doesn’t it 😂
I enjoyed looking at the photos and reading this post Jenna. Wishing you a wonderful week.
Thanks so much Julie!
Hello Jenna, that boat name is so cute. You always have the best food and get togethers. That orange sky is amazing! How fun to hang out at your beach house. Lots of fun and great food. The grands must love playing and swimming there. How cute your coastal Christmas decorations are. Perfect for your sweet beach house. Wishing you a very happy Christmas.
Thank you so much Linda, we always have so much fun, and the kids do love it. They were jumping in the pool even though it was freezing!
The Alabama v. Auburn game gave me ulcers. ;P
Jenna, I love the little sea glass Christmas tree, and the colors of your trees, the red and turquoise, are the colors of our Christmas gift wrap this year. I love that color combination!
It makes me happy to see how y’all have recovered from the hurricane, especially seeing all the rebuilt boat docks. It takes time to recover, I’ve found out!
You’re inspiring me in how you decorate your outdoor kitchen and fireplace. I actually bought a little wreath for our fireplace this year! 😀
BTW I love your M-C pumpkins. I never seem to find the good sales!
Ha ha, no kidding, that game was nuts! We were all screaming! My poor son in law is an Auburn fan and he thought he was going to be the big winner! Turquoise is my favorite color, and I love the red and turquoise palette for the holidays, I can’t wait to see yours! Our pier is still not quite finished and our big boat is still being repaired, 14 months!! But things should be back to normal soon, 🤞 Have fun decorating!
Jenna, your travels back and forth from the suburbs to the beach give way to so much fun. I am so happy that your family gathers at the beach for holidays making beautiful memories. DD captured the perfect photo of those darling grands for a Christmas card. The game was a nail biter for sure! Happy Wednesday!
Thanks Pam, we always have so much fun, and the kids are so close, they adore being together!
Miss Coquille is a happy traveler! DD did a great job photographing the sweet grands! I love your sea glass tree, and the color combo on your trees. One of these days, I am going to do a beachy theme for Christmas at our lake house. Have a wonderful December Jenna!!
Thanks so much Deb, I hope you do decorate your lake house with a beachy theme, it’s fun to do something different and unexpected!
What a delightful time you and Miss Coquille have had. It is always fascinating to see the completely different decors for the beach and in town. Both are lovely.
Thank you Linda, we are so lucky to have 2 houses with such different atmospheres within a 4 hour drive
Needless to say, I am very behind! Seems like I stay that way.
Love your picture of the kids in the canoe for your Christmas card. And your hot dog bar sounds fun!
The orange sky is amazing. So many pretty sunsets at the coast!
Yes, the game was a nail biter! Today’s game with Georgia will be the same!
Hi Bonnie! Thank you for stopping by, these are busy times 🙂 How about Bama last night!!!! Roll Tide!!!
Looks like you have been plenty busy!
Merry Christmas, Jenna. (And, Roll Tide!)
Thank you Hope, Merry Christmas to you and Roll Tide Roll!