A few years ago, my family began doing something we never thought we’d do - camping! Now, we didn’t want to invest in a camper or RV because we knew we’d feel like we had to use it for every single trip we took, and I still enjoy sleeping in a hotel room for some trips! Instead, we purchased a tent, which claims to sleep 6 people, but in reality has just enough room for the four of us. As our boys grow taller and taller, that tent gets smaller and smaller!

I love going camping in our little tent, though. Not because I’m really that "outdoorsy," although I do appreciate the natural surroundings. I love it because it’s time spent with my family with little to no distractions! When we’re at home, we don’t stop to look for fireflies or build a fire to roast marshmallows. My boys enjoy riding their bikes through the woods so much more than they do at home. Just the simple things like playing cards or eating hot dogs are so much more fun than they would be at home.

On a camping trip, we’re in close quarters with each other, which would be annoying at home. Even when we go on vacation and stay in a hotel room, we have more space. And, since we’re physically closer, I think it also brings us closer together in our relationships with each other. We go on adventures together, doing things we’ve never done and seeing things we’ve never seen before. I love knowing that we are building memories with our boys that they will have for a lifetime.

I’d like to share with you some of our favorite camping spots so far. We’d love to hear from you if you’ve had great experiences at the same locations! Since we’re really just getting started with camping, we’d also love to hear your suggestions for our next camping trip!

1. Tybee Island
http://www.riversendcampground.com

This was our first tent camping experience, and it was a great one! We went with my sister’s family, who had actually been tent camping before, which was a big help. Tybee’s beaches are a lot more natural and less "tourist-y" than many beaches, but we liked that. There are lots of cute little shops and our favorite seafood place, "The Crab Shack." Of course, Tybee is also just minutes away from Savannah, so there’s plenty to do!

2. Anastasia Island State Park
https://www.floridastateparks.org/park/anastasia

Anastasia Island is just across the Bridge of Lions from St. Augustine, with a more natural and less crowded beach. Of course, the trip to St. Augustine is quick, so we enjoyed touring the St. Augustine Pirate Museum, Ripley’s Believe It or Not! and Castillo de San Marcos. Of course, my boys’ favorite moment was when they fired the cannons from the fort!

3. Red Top Mountain State Park
www.gastateparks.org/RedTopMountain

We loved Red Top Mountain because our tent site was right on the banks of Lake Allatoona! My boys just slipped right off the rocks and in to the cool water! We visited the Booth Western Art Museum and The Etowah Indian Mounds. Both were fun and informative field trips that even my boys could appreciate.

4. O’Leno State Park
https://www.floridastateparks.org/park/Oleno

We just visited O’Leno State Park recently, and again, my sister’s family came with us. Located in North Florida, O’Leno is apparently short for "Old Leno," which was once a bustling little town in the late 1800s, until the railroad was diverted around it. We took a short hike from the park area to see where the Santa Fe River actually disappears underground! The river continues underground for three miles before it resurfaces in River Rise Preserve State Park. This time, we didn’t plan much in the way of activities, but we did kayak down the Santa Fe River and saw several springs, including Lilly Springs, where we found "Naked Ed." Yes, he is naked, as my son discovered in attempting to be the first to arrive at the springs! He has a small dock where he sits with a wall to protect your eyes, and he is happy to talk with visitors about his life and family and how he came to be "Naked Ed." It was certainly an experience we’d never have anywhere else!

5. FDR State Park
www.gastateparks.org/FDRoosevelt

Our family has made several trips to Callaway Gardens, but hadn’t really taken notice of FDR State Park. Boy, had we been missing out! There were so many places to hike and picnic and just take in the beautiful views! Of course, we saw Callaway Gardens again and enjoyed the Butterfly Center and the Birds of Prey show, but we also visited Warm Springs to see President Roosevelt’s Little White House and learn a little more about his life. And, we drove a little farther to Pine Mountain to the Wild Animal Safari! That was one of the most interesting and fun adventures we’ve had! If you go, rent a van - I promise, it’s worth it!

One thing that has always bothered me when we camp is the amount of trash we accumulate by using paper cups and plates. I don’t really like using plastic (just personal preference) and I certainly don’t trust my packing skills enough to take anything breakable! I’ve found the perfect solution here at The Southern Mercantile - our beautiful enamelware! By investing $36 in a set of four plates and four mugs, I’ll cut down on our trash for years to come, and I’m sure I’ve already spent that much on paper goods in the past!

If you have been keeping up with our posts, then you should know from my last blog, Tips for a Smooth Move, that Phillip and I bought a house!  We are so excited to begin this journey and I am excited to be able to share it with all of our readers!  This home was built in 1910 and boy, is it full of character.  It is located in the heart of down town Ocilla--so much so that I can walk to work!  We purchased this home from the sweetest couple who raised their family there and loved it dearly.  They have certainly placed this home in good hands, and we can't wait to bring it back to life!  I will be sharing our renovation progress with you along the way, so I thought I would go ahead and give you a tour of our home before we begin!

When the sellers purchased this home, they chose to enclose the front porch to provide a work space for the family salon.  Luckily, as you can see below, they left the original columns in place and just added in glass around them!  This is great news for us considering that we want to make this area a porch again.  

This home is located on a corner lot, and as you can see below, we have a wonderful size yard! It is even fenced-in, which is perfect for our Breezy girl.

The exterior door below leads to what will be our master bedroom.  Be sure to stay tuned to see what I have planed for this area! 

The view below is what you see when you enter the front door.  A beautiful foyer greets you along with a hallway that stretches throughout the house.  

To the right of the foyer are these beautiful glass pocket doors.  (One of my favorite things about this home are the doors!)  They lead you into the living area.

The living area is full of light!  We love the tall ceilings, decorative beams, large windows and original light fixtures.  The couple who sold us this home decided to let us have the furniture set you will see below!  Phillip has big plans for using this set as it is VERY comfortable and in great shape!

This shot below could be my favorite view in the whole house.  I love everything about it.  Many memories will be made in this very spot. 

Now, from the view below, we are looking toward the dining room.  This fire place is sure to be a focal point!  This is another area that I am excited to show you later. :)

On both sides of the fire place were original glass french doors. They are beautiful!  I don't have a great picture of them, but you'll definitely be seeing them later. 

From the dining room you enter this small hallway you see below, which leads you to the kitchen.  There is a pantry on the right, that will be wonderful to have!

The kitchen is a small space considering the sizes of the other rooms, but it will be one of my favorite rooms in the house I'm sure.

The kitchen has a large opening into the hallway, which I love!  We won't have a ton of wall space, but I like the open feel that it gives.  The picture below is the view of the hallway from the back of the house.

The room you see below was the back porch at one time, but it was eventually closed in.  We will love using this space as a laundry room!

This room will be our master bedroom.  I LOVE all of the windows, but am a bit afraid of window treatments!  How lucky am I to be friends with Roxie?!

No room is complete without a fire place, so of course our bed room has one too!

This is the only bathroom original to the home.  I adore this old tub and am excited to give it new life!

This room will be the second bedroom.  As you can see, it holds a set of pocket doors that are gorgeous!  Phillip has a fabulous idea for these. 

This bedroom also has three gorgeous windows!

This is the third and final bedroom.  This room has two beautiful windows but are currently boarded up due to the added on salon.  This bathroom was also an addition and will be turned into a closet.

This concludes our tour of the "Beech Street Bungalow"!  I cannot tell you how much fun this process has been, in spite of all of the chaos.  I will never be able to thank Phillip enough for all of his hard work (he does this for a living and comes home to do it some more!) and his constant responses of, "sure, we can do that!"  The Lord knew exactly where our life together would take us and He prepared us for it along the way.  I never would have thought that within our first year of marriage we would be buying our first home and a "fixer upper" at that!  Renovating a home has always been a dream of mine and I know that it will be beautiful.  

I hope you are as excited as I am and will follow along with us on this journey. I will be posting our progress and maybe even a tutorial or two!

In the mood for more renovation stories?  
Check out more Beech Street Bungalow renovation stories here, or check out Roxie's Alder Street Renovation!

​The Southern Merc Girls hit the road again in March (although not so far from home this time) to be a part of the wedding of Hannah Lee and Adam Simmons in Tifton, GA.  This sweet couple held their wedding in the historic Memorial Chapel of First Baptist Church in Tifton.  This gorgeous old building, filled with some of the most beautiful stained glass you have ever seen, was built in 1908.  Y’all know how excited we get about an old church!

The maids were dressed in a shade of taupe / gray which was the perfect background to show off their bouquets of vivid roses, wax flower, veronica, and mixed greenery. 

The tables at the reception were adorned with the shades of mixed roses, white hydrangeas, and greenery.  Small pots of succulents were added to the table groupings which were displayed on antique silver trays.  

Such a special day for such a sweet couple.  The Southern Mercantile team was honored to be a part of another beautiful, Southern wedding!  If you are interested in our Southern Mercantile Wedding Design Service or in getting a quote to have the team travel to be a part of your special day, click the link to visit our Southern Mercantile Weddings page.

 Photography by: Anna Mills Photography
Floral Design by: The Southern Mercantile
Click HERE for more information about First Baptist Tifton.