It’s time for another installment of “This Time Last Year!” ;) This time last year, we had been stuck at home for three months, and I was thrilled when Alex told me he planned a short getaway for our tenth anniversary! He managed not to spill the beans about where we were going but just told me it was not too far away. I had for some reason assumed that we were at least leaving town, but even our 15-minute drive to downtown Ocean Springs felt like a grand adventure, and I was very pleasantly surprised that our destination was The Roost!
I was already fan of Eat Drink Love and The Wilbur but had only ever been inside one of these hotel rooms briefly when I was photographing a portrait session, and I had never ventured to the backside of the building, which is home to the lovely Islander Suite!
I was greeted by a lovely handwritten letter, which is apparently an every-ten-years tradition. ;) Obviously Afton had had fun decorating the outside of it, with some help from our fabulous babysitter, who happens to be super talented at hand lettering. Thanks, Tyler! :)
That wasn’t the end of the surprising gifts! Our suite was also decorated with a beautiful bouquet by Maidenhair Floral. Thank you, Jessie! As if these flowers weren’t already beautiful enough on their own, they’re also arranged in a brand new Blenko carafe (to replace the one Alex broke. ;)) Thanks, Hillyer House!
All these marriage-inspired detail photos got me into full-on wedding photographer mode, so some ring shots were obviously in order. ;)
Time for dinner! This socially distanced al fresco meal at Maison De Lu was my first time at a restaurant since early March and felt like such a thrill!
Of course I had to capture a few signs of the times on our stroll back to The Roost.
We enjoyed a delicious dessert at The Wilbur, but I was so anxious to dig in that I forgot to take a picture first. ;)
We took in some rare peace and quiet on the porch the next morning, all while filling up on yummy biscuits delivered from The Greenhouse on Porter.
Social distancing meant I didn’t ask anyone to take a picture of the two of us, but an anniversary blog post seems incomplete without one, so here’s our attempt at a phone selfie:
The opportunity to take a solitary photo walk somewhere other than our street was the perfect gift for me. This place is so full of stylish details to capture!
What a relaxing, refreshing little getaway! It was a treat to be tourists in our own town—the perfect way to celebrate a decade of marriage. Whether you’re jumping on the Mississippi Coast vacation bandwagon or are an Ocean Springs local needing a little staycation, I highly recommend The Roost!
