Our Visit to Laurel, Mississippi

This past March we made Diaz Family history when we traveled with our (two children) by car from Georgia to Texas for a long weekend.  Having prepared ourselves for the worst, we were pleasantly surprised when we arrived and realized we had beaten our anticipated 14 hours by 30 minutes.  Our children were rock-stars and we completed at least one full Harry Potter on Audible during our drive.

Fast forward to this past week, when we were on another adventure to Texas.  We decided to split our trip out to Dallas in two by stopping in Laurel Mississippi for a day to visit the HGTV's town of Home Town.  I was a little apprehensive about splitting the drive into two days.  Were we tempting fate by having our children spend not one day, but two (in a row!) in an uncomfortable car seat?

We arrived in Laurel on a Sunday evening and after checking into our Airbnb, we decided to explore the historic town.  The ride to the downtown area was like stepping back in time!  The homes were like something out of a Norman Rockwell painting; a piece of the past frozen in time.

Once we arrived in the city, we were greeted by proverbial tumbleweeds as it was COMPLETELY shut down on this Sunday evening.  It did provide some amazing photo opportunities since we didn't have to share the landmarks, sidewalks, or streets with anyone.  We did run into Pearl's (of The Pearl Diner) son, who graciously offered us some water before we went on our way.  We made a list of the stores we would visit the next morning and headed back to the developed part of town to introduce the children to Hibachi (very un-southern, I know).

The next morning we started our adventure with gooey sticky and cinnamon buns from Sweet Somethings Bakery.  The buns were about as large as the children's heads and the entire place smelled heavenly.

From there we made our way down the street per Chris' request to the Southern Antiques store.  The main floor featured plenty of non-antique farmhouse decor but the upstairs bosted a whole floor of antique dealers' booths.  I know I'm not alone when I say I love picking up pieces and dreaming of their stories.

After the antique store, we stopped in at Loblolly Boutique + Crescent Line Toys where it was the children's turn to dream of all of the fun they would have with all of the many toys they were mentally adding to their Christmas wish-list.

Finally, we made our way to Laurel Mercantile Co.  The painted building and vintage Chevy told us we had arrived!

It was fun pouring through the kitchen goods, flannels, and vintage plates and quilts.  Every area of the shop had descriptions and notes from Erin Napier, the founder of the store and star of the HGTV series, Home Town.  The first sign I read explained their mission to manufacture as many of the products in the USA as possible.

Our half-way-to-Texas-Laurel-trip was rounded out by a visit to Phillips Drive-In, where we were sent on our way to Texas with one of the best chili-cheese hot dogs washed down with a rootbeer float.

My prediction on the two days in the car for the kids being a bit much was completely correct (please show me a 4-7-year-old who can feel the difference between a 7-hour and 13-hour car ride), but well worth the detour.  The quaint "City Beautiful" is well on its way to being revived and we look forward to visiting again on our next voyage to Texas.