Our first three weeks in Santa Rosa Beach were busy and fun. The first week we stayed in Kevin & Emily’s rental. Originally my mom was going to be there, and we would stay with her while Kevin & Emily were in Cabo San Lucas. But she decided to stay in St. Cloud so we had the place to ourselves.

After that we moved to our rental condo near Seagrove beach.

On Fridays we have been going to Modica Market to listen to the Steenos. We got drinks from the market, take them outside and listen to the music. They often have guests musicians and it is a fun community setting.

We have tried a couple nights of Trivia. The first was at Beach Camp Brewpub. It was very busy and there were 32 teams competing. Kevin & Emily were on our team. We did ok, but it was not as fun as other trivia nights.

We also played Trivia at Palm Folly Hard Seltzer. Emily joined us and there were only four teams playing. We were tied for first when we got to the last question. We bet it all and got the question wrong. Oh well. We had fun and I think we will go back.

We have visited a few of the local breweries.

• The first brewery we went to was Beach Camp Brewpub. They have food so we stopped after our first week at Modica Market. The food was just average and their beer is just ok. Even though we went back for trivia, I do not think we will go back again.
• We went with Kevin & Emily to go to Sam’s Club and on the way back we stopped at 3rd Planet Brewing in Niceville. They have some good beer and I was able to try a couple hazy IPAs. I got a tin tacker and some Dank Side of the Moon IPA to go.
• Karla and I took a day trip to Freeport and stopped at Odd Pelican Beer Company. They also have some good beer and a really nice person working there. I got a six pack of Spectacle IPA to go.
• One the way back, we stopped at Props Brewery. They had a food truck so we got some tasty burgers to go with our beer. The beer at Props is not as adventurous as some other breweries. I had the Ice Fog & Hazy IPA that was pretty good.
• We went to Idyll Hounds Brewing. We had been there in 2019. They have really good beer and it is available at a lot of the bars in the area. They have some stuff at the brewery that I had not seen before. I had a Boosh NEIPA at the brewery and got some White Bronco IPA to go.
• Palm Folly counts as a brewery. Along with their seltzer, they also brew beer. The only one available the night I was there was a blonde ale, but it was an easy beer to drink while playing trivia.

In addition to breweries, we have checked out some of the bars and restaurants in the area.

• Our first week in Santa Rosa beach we went to Idyll Hounds Proper. It was extra fun because we met our friends Randy & Jennifer from Minnesota there.  I thought our time would overlap more but they had already been here a couple weeks and were getting ready to leave. It was good to see them and I am glad we had a chance to get together.
• We went to the 30A Distilling. Emily, Karla, Kevin and I all got different drinks. They were all good (and expensive). The person working there was a little pretentious. He said 99% of the food and drinks in the area make him sad. I disagree.
• On Fat Tuesday we went to Stinky’s Bait Shack for some live music. It was crowded, but we got a drink and listened to a few songs. We went next door to Stinky’s Fish Camp for some food. I enjoyed the crawdad Mac with a stuffed chicken wing.
• After one of our Modica Market nights we stopped Bud & Alley’s Taco Bar for some tasty burritos.
• On a Sunday we went to Stinky’s Fish Camp for brunch and more music by the Steenos. After Stinky’s we took a tour around Grayton Beach. We stopped at The Red Bar and listened to a little of Certainly So. It was very crowded. Next was Chiringo and it was also crowded and we could not hear the music. We got a spot to sit and had a drink and some tachos. Our last stop was AJ’s. AJ’s was not crowded. We sat at the bar and as we enjoyed our drinks, we were given complimentary hush puppies and steamed shrimp. We hung around long enough to hear a few songs by the Pickled Pickers.
• Another night after Modica, we went to the Great Southern Cafe. We just had some appetizers and desert, but everything was excellent.
• We hung out at North Beach Social for a while Saturday afternoon. Just a couple drinks, but it was fun and everyone was very friendly.
• Within walking distance are a few shops and restaurants. We went to Wild Olives 30a for a happy hour drink and some bruschetta. We stopped at Pecan Jack’s for a small sample of ice cream. Our last stop was the Local Cantina. They have a free chips and salsa bar. We got a round of drinks and had a few chips.

It hasn’t all been just breweries and bars. We went to the Seaside Farmers Market. We have been able to hang out with the Steeno’s. We had supper at Bob & Lisa’s and visited Benny & Taryn’s place. Everyone went to Grayton Beach, but it was a windy day.

Karla and I went to a Haven House Thrift Store and La Chalupita Mexican Market. We also got out and played a round of mini golf at Fat Daddy’s.

Karla walks almost every day and I try to get a out a few times a week.

For Valentine’s day we stayed in. Karla made a fantastic salad and I grilled some steaks.

We are following the University of Minnesota Golden Gopher basketball team. Right now they are 8-8 in conference and 17-10 overall. This is a huge improvement over last year. They have four more regular games left and the Big 10 Tournament. If they can win a couple more games, I think they will make it to the NCAA tournament.

We still have almost three weeks in Santa Rosa Beach. Then we go to Gulfport, MS.