EDITOR’S NOTE

Time is ticking

Where did the summer go? Come August, we fi nd ourselves face to face with back to school and the end of summer vacation, although certainly not summer temperatures.

As a kid, buying school supplies was the most exciting thing in the world. First of all, when else did your mom let you go to the store and fi ll up a cart? It was major retail therapy. Checking every item off that long list appealed to my inner organizational nerd, too. And the excitement of clean, empty notebooks in every color of the rainbow waiting to be fi lled felt so full of possibility. The staff here at MB remembers piling out of the station wagon at the local K&B for folders, erasers and the like. I think some of us hit Al’s 5 and 10, too. These days, kids put items in their Amazon cart, or pay a fee to have someone else gather the list, with everything delivered to the school sight unseen. But where’s the fun in that?

I was always eager for school to start as a kid, but as a mom, I feel like summer fl ies by too fast. I know we had half the bike rides, ice cream cones or sunset swims as I intended. It appears I have two weeks left to cram in those lingering summer bucket list items before the rush of academics begin again.

Making the most of each moment is a theme running through this issue, as well. The Wonderkids in our annual feature have crammed more accomplishment into the last few years than many people achieve in a lifetime. Whether academics, sports, community involvement— or in most cases, all of the above— these thirteen incredible young people inspire with their drive and determination. We know they will go far!

It was a dream for MB to spend time this month with baseball legend Cleon Jones, as well. Talk about somebody who reached for the stars, and hit them! The World Series winner has accolades aplenty, but his greatest accomplishment has been giving back to his hometown and community. At the end of the day, celebrity is far less important than the impact you have on someone else’s life, and Cleon walks that walk. I fi rst met him a few years ago on another MB photoshoot on a sidestreet in Africatown. Cleon passed by on his riding mower, headed to help out an elderly neighbor who could no longer keep up their property. The unassuming baseball legend gave a wave and continued on down the street, determined to put in the work, whether big or small, to make his hometown great. No matter our age or list of accomplishments, I hope we can all fi nd in ourselves a little greatness like that. And is it wrong to hope to fi nd an ice cream cone, too? The days are ticking, y’all... Happy end of summer everybody.

Maggie Lacey

EXECUTIVE EDITOR maggie@pmtpublishing.com

 This month we say farewell, but not goodbye, to MB’s senior writer Breck Pappas. After seven years writing for these pages, he has accepted a job as the digital content creator for George Washington’s Mount Vernon in Alexandria, Virginia, helping tell the story of our nation’s first president and his estate. “There’s nowhere you can be that isn’t where you’re meant to be.”

THESE TINY, HANDMADE EARRINGS SHOW YOU’VE GOT DEEP, DEEP SOUTH ROOTS. GO ONLINE FOR THE WHITE SHRIMPER BOOTS, TOO! K&B EARRINGS, MOBILEBAYSHOP.COM

LOVE THIS ISSUE

HEY BATTER, BATTER WHETHER IT’S THE WORLD SERIES WITH THE METS OR COMMUNITY- BUILDING IN AFRICATOWN, CLEON JONES GIVES HIS ALL TO EVERY TASK. A TRUE BASEBALL LEGEND IN OUR OWN BACKYARD, I WAS THRILLED TO SNAG THIS COLLECTOR CARD ON EBAY. PAGE 28

BONDI BOWLS ON A ROLL THIS PRECIOUS PINK FOOD TRUCK CAME TO OUR PRE-SCHOOL FAMILY DAY, AND THE ICE-COLD BOWLS WERE A HIT! FIND OUT MORE ABOUT THE NEW SUBURBAN WAVE OF MEALS ON WHEELS. FOOD TRUCKS, PAGE 32

INSTANT SUCCESS I PUT MY SLOW COOKER TO WORK WEEKLY, BUT AM LATE TO THE INSTANT POT CRAZE. I HEAR THIS MODEL IS THE BEST BET FOR YOUR MONEY, AND I CAN’T WAIT TO SHAVE A LITTLE TIME OFF THE EVENING CRUSH. BAY TABLES, PAGE 20

SCHOOL DAYS NOW HERE’S A BACKPACK EVEN MOM WOULD LIKE TO HAVE. PATAGONIA REFUGIO 26L, ADRENALINE FAIRHOPE THE MOST IMPORTANT BOOK OF THE DAY I USED TO LIVE IN MISSISSIPPI, WHERE CHEF JOHN CURRENCE IS A FOOD LEGEND. HIS BREAKFAST COOKBOOK IS SUNDAY MORNING CLUTCH. TASTINGS, PAGE 18