HGTV / YouTube Erin Napier
HGTV star Erin Napier doesn’t always open up on social media, but when she does, she is an open book with her fans and followers. In her September 9 Instagram post, Napier shared that she had to get away with her husband and “Home Town” co-host Ben Napier and their two daughters, Helen (5) and Mae (2), in the wake of a major loss.
“Jimmy Buffett died [on September 1, 2023] and I needed to go back to the place where my parents had a home in Orange Beach. They sold it the month before Mae was born and she never met the beach the way her sister did as a baby,” Erin wrote in her post’s caption.
Erin Napier’s Mother ‘Can’t Even Deal’ With Her Daughter’s Latest Post
Although she couldn’t return to her childhood vacation home on the southern coast of Alabama, Erin and Ben found the next best thing.
“Found a last minute unit available next door to the one where I spent my summers. We were so lucky to grow up jumping into Ole River and riding boats with tangled salty hair out to the islands. I needed my girls to hear songs about the Gulf and dig in the sand, to know this place and how much it meant to our family. Maybe you can’t go back, but you can rent for the weekend,” Erin continued in her post’s caption.
Erin’s post contained a video of the coast, with Ben playing on the beach with Helen and Mae in the distance, all set to Jimmy Buffett’s “Tin Cup Chalice”.
Erin’s mother Karen Rasberry was moved by her daughter’s post, commenting, “I can’t even deal with this. 23 years we had in our one particular harbor.”
Other fans and followers also related to Erin’s post, sharing their own memories of family trips and appreciating the Napiers’ trip to the coast, as well as remembering the late Jimmy Buffett alongside Erin.
“We live in Tampa and every time we travel we talk about how easy it is to take for granted how beautiful it is here,” one fan commented.
“I’m still having trouble wrapping my head and heart around Jimmy being gone. Obviously I never met him but that doesn’t seem to matter. It hurts my heart. 😢 Wonderful you get to share a piece of your childhood with your girls” another fan wrote.
“Mobile native here, grew up listening to him. So sad that he is gone. We’ll always have the music though. ❤️❤️❤️” a third user added.
This is Erin & Ben Napier’s Second Beach Vacation of the Summer
Erin and Ben’s impromptu Gulf of Mexico trip was their second getaway with Helen and Mae this Summer after a planned family vacation to Maine in August 2023.
Erin shared a photo of her youngest, Mae, on August 13, playing on the beach. In her caption, Erin reflected on the moment as it was happening, writing, “for a few hours i felt like i could hold onto their childhoods. it was so good. the best days, as my parents remind me. and this time i really felt it,” and she wasn’t the only one who felt this way, as Ben commented to add, “I want to go back. Let’s rent a house there and spend every afternoon like this.”
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