Spring Break in Texas - April 2014

We just returned from a wonderful spring break trip to Texas!!  We visited Uncle Kevin and Aunt Haylee in Houston for a few days.  They were very gracious in hosting us and feeding us lots of great food.  It was neat to see where they live.  Then we traveled to San Antonio for a few days to explore on our own.  The whole family had fun.

We got to Houston on Thursday evening.  After some delays from needing to buy a carseat we made it to Kevin and Haylee's house around 7:00 pm.  We ate dinner and got settled.

Friday we spent the morning with Haylee at the Houston Children's Museum.  It is a pretty big museum with so much stuff for the kids to do and see.  Rebecca and Abram really enjoyed the outdoor water area.  Rebecca was excited to do a science experiment.  Abram liked the grocery shopping and feeding us all at the restaurant.

Friday afternoon we relaxed and took naps.  After dinner Justin and Kevin attended an Astros baseball game while the ladies and kids played at the park and had fun at home.

Saturday we took a trip to Galveston.  First we went to Schlitterbahn - a big water park.  We could only use the indoor portion this early in the season, but it was plenty for the kids.  We had a little picnic and headed out to explore.  We drove through Galveston and made a quick stop to see the ocean.

Saturday evening we went to a restaurant to taste real Texas barbecue.  When we got home we surprised Justin with a birthday cake!

Sunday we went to church with Kevin and Haylee.  After church we had lunch, said our goodbyes and hit the road for our drive to San Antonio.

We arrived at the hotel in San Antonio around 4:30 pm.  We got settled, ate dinner and took a quick dip in the pool before bed.

Monday we visited the San Antonio Zoo.  It was a big zoo.  The kids were very excited to see animals like elephants, lions, tigers and cheetahs - animals we don't see in Michigan.  After touring the zoo for a while we rode on their miniature train.  It was nice to be able to enjoy fresh air and sunshine all morning.  We went back to the hotel for lunch and a nap.

The afternoon was rainy, so we swam in the pool again.  Abram was not a big fan of the pool and cried the whole time he was in the water.  So that was the extent of our swimming for the trip.  Rebecca had a blast, though, and improved in her swimming/kicking skills.

We went out for a nice dinner at The Alamo Cafe Monday evening.

Tuesday we went downtown for the day.  First we stopped at the Magik Theater to see a live performance of Llama Llama.  We got to sit right up front.  The kids loved it!

After the show we walked to the Alamo and looked around.  It was neat to see such a historical place.

We stopped at a local park for a picnic lunch.  The kids got to play on the playground for a few minutes as well.

Next we walked along the River Walk and took a boat tour through San Antonio.  It was getting pretty hot, so we were fortunate that it was Ben and Jerry's free ice cream day!  After the boat ride we found a near-by Ben and Jerry's and got a little treat.

After a snack we did some souvenir shopping and headed back to the hotel to clean up and go to dinner at a steakhouse.

Wednesday was our last day in Texas.  We started the day with a trip to Fiesta Farm to see lots of animals, feed some bunnies, pet goats and a llama, go on a pony ride, play in the sand and go on a wagon ride.  Rebecca really enjoyed seeing all of the horses.  Abram loved the piglets.  The real excitement of the visit was a small fox on the farm.  We had to keep a watch out for it and had to avoid certain areas for a while.

After Fiesta Farm we headed to Kiddie Park.  It has small amusement rides just for kids.  Rebecca and Abram chose to ride the ferris wheel, the airplanes and the carousel.  We had a picnic lunch and then went across the street to a small playground.

We went back to the hotel for a nap and to start packing.  We went to The Cheesecake Factory for dinner and got to bed on time.

Thursday morning we left for the airport just after 5:00 am.  Security went smoothly, and our flights were on time.  We made it home by 2:30 pm.

The kids were so excited to be home and have room to run again after being at a hotel for four days.  They played outside for a while and enjoyed having access to their toys again.

Our trip to Texas was a wonderful experience!  The kids enjoyed flying for the first time.  They also loved staying with Uncle Kevin and Aunt Haylee.  They keep asking when we are going back and when we can see Sadie (their dog).

It's good to be back home now and back to normal routine.  We've got more exiting events coming with babies and birthdays.  Be on the lookout for more updates.