Vacation 2012...San Antonio, Texas!

Last week we went on our family vacation.  We had talked about where to go, and Caleb had all these ideas of far away places to go to this year.  I told him I thought we were going to try to stay in Texas for this vacation.  Then one day Caleb said if we are staying in Texas could we go to see the Alamo.  We started making plans of things to see and do in San Antonio. 

We left last Sunday and our first stop was the Transportation Museum.  We stayed there about an hour.  They had model trains, antique vehicles, plus an old train you could walk through and another train you could ride.  It was mostly outside during the hot part of the Texas heat.  We went to our hotel and watched gymnastics on TV!  Then we had supper at our favorite San Antonio restaurant, the Alamo Cafe.  We shared fajitas.  They have the best tortillas!

Monday we spent most of the day at a water park called Splashtown.  It wasn't crowded so we did not have any wait time in the lines.  It was a very enjoyable day for us all.  Caleb loved the water slides and wasn't afraid to try them.  We had a favorite that we rode together.  We rode in a two-person tube down a dark slide.  It was so fun and I told him it reminded me of when I was little and rode a similar slide with my Dad who was laughing all the way.  So then Caleb would try laughing and hollering and being loud on the slide. 

Tuesday we went to see the Alamo. We went in the morning and by the time we left it was starting to get hot outside.  The night before we were driving around and drove by the Alamo.  I knew it was coming up as we went down the street and told Caleb to look....he said oh look a snow cone stand!  Then he said oh look at that bus!  We said no look the other way!  Then he saw the Alamo!

In the afternoon we went to the Witte Museum.  It is like a children's museum.  There was lots to see and do.  I did choose to go during the free admission time which made it extremely busy.  One of the fun things Caleb did there was ride the "Sky Cycle."  This is a bicycle on a rope in the air for kids to ride.       

Wednesday we enjoyed a beautiful morning at Morgan's Wonderland.  I've told several people about this and none had heard of it.  I believe I found it through a San Antonio visitor's website.  If you are in San Antonio and have kids, I would recommend that you check out this neat place.  You can read their mission here. There was so much to do here including a train ride, picnic spots, a fishing pier, carousel, sand pits, water play, and much more.  This is a picture I took while we were riding the train around the park.  In the circle in the water are little remote controlled ships.  They were very fun!  On the other side of the dock is a fishing area.   

We were going to have a picnic lunch there but we were running out of time so we ate in the car on the way to the SAS Shoe factory tour. We ended up having to take a detour so it was good we left when we did.   It was interesting to watch the many steps involved to complete a pair of shoes.  My husband and I both have SAS brand shoes.  They are very comfortable and high quality.  I liked to see the faces of all the many people who make the shoes and the time put into each pair.  If you like to buy products made in the USA, try these shoes.  We got some candy and yummy ice cream in their country store as well. 

When we got to the car I felt a head ache was coming.  We went to Alamo Cafe again but I just couldn't eat.  I sat and drank water.  I'm pretty sure I was feeling dehydrated.  I started feeling better as we got back to our room.  I walked up to the door and saw the door was left open!  When we had left that morning about 9:30 or so the cleaning lady had showed up.  We did not get back till almost 8 p.m.  Caleb and I stayed outside and my husband went inside then talked to the front desk.  They wrote a note for the manager.  We looked and nothing was missing or moved that we noticed thankfully.  It was a strange feeling though to have the door open like that. 

Thursday morning we packed up to check out.  The manager spoke with my husband and took off the cost of one of the nights.  I was rather surprised by this!  We ate lunch at Longhorn Steakhouse.  I had never been to one before but I had a gift card from doing online surveys (those things do pay off!)  Then we went to Bass Pro Shops.  We stayed there quite a while.  They had some summer activities going on for kids which Caleb really enjoyed. 

Then we headed up the road to San Marcos.  I wanted to do a little shopping at the outlet stores there.  We found a few things and Caleb swam at the pool (and I got eaten up by mosquitoes while watching them) before bed. 

Friday morning we found some shoes for Caleb and then headed home.  Since we were close we drove by the capitol in Austin for a tour.  That was another place Caleb wanted to see so it worked out since we were in the area and had time. 

When we got home Caleb ran in so excited to tell me how much the watermelons in the garden had grown and wanted me to come see them.  I should have taken a picture before we left.  They were small, the size of a tennis ball probably or smaller. It is fun to see them changing!  We can't wait to eat one! 

It was a nice vacation.  We were glad to be home too though.  This week Caleb has been at a day camp so I am home alone again.  He is having so much fun.  I love hearing his stories each day. 

Have a day of blessings!