San Antonio- Day 2- Part 2

As promised here are the wildlife safari pictures. We all really enjoyed the safari and feeding all of the animals. Clara got to get out of her carseat and thoroughly enjoyed her newfound freedom. Robert slept through the first half of the safari.

We had a guide with pictures and descriptions of all the animals, but still our answer every time Clara asked "What is that?" was usually "Some kind of deer thing", at least for the first half of the safari. Then we got into the more well-known animals. You know, the ostrich, zebra, donkey, llama, etc. We were experts when we got to the second half.

Close up of a deer thing

Some kind of reindeer looking thing

Another deer thing with pointy horns

Awwww. A baby deer thing

So we're cruising along when we get to the scary part. I couldn't roll my window up fast enough when the ostrich came trotting up to my window. Those things are scary! Look at this face. He'd have pecked our eyes out had we not gotten the window up quick enough.

We threw the food far, far away from the car and high-tailed it out of the ostrich territory and into the zebras. They were very nice. But they wanted in too. You're not supposed to feed them up close or pet them, but who could resist this face? Not many I gather since the car in front of us had about 10 of them trying to squeeze their heads in the windows opening their mouths so that they could pitch the pellets right in.






Robert woke up at this point, so I got him out of his carseat and he watched the animals for awhile before he got hungry. So I just nursed him in the front seat. We're driving along when here comes another ostrich. I'm pushing the button trying to roll my window up, all the while screaming. It gets to my window and starts pecking. Robert unlatches of course to see what all the ruckus is about. I'm half laughing, half screaming leaning over into Chris' seat, exposed because my nursling is not longer nursing.

Chris is laughing and yelling at me to hand him the little camera so he can video it. I'm not even hearing him because I'm in survival mode here. As soon as it walks aways, I pick the camera up from between my legs and hand it to him. Seriously, I couldn't even think as that thing was pecking away at my window. Chris was laughing at me and couldn't believe that I wasn't able to even register what he was asking of me. Hello, I had a baby in my lap, my breast exposed, with a 10 foot bird pecking inches from my face! It's hard to think clearly when you're screaming.

It was Clara's turn to freak out next. I'll start out by saying that emu's are freaky looking. I'd never seen one that close before and they look like dinosaur birds or something. Their heads look prehistoric. I didn't know that Clara had gone to the back of the van and was crouching in the floor for some reason. Well, an emu came around the back of the van and she happened to look up right as he peers inside the car. She came unglued!

I just happened to be filming two gazelle things fighting when the screaming ensued, so I have it on video. Chris says I should post the video but I see the irony of my posting a video of her screaming with me in the background saying "Clara, it's ok. They can't get you." all while laughing. So I'll refrain.

Who could resist this face?

The donkeys were at the end of the safari and those little boogers are smart. There was a team of two of them working for food. One walked right in front of the car and just stood there motionless while his friend came to the window for food. As soon as his friend had his fill, he let us pass.

Once you get through the safari and back to the front, you can park and walk around some. They had lots more animals including giraffes, peacocks, parrots, lemurs and a petting zoo.


After getting pooped on by the goats, we went to see the black and white ruffled lemurs. They were being pretty boring and we walked away not long after. It wasn't busy at all so we were letting Clara have a bit of freedom to run around and she was probably 30-40 feet away from us when the lemurs went CRAZY! They were howling and barking at each other and they were loud. Clara again had an unbelievable freak out. Even I jumped they we so loud. She shrieked, covered her ears and in a panic just started running in circles. Poor girl probably thought something was coming to eat her and we weren't right there. I was more sympathetic this time, but it was still funny.

This was the first time I'd ever seen baby lemurs. So, so cute! Mama sat and nursed her two babies and when they were done, they were holding on to her, climbing over each other on her back.



And here's the baby giraffe. Giraffes are currently Clara's favorite animal.

We had lunch at the restaurant there and were pleasantly surprised. It was very good food. Robert fell asleep and I hoped he would stay asleep and get a good nap as we headed to the caverns, but alas, he woke up as I was putting him in his carseat.

Cooper is Here!

and he and Linsey are doing good. Praise God! I'll update when I know more.

DD

I'd say that's about Robert's chest size with his new getup. He's soaking through waterproof bibs and his clothes about half an hour after I put them on. And now he's sporting a lovely red rash under his chin. Poor guy. I actually am not sure if it's from the drool or food since it's just started since giving him solids. I'm going to go with slobber though because it's much less depressing to think about.

Today I folded up a cloth diaper and tucked one end into his shirt and the other in the front of his pants and it seems to be working! He won't be winning any fashion contests, but it's been on for a few hours now and his shirt is just now starting to get damp, so I'm gonna go ahead and declare myself a genius.

I'm putting Aquaphor on his neck several times a day. I just can't figure out a way to expose his neck to fresh air. Any other ideas out there for keeping him dry and happy?

My Nephew is Almost Here!

Linsey was hospitalized on Tuesday because her protein levels are so high and they've decided to induce her just as soon as a room becomes available. My mom is headed to Odessa right now. She's not due until late June/early July. The baby looks good and neither are in distress right now. Please pray for a safe delivery and for a big, healthy boy!

San Antonio- Day 2

We had a nice breakfast at the hotel the next morning and then went to the Natural Bridge Wildlife Safari just north of San Antonio. It looked like we might get rained on, but the rain held off. It was overcast all morning, which was very nice since we were in our car with the windows rolled down for an hour or so.

After looking through all of our photos we took at the safari, I've decided it needs a post of it's own. We got so many great shots of the animals; it's going to be photo overload.

It started sprinkling just as we were finishing our lunch at the safari, so it was the perfect time to head next door to the caverns. I asked which of the two tours would suit us best since we have a four year old and a 6 month old in a sling. They told us which one. I asked if it was too much for a four year old and they said she should be fine as long as she had good non-slip shoes. So we bought our tickets and waited for the next tour.

Wouldn't you know it, as we were minutes from starting the tour, a certain someone decided to get fussy and not want to hang out in the sling. The guy is always up for chilling in his sling. His timing is impeccable sometimes. I started sweating it a little and wondered if we should attempt it but decided it would be fine.

This formation is 50 feet tall to give you some idea of how large this room was. It was beautiful down there. I would've enjoyed it so much more had the rugrats not been with us.

We survived. It was a bit strenuous at times and he never did let me put him in the sling. I tried unsuccessfully several times but he just wasn't having it. The tour lasted about an hour and I actually nursed him a couple of times. It was 70 degrees with 99% humidity, so I didn't bother with a blanket. Plus, it was pretty dark and everyone was preoccupied looking at cool rocks, so I didn't worry too much about offending.

I know Clara looks horrible in this picture, but it's the only one that I took with Chris in it.

Clara was thoroughly unimpressed with the caverns. I really thought she'd think it was cool that that was underneath us and all, but nah. She complained most of the time and said she wanted out. She actually did very well for not enjoying herself. At least she didn't decide to throw a fit or want to be carried or something equally dreadful when you're trapped with a group of strangers a hundred feet below the surface.

This was at the end of the caverns and right before we went back up the hallway to exit. Chris insisted we pose for a picture with the bat guano. It's from hundreds of years ago (if I remember correctly; I was a little distracted) and it turned the rocks black. There's even a sign to the left to denote the fact that we're standing next to centuries old bat dung.

I did fine and took it very slowly, holding on to the handrails when available. Man, it would've been a piece of cake had he just cooperated and stayed in the sling! He eventually fell asleep close to the time we started to ascend the 150 feet back to the surface. I was huffing it and was as glad as Clara when I saw the sunlight pouring in.


We went back up to the visitors center to cool off and have some ice cream. I nursed Robert in the car while Chris went and bought Clara some dirt that she could "mine" for jewels. She loved that part and came away with a small baggie of precious gems.

We went back to the hotel and rested (well all except for Clara). Where does she get all this energy? Then we headed back to the Riverwalk for some dinner. But first we stopped off in front of the Alamo so us native Texans could take a picture. (The sign just above and to the right of the Alamo is our hotel.) (Is Alamo supposed to be capitalized? 'Cause I keep capitalizing it.)

We decided to go to Hard Rock and I thought I knew the way. After I led us on a long, ahem, scenic route, we finally sat down to a nice dinner on the patio. Clara started to get tired and whiney on the walk back, but once we mentioned a quick stop at the ice cream shop, she was right as rain.

San Antonio- Day 1

Chris took off the rest of the week so we could go on a quick trip to San Antonio. Dan and Linda left on Tuesday morning and Chris helped some friends move most of the day on Tuesday. I made our travel arrangements that day. All we had done was ask someone to come over and feed the dogs. Nothing else had been done.

So all day Tuesday I was online looking at things to do, getting directions, times and prices, printing coupons, doing laundry and packing so that we could leave Wednesday morning. I decided to try Hotwire for the first time for booking our hotel. If you're not familiar with it, you put in the area you want to stay and the minimum number of stars you want. It brings up several options for you to choose from but all you have in front of you is the price. It doesn't give you the name of the hotel until you book the room. Yah, a little scary. However, this particular hotel had over 300 reviews and was given 4 out of 5 stars, so I wasn't too worried. Still, I felt wild and crazy as I hit the "I accept" button.

Wouldn't you know it, for $75 a night the hotel was absolutely perfect! We stayed in the Crockett Hotel which is a historic hotel right across the street from the Alamo and the mall. The room was a bit small, but was very clean and bright and they had a wonderful continental breakfast. They did charge $20 a night for guest parking, but it was valet and we probably would've spent some on parking if we went to the Riverwalk anyway.

We left home around 10:00 on Wednesday, making several stops along the way and then we rested when we got to the hotel. Or a least some of us did. Clara was giddy with excitement.





After naps we headed to Kiddie Park. It's an amusement park for little kids that's been around since 1925. All of the rides are old, though I'm not sure if they've all been there since the opening or not. The carousel was awesome; it was very rickety and some horses were missing a leg or tail. I loved it!





They also had boats, a ferris wheel, planes, cars, a school bus and a flying saucer/helicopter ride along with a couple of other rides.



I just love her flying faces in these next two photos. I was a bit surprised that she went on the flying saucer one by herself. The only amusement park ride she's been on was one at the rodeo last year with me. This ride went faster than the others and other than the carousel, it was the only one that adults were allowed on. She did great though! She was laughing and having a good 'ol time.




After Kiddie Park, we headed back to the hotel and then hit the Riverwalk for some Mexican food for dinner. We were joined by some ducks and pigeons and Clara didn't enjoy their presence in the least. She had her feet pulled up into her chair and was yelling at them to go away the whole time.

A Few More

Here are just a few more pictures that were taken during Grandpa and Grandma's visit. These were all taken on Saturday. We were all invited to daddy/daughter breakfast that morning and then we went to Chris and Clara's used bookstore. Before heading home we picked up a new Jeep for Robert.

Later that day Robert got his first taste of solid food and then we let Clara pick where to go for dinner. She chose her fave restaurant, the "sour chicken place," better known as the Chinese place down the street that serves sweet and sour chicken. Robert got to sit in a highchair at a restaurant for the first time. He lasted all of 5 minutes before I had to scoop him up.

We got home and got Clara bathed and she and Grandma and Grandpa played a game of Cootie while I put her hair in foam rollers for her dance recital the next day. That night we had a terrible thunderstorm and poor Clara was terrified. The lightening was hitting very close to the house and startled me several times as well. I thought we'd never get her to sleep.

And I guess that about sums up our few days with Grandpa and Grandma. We can't wait for our next visit! Stay tuned for San Antonio pics.

Six Months

-- Robert is wearing 6-9 month clothes and size 3 shoes, but is starting to outgrow some of his things.

-- He is sitting very well now for long periods of time and rarely falls over anymore. He's not crawling yet and I can't tell if he's close or not. He pivots around, but doesn't get up on his knees very well.

-- He is eating rice cereal and seems to like it alright. I moved right on past the other grains and gave him avocado. He wasn't very fond of it.

-- Since starting solids, he's not nursing quite as much during the day. He still has not had formula and really won't take a bottle. I can't tell if he's just playing or if he really doesn't know how to suck from a bottle nipple.

-- His sleeping is terrible! It's been really bad lately. I think the 2-3 weeks of being sick and congested totally messed him up. That and the teething. He goes down between 7:30 and 8:00 and is typically awake by 11:30-12:30, sometimes sooner. I get him back down once and then he's awake an hour or so later. I try to get him back in his crib, but after an hour or so of that nonsense, I'm just done and bring him to bed. He then wakes at least every hour to nurse. We're about to have to get serious around here with the sleep thing. I'm just really not looking forward to it. He'd wake up at 6:00 for the day if I let him, but I can usually get him to go back to sleep until around 7:00 or so.

-- Naps are still hit or miss. Sometimes he only sleeps for 15-20 minutes in his crib and other times I get 1.5 hours out of him. I don't know what to do about the little guy's naps.

-- He is finally happy in his carseat the majority of the time. Still loves his sling and the stroller is hit or miss. He loves his swing on the swingset and falls asleep in it almost every time we put him in it. He doesn't quite have the jeep figured out; he mainly goes backwards in it. Still loves the jumperoo most of the time.

-- His favorite toy right now is the sorting blocks. He can sit and put the blocks into the bucket by himself. His favorite part is dumping them though.

-- His drooling is out of control.

-- Robert got his first tooth on Saturday and he went to his Sunday school class for the first time on Sunday. He almost made it all the way through. He got fussy and had to be picked up when the cheerios came out close to the end and he wasn't getting any.

-- This month Robert was sick with bronchitis and pink eye, had a visit from Grandma and Grandpa and went on his first real vacation. He also was dedicated at church.

-- He's getting impossible to hold. He tries to climb your torso and it's incredibly annoying. He also has a long reach and has gotten a handful of food from our plates on several occasions. He's ready for some self-feeding.

Butterflies

We decided to do something fun on the last day of Dan and Linda's visit, so on Monday we headed to the Museum of Natural Science. We went through the butterfly exhibit and watched an IMAX movie in 3D about whales and dolphins.

Before you enter where the butterflies are, there is an exhibit all about insects. There are hissing cockroaches, scorpions and all sorts of creepy crawly things that Clara could've done just fine without seeing. She was scared of the big mural of bugs painted up the stairwell. Robert took a picture with the hissing cockroaches though.

The butterfly exhibit is a large enclosed dome that simulates a rainforest. There are lots of trees, flowers and a waterfall. It's a very lovely place to visit with benches scattered along the path and lots of butterflies fluttering around.

After wandering around for a while, we re-entered the real world and went to watch our movie. This was my first 3D movie and it was pretty cool. The theater was filled with school groups and the kids jumped up, screaming and reaching for the whales all throughout the movie. The teachers finally gave up trying to get them to be quiet but most of them eventually settled down. Clara got scared a few times, but did really well. I think she would've been fine had it not been for all of the kids screaming. They startled her more than the movie itself.

We perused the gift shop after the movie and Robert eventually fell asleep with a toe up the nose.

I love this picture Chris got of Clara playing with the water globe outside of the museum.

Spring Recital

Clara's big spring dance recital was on Sunday. Grandma and Grandpa timed their visit so they could be here for it again this year. I treated Clara to a little makeup this year. She got some lipstick, a little blush and even mascara. She loved getting to wear makeup.

It was at the same high school auditorium as last year but thankfully they reworked the lineup so that there were only 13 dances during Clara's performance instead of the 27 we had to sit through last year.

They were able to accomplish this by combining several of the younger classes so Clara's class danced with one other class. It was a bit crowded on stage with 17 girls, but it worked out ok and I'm all for not sitting through 27 dances again.

The recital was a tribute to Michael Jackson, so all of the dances were to his songs. I loved it and was singing along to most of them. All of the costumes were black and white and only the lighting changed for each song. It made photographing difficult though. One of Clara's dances had red lighting and the other was blue. One of the more advanced classes danced to Thriller which was really cute. Their costumes were tattered and torn, their hair was teased and their makeup looked great.

Clara managed to get through a recital without drawing attention to herself in some way for the first time. She's growing up I guess. She did great and I could really tell she's matured a lot since her last recital.

Here we all are with our favorite dancer after the show.