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Spring Break 2017

The week before last was spring break. Curtis had to be in Houston on business for a couple of days and invited us to tag along, so we all headed to Houston Monday night. It had been a long time since we’d traveled with the children. They aren’t notoriously easy, but having unlimited data on devices and them being older makes a difference. I’m happy to report that our trip was very successful! While Curtis went to his meetings on Tuesday, the kids and I attempted to visit the zoo (to no avail, it was crowded starting several blocks out) then settled for the aquarium. On Wednesday, we went early to the zoo with Daddy in attendance then drove to Galveston and walked on the beach in the afternoon. It was a lovely vacation, by far the best to date.

Tuesday, March 14th, 2017

Aquarium Pose

After Curtis left for his business meeting, I got the kids up and showered. The plan was to spend the day at the Houston Zoo. We missed breakfast at the hotel so we stopped at Whataburger for breakfast taquitos, then we headed downtown. It took an hour to get downtown from where we were staying in the Woodlands. We first tried to visit the Houston Zoo, but it was so crowded that it took us 40 minutes of driving around just to get near the park (so that’s already over two hours since we left the hotel). Each entrance was blocked by park police and we kept getting herded to longer and longer traffic lines. When we finally made it to the parking lot with handicapped parking spots (we got Anna a placard last year since she is having more mobility issues and fatigue is a huge problem for her especially in the Texas heat), we couldn’t find a spot. We were tired and hungry and frustrated so we abandoned the idea of the zoo and went to the Downtown Aquarium instead. I promised the kids that we would get up early the next day to get to the zoo when it first opened so that we could find a place to park. Thirty minutes later, we made it to the Downtown Aquarium… but of course the parking lot is full, including the handicapped spots. Sigh. We had to park a couple of blocks away but luckily it was a beautiful day so it wasn’t a bad walk. I had the kids pose for the obligatory photo in front of the aquarium.

New Braunfels family vacation Houston photographer

Nikon D750 | 20mm | f/4.5 | 1/640 | ISO 50

Tuesday, March 14th, 2017

Filmmaker at Work

When we finally got inside, it was nearly 2:00 p.m. I had not considered that it was spring break week and that all of the tourist attractions would be packed. We had been out for hours and the kids were a little frazzled but in good spirits. Anna was handling the little kids really well. Dominic was Mr. Filmmaker at the aquarium, filming for Daddy and Nana who couldn’t be there. It was a nice aquarium with a small inside area and some rides and attractions outside. We went ahead and paid for the all access pass which gave us entrance to the Shark Voyage and Stingray Reef plus the rides. My kids don’t like rides and Anna is afraid of sharks, but it wasn’t that much extra money so what the heck, right? Dominic got some great footage and created a montage of his clips using his phone (he is so tech savvy). He wouldn’t let me share that film here but I’ll keep working on him.

New Braunfels family vacation Houston photographer

Nikon D750 | 20mm | f/1.4 | 1/200 | ISO 3200

Tuesday, March 14th, 2017

Stingray Reef

The way this aquarium is set up is that you have to go through the interior portion of the building in order to get outside again. There is only one way out and it was packed. We walked through small rooms of various tanks, then had the tourist photo trap op, then the white tiger exhibit (every aquarium has a white tiger, right?), then through the gift shop, and finally we were free. We wandered outside and the kids were hungry so I grabbed them a hot dog, soft pretzel, and drink which they scarfed down. Then we were planning on going to see the shark exhibit. Well… the only way to see the sharks was to ride a train to the building… which had a line at least 30 minutes long filled with screaming babies and whiny kids. Nope. So we gave up on that idea and went back inside to Stingray Reef. I was expecting Anna to balk as it was crowded and loud and chaotic. But to my surprise, her enchantment with these creatures won and we patiently waited for a spot at the wall and she got a turn to touch them. She loved them. We stayed at this exhibit at least 20 minutes and Dominic bought some fish to feed them. It was really cool.

New Braunfels family vacation Houston photographer

Nikon D750 | 20mm | f/2.2 | 1/200 | ISO 640

Stingray Encounter Video

See Anna giggle as she first touches a stingray, then Dominic sidles in and gets to touch one too. Pure magic. The entire trip was worth this one 20-minute attraction.

iPhone 6s+

Tuesday, March 14th, 2017

Exploration

After the aquarium, we headed back to our hotel. Anna was wiped out. Curtis was already there by the time we got back, so everybody had a rest. Within 10 minutes, Anna and Curtis were totally asleep, so Dominic and I went out to find a grocery store to get a few snacks. HEB was literally around the corner, so as we pulled into the parking lot, we looked around hoping to find some froyo for a tiny treat before dinner. Shh, we never told sister or daddy. Teehee! We drove a couple of blocks away to this area called Hughes Landing which reminds me of the Domain in Austin. It was a mixture of restaurants, retail, and residential apartments. We found some froyo and walked down to the lake to enjoy it. Unfortunately it was terrible froyo, so we threw it away (gasp!) and just enjoyed the scenery. What a beautiful place! Whenever you travel, take an extra hour to explore the area. You never know what you will find!

New Braunfels family vacation Houston photographer

Nikon D750 | 20mm | f/6.3 | 1/250 | ISO 50

Tuesday, March 14th, 2017

Heron

Dominic suggested that we walk down the path that was toward the residential area. We saw this heron wading and approached slowly. He didn’t take off at all. I got very close to him, it was pretty cool. Domesticated herons, ha! If we had had more time, we would’ve gotten a paddle boat and gone out on the lake. After our walk, we went back to our car, hit the grocery store, then went back to the hotel to pick up Anna and Curtis for dinner. We ate at a restaurant called Crisp which had great Yelp reviews. The food was just okay and when Curtis asked what selection of bourbon they had, it caused confusion. Weird. Usually Yelp doesn’t steer us wrong. It was a lovely, albeit sidetracked, day.

New Braunfels family vacation Houston photographer

Nikon D750 | 20mm | f/5.6 | 1/250 | ISO 50

Wednesday, March 15th, 2017

Early Zoo Visitor

Resolving to get up early on Wednesday while on vacation was not easy. But I knew that the zoo visit would not be successful unless we got there early. My alarm went off at 6, I was showered and ready by 7, then I got the kids up and showered, we had breakfast in the hotel at 8, and we were on the road by 8:20. We got to the zoo by 9:20 just after they opened. We got a relatively close handicapped spot and purchased tickets online while in line so then we were able to bypass the line and check in electronically. I love technology! We then rented a push wheelchair for Anna. She walks slowly, balks when little kids are around, and fatigues quickly, so this was a test to see if we could enjoy the experience and see more of the zoo. We got there so early that the main park plaza just inside the zoo was still empty and I was able to get this great shot of Dominic standing all by himself in front of the fountain.

New Braunfels family vacation Houston photographer

Nikon D750 | 20mm | f/5.6 | 1/250 | ISO 400

Wednesday, March 15th, 2017

Big Fish

Dominic was Mr. Filmmaker again narrating our journey for my mom who was at home taking care of our menagerie (for those who’ve lost count, we have three dogs, a cockatiel, and a guinea pig… and my mom has a dog and a parakeet). We decided to head along the left side of the zoo to see the big animals first with the intention of feeding the giraffes at 11:00 a.m. Here Curtis and Dominic are looking at a big fish in the Kipp Aquarium.

New Braunfels family vacation Houston photographer

Nikon D750 | 20mm | f/1.6 | 1/250 | ISO 1600

Wednesday, March 15th, 2017

Connection

Anna enjoyed being pushed in the wheelchair and actually maneuvered herself around a bit too. Here she is making a connection with the Victoria crowned pigeon in the Carruth Natural Encounters building. I love that connecting with animals is something that is part of Anna’s soul. She especially loves birds, just like me.

New Braunfels family vacation Houston photographer

Nikon D750 | 20mm | f/2 | 1/250 | ISO 1600

Wednesday, March 15th, 2017

Unimpressed

We next headed over to see the elephants. They are such magnificent creatures. Anna was distracted by lots of small children running around but we wheeled her up next to the fence to watch the elephants eating. She just didn’t seem that impressed though! We spent about another hour wandering through the zoo seeing the monkeys (my personal favorite), lions, tigers, bears (oh my! snort), then ended up at the giraffe exhibit. This area was PACKED. They have a giraffe feeding station where you can buy feed, go up to a platform where you can then hand feed the giraffes. The line for this exhibit was so long. It was also right next to the restrooms and us girls needed to pee. The wheelchair would not comfortably fit through the door and allow others to exit, so Curtis and Dominic waited with the wheelchair nearby while we used the bathroom. We decided we were done at this point and packed up to leave. We found a nearby place to eat then headed to Galveston.

New Braunfels family vacation Houston photographer

Nikon D750 | 20mm | f/5.6 | 1/400 | ISO 250

Wednesday, March 15th, 2017

East Beach View

While we sat at lunch, I Googled Galveston beaches. I knew nothing about Galveston so I did some quick research and learned that the northern-most beach (called East Beach) would be the least tourist-filled so we made that our destination. From the zoo, it was about another hour to reach Galveston, then another 20 minutes to reach East Beach. The drive was worth it. What a view! Don’t Dominic and Curtis look just alike here?

New Braunfels family vacation Galveston photographer

Nikon D750 | 20mm | f/7.1 | 1/400 | ISO 50

Wednesday, March 15th, 2017

Down the Beach

This is the view looking southwest down the beach. It was deserted! Those chairs and umbrellas were available to rent… what a great idea! Seriously, it was very windy and we were underdressed, so even though it looked inviting, we didn’t stay long. I had the kids look for seashells to keep them a little occupied.

New Braunfels family vacation Galveston photographer

Nikon D750 | 20mm | f/7.1 | 1/400 | ISO 50

Wednesday, March 15th, 2017

Lifeguard Station

Dominic loved the beach and could’ve stayed longer. Anna and I weren’t very comfortable and I don’t think Curtis was either! It was a beautiful day, in the low 60s, and the sun would intermittently peek out from behind the clouds. My wide angle 20mm lens was a perfect choice for this trip. Here Dominic is posing near one of the lifeguard stations. Isn’t it pretty?

New Braunfels family vacation Galveston photographer

Nikon D750 | 20mm | f/8 | 1/500 | ISO 50

Wednesday, March 15th, 2017

Windblown

We were surprised by how cold and windy it was. I had expected that we would all wade in the ocean so I brought sandals for us as well as snacks. I thought we would sit in the sand and play for a couple of hours. Nope! It was so cold and windy that we walked for about 20-30 minutes and we were done. What wimps! I took this with my iPhone as soon as we got back to the car.

New Braunfels family vacation Galveston photographer

iPhone 6s+| 2.7mm | f/2.2 | 1/250 | ISO 32

Wednesday, March 15th, 2017

Barges at Work

As we left East Beach, this was the view out into the harbor off of Boddeker Road. Massive barges filled the horizon, some going, some coming. Not something we see everyday! This was the only shot I got with the sun behind me.

New Braunfels family vacation Galveston photographer

Nikon D750 | 20mm | f/6.3 | 1/400 | ISO 50

Wednesday, March 15th, 2017

Tourists at Work

We drove back into town on Seawall Boulevard so we could enjoy the beach and scenery as long as possible. We toyed with the idea of stopping at Pleasure Pier (what a terrible name, sounds like an adult playground, ha!) but it was crowded and expensive. Plus the kids don’t like rides. But we did enjoy the stop and go traffic and people watching. I got this shot from the car. The GPS was estimating an hour and a half to get back to the hotel. That was a joke. It took us 2.5 hours in horrible traffic to get back. We were wiped. We all rested for a while then walked next door to get Taco Bell for dinner. Curtis had one more meeting the next morning, so the kids and I just lazed around then got packed up. We had a late lunch with Daddy, then headed home to New Braunfels. I thought we would be back by 5 or so, but it was 7:30 p.m. when we finally pulled in. There was construction that slowed us down so much that it took us 1.5 hours to travel 10 miles at one point. I was glad we had three more days before school was back in session, we needed some down time from our trip.

New Braunfels family vacation Galveston photographer

Nikon D750 | 20mm | f/6.3 | 1/400 | ISO 50

Overall it was the most successful family vacation we’ve had to date. The kids were well behaved, patient, and easygoing. Even though we had to change plans on Tuesday, they handled it well. Anna coped very well with the crowds and children. Traffic was terrible and we spent more time in the car than at actual tourist attractions but we were all together and all connected. Yay us!!! Thanks for looking!

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