OUR WEEKEND GETAWAY TO SAN ANTONIO
To close out July, for the first time, Mallerie and I took a small family vacation. Though we've had a few road trips without the littles, we'd never hit the road with any of our kids. We planned smart and scaled back, setting our sights on Sea World and the San Antonio River Walk. For this trip, we took just our oldest (AJ) and youngest (Gravy).
We hit a pretty bad storm on the drive down, extending our time in the car just a bit. When we arrived, AJ was elated to see that our hotel was right on the river. The drive had made us all restless, so we set out on a brief walk along the river almost immediately. Sadly, the storm hadn't quite passed and we were driven inside a Starbucks while we waited for the last pockets of rain to pass.
We dried off in the hotel and checked our maps for a fun spot to get dinner. We settled on Hard Rock Cafe since it was familiar and only a ten-minute walk from the hotel.
The next morning, we woke up slow and walked to La Villita Historic Arts Village for breakfast, then ambled along the river a little more.
We had tickets to Sea World, but we had decided to wait until after lunch to go. Between the heat and our concerns about Gravy being in the heat, ten hours at Sea World just didn't sound feasible.
We still had plenty of time to check out the dolphins at Discovery Cove...
...and watch the Azul performance with beluga whales, dolphins, macaws, and a hilarious comedian!
The penguin encounter was a welcome stopover since it was air conditioned.
Of course, the orcas stole the show (literally). It was the unanimous favorite of the day!
For me, the best part was bonding a bit more with AJ. Being the oldest, she's had a harder time with my twins and I encroaching on her time with Mallerie. I've never forced a relationship with her, but I think San Antonio was just what we needed to really connect.
AJ loves doughnuts more than anything in the world, so we just had to stop at our favorite restaurant on the way home. Look at that squishy doughnut baby!
