So it’s nearly a month late. Give me a break…I was on vacation time!
Our South Padre vacation ended as wonderfully as it began. On Thursday, we spent some time playing in the condo before heading out to the beach. Crisana and I continued to build sand-sculpture masterpieces under our little shelter. Trey joined us for awhile, creating a little sand village while he took a break from the ocean. It was too windy to fly kites on the beach, so we ended up hanging out in the condo, swimming in the ocean, and playing in the sand most of the day.
Crisana building in the sand.
Trey was obsessed with making the perfect tower!
Our sandcastle village, complete with seashell windows and doors!
Friday morning, I woke up with a serious (and I mean serious) case of hives. I’ve had them before, but this was bad. I don’t know exactly where they came from or why I got them, but there they were, covering my whole body, from my feet to my neck. I made a quick dash out to the store to get some Benadryl, just to have some relief from the swelling and discomfort. Then we headed down to the pool, where we thought the water might help. Unfortunately, at nearly 80 degrees, the water was too warm and made me feel worse. So I hung out and read while Matt played with the kids until lunchtime. We picnicked on the balcony and assessed the wind to see if we’d have any chance to fly kites. It appeared that the wind wouldn’t be too strong, so we decided to give it a go. We headed down to the beach and had a BLAST flying kites. Several people stopped to comment on Trey’s stealth bomber. Crisana was hilarious chasing the shadow of her kite. The beach was much more crowded and filled with people than it had been all week, evidence of it being the start of a weekend and the beginning of sandcastle days. Crisana and I did some shelling, and then something amazing happened:
CRISANA WENT INTO THE OCEAN!! Under her own power, by her own desire, she went into the water! This girl, who had been afraid of the ocean since the beginning of our trip last year finally took “the plunge” and went in by herself. And what did she think? “I love the ocean!” she squealed! We were all so proud of her!
Crisana flying her kite.
Crisana’s mermaid kite, named “Carolyn.”
Trey flies his stealth bomber kite.
Trey’s stealth kite – a better view. We have a picture of someone taking a picture of HIS kite!
We flew kites for about an hour, then went in to clean up. We showered and changed and drove down to the Hilton to see the sandcastles. It is absolutely amazing what these professionals can do with sand, water, and glue. We arrived shortly before quittin’ time, so we got to see them spray down their creations for the night, which was interesting. We took a short walk along the beach to see the amateur creations that dotted the shoreline, and both children ran in and out of the surf (getting their clothes soaked in the process) having fun with the waves. We strolled in and out of the vendor booths around the hotel, and took a moment to enjoy a soda on the patio before heading back to the car.
These were some of our favorites:
Crisana’s favorite sandcastle.
Trey’s favorite – he liked the arches…they reminded him of McDonald’s.
Debbi’s favorite sandcastle.
Matt really liked this one.
Trey and Crisana play in the water. Yes, actually IN the water!
We had decided that this night would be a special dinner out at a favorite from last year: Pirate’s Landing. The food was good, the atmosphere was great, and there are lots of pirates hanging around – both inside and out. While the kids munched on grilled cheese, we opted for Gulf coast fare: shrimp, crab, fish – you name it. While there, I began to feel very funny, almost sick. I thought it might be due to the Benadryl and/or eating too much. Before we left, we visited the Pirate gift shop and took one last silly picture of the kids:
By the time we reached the condo, I was really feeling weird. As we prepped the kids for bed, I happened to catch a glimpse of myself in the mirror. My lips were so swollen…I looked like Dumb Donald! (Matt was wishing I looked more like Angelina Jolie) What the…. Who knows where THAT came from, but fearing the beginning of a shellfish allergy, I pumped myself up with more Benadryl.
Saturday morning arrived and we allowed ourselves one last indulgence of swimming in the ocean. The only difference was that this time, it was a family affair. Rather than playing in the sand by herself, Crisana joined us to splash in the waves. A couple of boys near us were busy catching sand crabs and releasing them, and we had a great time watching them. Our time was way too short, but we reluctantly came in to start packing and readying ourselves for the long drive home.
We showered, dressed, packed, ate lunch, and had the car packed and ready to go by 1:00 Saturday afternoon. The DVD player, which had shown signs of being persnickety on the way down, absolutely refused to cooperate for the drive home, so any movie watching in the back seat was impossible. Thankfully, coloring books and pulling teeth kept the kids occupied until the sun went down. Wait – pulling teeth?? What?? Yes, that’s right. Somewhere between Corpus Christi and San Antonio, Trey managed to pull out his tooth that had been so wiggly all week long. No blood at all! We carefully placed his tooth in a safe place (a cupholder) so that we could put it under his pillow when we returned home. Trey was mighty relieved to know that the tooth fairy would be able to find him easily.
We made it to San Antonio by dinnertime and had an unforgettable stop for dinner and fuel (I did NOT want to say dinner and gas!). Let’s just say we kept our guardian angels busy protecting us and our children. And we learned a valuable lesson: don’t stop at that exit any more!! We managed to be home by about 11:30, which wasn’t bad at all. We got the kids snuggled down in their beds, unloaded the car, and collapsed into our own bed by 12:30. It had been a wonderful trip, but it sure felt good to be home!