Lots of things that have happened since my last post, but for tonight, I'll just post about our mini vacation last August. Hopefully over the next few days I can catch up to current events!
Lucas and I finally took Cade on vacation. The first couple of years of his life we took vacations without him because he didn't seem old enough to really enjoy vacation. Then when we went to Playa del Carmen in 2010, Cade seemed to understand that we were leaving and wanted to go with us. We promised him at that time, that we'd take him on vacation the following summer (2011). Little did we know at that time, that we'd have a newborn during the Summer of 2011. (Well I guess we knew it was a possibility since we were trying, but you know what I mean...) Lucas and I toyed with the ideas of Gulfshores, AL or Tablerock, MO but, since we had Addi in tow, we decided to go on vacation somewhere pretty close. Since Cade had never been on vacation, it was all the same to him anyhow. Our destination - Dallas, TX!
Lucas and Cade at Dave & Busters
Addi hanging out in her carrier at Dave & Busters - she was a real trooper!
We drove down on a Thursday. We got into town in time to get ready and have dinner. We went to this restaurant called, "Magic Time Machine". It's a themed type restaurant similar to Molly Murphy's that used to be here in OKC. Magic Time Machine was a NIGHTMARE! The place smelled bad, the service wasn't good and then Lucas saw a GIANT insect (I won't say what kind, but let's just say it wasn't what you'd want to see near food) scurrying across the floor.We gathered up our things and headed out of there pretty quick! We then found a restaurant nearby called "Blue Mesa Grill". Their food was delicious, service was great, atmosphere was good for adults, but not geared toward kids. Since Cade missed out on Magic Time Machine, we told him we'd take him to an arcade as the entertainment for the evening. The waiter gave us directions to a nearby Dave & Busters.
I didn't know that D&B is geared toward adults until we got there. As I was walking in, I felt like people were starring at me for bringing a baby in. It was ok though, there were a few other kids in there. Lucas and Cade played games for about an hour while Addi and I watched and took pictures.
On Friday, we got up and had breakfast at Denny's. Then we headed downtown to the Dallas World Aquarium. I wasn't too excited about the aquarium beforehand, but I was completely wrong about this place. The aquarium was beautiful. They had some cool animals that I had not had the opportunity to see before. One of the animals was a sloth. It was just sitting in a tree eating, no cage or anything. We were able to get very close to it. They had an employee standing next to it to make sure no one tried to touch it. They also had an anaconda, which was very cool and creepy! They had alligators, monkeys, snakes, an octopus, all kinds of beautiful fish. I would go back even without the kids - it was really that neat.
Lucas and Cade outside the Aquarium
Cade outside the Aquarium
Sloth
Toucan
Penguin
Giant Tortoise
Shark Tank
Saw Shark
Sea Ray
Lucas and Cade in the Shark Tank
Leopard
Sea Turtle
On Friday night we went to the Texas Rangers baseball game. The Rangers ballpark is very nice. Their staff was unbelievably friendly. I can't tell you how many of their employees stopped us to ask if it was the kids' first game and where we were from and all that good stuff. It was over 100 degrees outside during the day and well over 80 at night. However, we were up high with a breeze and I was able to dip towels in an ice bucket to keep Addi cool - so we were A OK. If you ever want a weekend getaway for your kids, a Rangers game is a great idea!
Such a cutie with his foam finger!!
The Hinshaw Family at the Rangers Game
On Saturday, we headed over to the Fort Worth zoo. Cade saw a komodo dragon on the Discovery channel about 6 months prior and wanted to see one in person. I did a little research online and found out that the Fort Worth zoo has one.
We got to the zoo around 10 a.m. and it was already approaching 100 degrees outside. The first thing we saw, and in my opinion the most impressive, was a giant saltwater crock. This thing was massive. I had a hard time talking Cade into taking a pic with it. I was pretty intimidated standing to it myself, so I understood! When we got to see the komodo dragon, he was just kind of laying there in his brown boring enclosure. He never moved or anything. Cade had hoped to see him catch some prey, but we knew that probably wasn't going to happen since they only eat like once a month or something. Needless to say, the komodo dragon is a lot more impressive on the Discovery channel than at the zoo.
Cade and Me and the Giant Saltwater Crock - I had to talk him into getting
close enough to take this pic and then get in the picture with him.
Cade and a Giant Snake - I forgot what kind..?..?..
This picture is a little blurry but the look on Cade's face is priceless!
Komodo Dragon enclosure
Turns out the komodo statue was more fun than the actual komodo...
On Saturday night, we went to Allen to the outlet mall. I got some school clothes for Cade and a few new outfits for Addi. I also got a couple of new purses at the Coach outlet. :o) The highlight of our evening was our dinner at In and Out Burger. Since up until recently, they've only been located in CA and Vegas, we haven't ever eaten there. Since the franchise is new to DFW, they were super busy. So busy that we had to eat in the car, but we didn't care it was worth it!! I hope they build one (or 10) here soon!
Cade and Lucas... They give In and Out 2 Thumbs Up!!
