HOUSTON Days 3-4

On Sunday we went to the zoo. The weather was perfect. Sadly, Tobey did not join us. I did not blame him. At his age, I liked to have the house to myself and just chill (which is also still the case, actually). Lm wore his Elmo shirt and was raring to go!

First we went to the petting zoo.

Lm enjoyed petting the goat's ears.

Brennyn was not sure what to make of it either.

We took the kids on a carousel ride and they did great.

We’ve read about a lot of these animals, but so far all he’d seen were cattle, dogs and cats. At the zoo he got to see elephants...

...and giraffes.

We enjoyed cotton candy.

Tylor is so mature for his age! I’ve never met a more responsible and caring kid at his age. He was so helpful and good with the little ones. I can only hope my boys grow to be half as nice and mature as he is. What a great role model for the little ones!

Lm ran amok. He had been cooped up in the car, and was ready to roll.

Toward the end, he pooped out. My tired boy...

That night, Jenn took us to Swampees, a great Cajun restaurant. The food was great but more importantly, they have the best bloody marys I’ve ever had! I want the recipe!

Next morning we had to leave :( My only regret about the trip (other than trusting Mapquest) was that we couldn’t stay one more day. It was obviously too short. We could have gone to the aquarium the next day or the space center. Jenn was wonderful and so were her kids, I would’ve liked to spend more time with them.

Forunately there were really no mishaps on the way back, other than we got pulled over in Kansas for going 81 in a 70. When the cop approached, I said, “Sir, can we ask for mercy here? My son is crying and he has a dirty diaper.” Lm promptly burst into tears when the officer looked at him, thankfully. We got off with a warning because of it. Lam when he cries can inspire pathos in anyone.

Turned out he did not have a dirty diaper as I thought! I guess it must have been fertilizer we smelled. At the next gas station when I changed him, I was happily surprised. However, after he was freshly changed and we bought some snacks and headed out the door…you guessed it…he made me NOT a liar, and I had to change his diaper once more.

This morning Lk was so glad to see me. My heart just melted. I thought he would be mad at me like last time, but this morning he just threw his arms around me and I held him for a long time. He wanted to cling to me until I really did have to go to work. I’m so lucky to have my sweet boys.