The Beach.

Things that happened at the beach: 

Quinn almost stepped on a shark

Mike brought the shark in on a line

Jon decided to grab it and turned the beach into a shark petting zoo complete with toddler bait

Quinn got stung by a jellyfish and was very brave

Mike peed in a cup and Quinn got a urine bath

Another shark! No video (it was 5 feet and less amusing)

Another jellyfish sting! Poor Quinn. 

(I hate the ocean.)

But really, we had a fun time with our friends. It's no Hawaii, and sort of like a Coney Island beach, minus the glass in the sand but + the close-proximity of chemical plants (it all evens out?), but it's close and it's what we have, so that's okay. 

After a shark attack on Monday though, we're probably sticking to the chlorinated pool this week.

(I blame less-than-sharp footage on being at the beach with two non-swimming children, with sharks. Eek!)

 

San Antonio stills.

San Antonio favorites

Beautiful Hill Country views from our resort || The 1920's miniature Kiddie Park || The train at The San Antonio Zoo (we went twice) || The Friendly Spot for a super casual & friendly dinner || Lots of TexMex || The River Walk || San Jose Mission || Dinner with new-slash-old New York friend Miggy + family || Gourmet Burger Grill || The Shops at La Cantera 

San Antonio least-favorite: A 6-inch centipede who ran faster than a race car. I could live without 100-legged creatures in Texas.

We ran out of time for SeaWorld (oops!), but we'll catch it another weekend this summer. 

Hooray for mini family vacations!

 

San Antonio.

We went to Dallas.

Quinn & I took a quick trip to Dallas this past week. Erin & I both needed a little bit of a mental health break, & I think that we'd both agree that co-parenting three toddlers for a few days while the husbands were away slaying dragons was in the end, a very good idea. Somehow, I only came away with a lot of photos of Q in a high chair, a few of him taking a bath with his (3rd) cousin Indie, & an excessive number of him with a face covered in jelly (his first PB&J, ever!). Oh, & then there was an attempt at making three toddlers smile at the very same time (impossible). I also came home with several shopping bags from Northpark Mall & Erin's friendly neighborhood Target. A great trip, all around. 

And the drive! When well-timed with Q's morning nap, it was easy breezy. Because I'm extra-righteous, I listened to The Relief Society Broadcast on my way up, & a session of Conference on my way down, so it was also time well (+ efficiently) spent. It went by quickly, & I saw lots of exciting things along the way (um... or maybe just Sam Houston's giant statue off of I-45). But really, being so close to the Burtons? It makes living in Texas so much happier.

My favorite part of the trip was when sweet Fox said, Kathryn, Quinn is my friend! But he's my cousin, too. We're cousin-friends. Even if Indie was maybe a teensy bit territorial about some (all) of her toys, Quinn was obviously so pleased to have some buddies around for a few days. I think this means it's time for us to buy a puppy.

Also: Dallas has In-N-Out, & the extra-friendly man working there told me that Texas should have over 100 opening in the next year. The next year! That means that our neighborhood will surely have one, yes? It's not Shake Shack, but it's a close #2. 

(Speaking of Shake Shack, we will not speak about how Mike is going to New York in 2 weeks, how we could have gone with him, & how I eventually decided not to go. It makes my heart sad, but I decided I'm not ready to head back quite yet, as I would likely send Mike in a cab to the airport to fly home to Texas, while informing Suzi that I would be living in her closet for the unforeseeable future.)

Close enough.