Shamu!

Erin Enjoying Shamu

Erin in the 4-D theater

Erin's 10-gallon hat...she decided on the pink fuzzy cowgirl hat

We took our first family vacation since our honeymoon over five years ago (a vacation outside driving to Iowa). Thursday morning we left for San Antonio. It never fails; wherever we go the rain follows. As soon as we hit the San Antonio city limits the drops started to fall. Thursday afternoon we spent on the River Walk and the Alamo.

After being drenched we headed to our hotel – we went classy this time and stayed at the Hilton Spa and Resort. Actually we got lucky on Priceline and got a better price on our room than staying at the Super 8. Thursday night we hung out at the heated outdoor pools even though it was 60 degrees out and the hotel had several fire pits on their patio so we sat around and roasted marshmallows and mingled with people who well, probably don’t drive gold Kia minivans.

Erin making out with Shamu and Eliza conked out

Friday we headed out to Sea World, despite the 80% rain chance. San Antonio is… more like was… in middle of a record drought. We walked around Sea World most of the morning in a torrential downpour. The only thing that was open was the Shamu Show. Erin LOVED it; Eliza was too blued-lipped freezing cold to really care. We got a two-day pass so we decided to catch the bus back to the hotel and while we were waiting for the bus to come the sun came out. The afternoon was beautiful and no one was at the park so we enjoyed an afternoon of no crowds and no lines.

Erin's the one in the yellow rain jacket....hunched over....praying for survival

Erin rode her first “mini” rollercoaster. Unlike Eliza she is our cautious one, she rode it a few times (it went a whopping a 14mph) and it kind of scare her. However, somehow Jared coxed her into going on the Journey to Atlantis ride, the boat ride with a 100ft plunge at the end. There were no tears, just a firm statement that “It was NOT fun…. I think dad lost some credibility and Erin will have a complex about amusement rides for years to come. I was really surprised she even considered going on it, let alone actually making the journey, but that was the only time. She decided the raging river was the perfect ride.

Eliza drenched from shamu's big splash... yes I used my kid as a shield to stay dry....

We retuned to Sea World for part of Saturday, Eliza decided on Saturday she LOVED Shamu also and then headed back to Houston. Little did we know the downpour we were in on Friday in San Antonio moved east and mixed with a moisture rich system off the Gulf and Houston experienced a rain that put the Ike precipitation to shame. We got somewhere between 7-9 inches of rain, someone told us it rained an inch in just a few minutes. From the skyline of Houston south on I-45 we probably saw 80+ stalled cars (and cars still stalling, like the scores of stalled cars wasn’t sign enough that your tiny car can’t make it through). We saw some cars attempting to drive through flooded roads, water past their wheel wells. The feeder roads that run next to the interstate were submerged and the interstates we littered with people walking shamefully home as their car stood smoking and submerged in the water they thought they could cross. It provided good entertainment for the slow drive home. Part of our neighborhood flooded, but we were still high and dry, although it came too close for comfort. All in all it was a wonderful weekend.

What should have been the feeder road next to I-45