Designing D Store

Sunday, August 23, 2009

Galveston, TX

Galveston, TX (2009) - It has been almost a year since Hurricane Ike crushed Galveston Island as well as dozens of other shoreline towns and communities and offshore towns and communities all the way through Houston and the greater area. The signs of time have changed Galveston and the surrounding area. You can still find some of the old favorites (Stewart Beach), but some of the favorites are gone for good (Soda shop on the Strand). Still, the beach is there. The beach offering sea shell hunts and sand castle contests and belly surfing and sun ray catching as well as bird watching and fishing are still there.



Galveston has come a long way since the blows of Hurricane Ike. Some of the scars will never heal, but many have been erased. As a family, enjoy the sea wall. There are plenty of beaches, some free (along the seawall and Jamaica Beach) and some not (Stewart Beach). There are plenty of restaurants along the sea wall; some family friendly (McDonald's, Chili's, and Gaido's) and some not. There are hotels and other conveniences (grocery store, souvenir shops, etc.). We just parked along the seawall (free) and walked down some stairs to the beach (free). We had a great time. The only bummer was no bathrooms or places to change clothes.



As a family, strolling the Strand is a gamble. Before Hurricane Ike there were family friendly stores and restaurants. After Hurricane Ike there are many bars and t-shirt shops displaying things I don't want my kids to see or read. On the family friendly side, the Army Surplus shop and the Old Strand Emporium are still there, but both were closed at the time we were there. They used to be fun to browse with lots of conversation starters about history and progress. We didn't find a restaurant that appeared kid friendly, but if you go one street over to the wharf, you will find some pricey restaurants that look family friendly. We skipped pricey.



Another side note, buyer beware when renting a beach house! We had wanted to help Galveston's recovery by renting a beach house, but found it to be too expensive and too much of a gamble to take our kids. During summer season, it is extremely hard to find a house willing to rent for the weekend. Almost all reservations are for a week. We found some of interest and decided to do our due diligence and do an on-site review of the homes. Apparently, all the photos on-line were before Hurricane Ike. We were applaud and sadden by what we found. Houses within a normal, working family's budget were questionable at best. One house that was promoted as "newly renovated" (by the way, since Hurricane Ike, all the houses promote "Newly renovated") had insulation falling down from under the house. I don't know why there is insulation there, but that seemed a bad sign to me. Another house we looked at that was "newly located to beach front" meant that the house in front of it had been washed away. The washed away house had not removed the slab or the pylons from the beach. We found in a number of locations broken pylons still in the ground with splinters of wood jetting up, creating a hazard for running children. We did find a number of gorgeous homes, but the prices were outrageous. For families it is far more cost effective to go to a hotel or rent a condominium.



We still love Galveston and are holding our breath as they go through their necessary changes. We have families and would prefer they hold onto family values. Unfortunately, we see the signs of Sin City creeping in. If the adult entertainment sites and sounds continue to grow, we may have to write Galveston off our list. But for now, there are still fun things for families to do for a day or for a weekend.

Trip Stats:
  • Who: 2 Moms, two 10 year old boys, two 5 year old boy and one 7 year old girl
  • What:
  1. Galveston Island, http://www.galveston.com/default.asp
  2. Galveston County Parks, http://www.galvestonparks-seniors.org/default.asp
  • When: Friday (arrived at noon and left at 5:00pm, traffic down was none, but traffic back was awful)
  • Where: Beach
  • Why: Outdoor Play
  • Cost: FREE, we parked on the seawall and walked to the beach. We took a picnic and plenty of drinks and snacks. PETTY CASH, we did go to McDonald's for ice cream and shakes and bathroom breaks.

Saturday, August 22, 2009

Fort Travis Seashore Park

Port Bolivar, Tx (Galveston) - What says summer more than sand and surf? Beach and boats make for a fun, family excursion. Add free to the excursion and you have a super fun day for Mom and Dad. The Bolivar Ferry and the Fort Travis Seashore Park are both free and both fun. O.k., there is no beach at Fort Travis Seashore Park, but it is a nice destination to get out and run around after riding the ferry.


The attraction of the ferry for kids is simple. It is a boat that you get to actually drive your car on. For Houstonians this is an unusual and fun experience. The ferry crosses a very busy channel so lots of opportunities to see lots of types of boats. There are plenty of sea gulls, pelicans and other birds to view, and the occasional dolphin siting really makes the trip special. The ferry ride is long enough to get out of the car, and there are places to go up and get a better view. It is not a long ride so perfect for little minds, little attention spans.

Fort Travis Seashore Park has a long and interesting history dating back to the early 1800's. I remember visiting this park when I was a kid. Taking my kids to see it brought forth mixed emotions.

The Good - My kids loved it. They enjoyed getting out of the car and walking along the sea wall. Their imaginations took flight looking through the gates at the bunkers imagining soldiers walking up and down the stairs. They imagined the big guns or cannons that may have once sat in the circular depressions around the bunkers. They enjoyed going into what appeard to be a gunner's hut or outpost. The park has a nice playground (but no shade) and some nice picnic tables with shade. There is plenty of space to run, but I recommend tennis shoes. The sticker burs in the grass had some seriously long thorns and cut straight through my son's crocks.

The Sad - As Mom, I could see the damage left by Hurricane Ike. Driving through the area we could see where neighborhoods once were but only the pylons that supported the houses remained, no more houses. In the park there are sidewalk collapses and still some chunks of concrete here and there. The kids thought it was cool, but Mom understood the human impact of such damage.

Still we recommend this full days outing. After your trip on the ferry back to Galveston Island stop at one of the pocket beaches for a little beach and surf time before hitting the road back to town. There are a number of places to stop for drinks, snacks or dinner in Galveston if you run low.


Trip Stats:
  • Who: 2 Moms, two 10 year old boys, two 5 year old boy and one 7 year old girl
  • What:
  1. Bolivar Ferry, http://www.bolivarchamber.org/GalvestonFerry.aspx,
  2. Fort Travis Seashore Park, http://www.crystalbeach.com/travis.htm
  3. Galveston Island Pocket Beach, http://www.galvestonparks-seniors.org/default.asp
  • When: Friday (arrived at noon and left at 5:00pm, traffic down was none, but traffic back was awful)
  • Where: Galveston Island and Bolivar Peninsula
  • Why: Outdoor Play
  • Cost: FREE, we took a picnic and plenty of drinks and snacks

Saturday, August 15, 2009

iT'z Pizza, Houston

Houston, Texas (Northwest) - Finding things to do with kids on a rainy day or a 100+ degrees day when you just can't play outside is hard to do. iT'Z Pizza, http://www.itzusa.com/houston/index.htm , is a pizza and fun place that is a good location to celebrate something special. I say celebrate, because the cost is way too high for an everyday event. You will not get out of this place for less than $75 for a family of four, even if you take coupons. Though it is expensive, it is pretty good food and does have fun for everybody.


The fun is the expensive part. They have video games, games of chance to earn tickets and games of chance to earn prizes, bowling, and rides such as a kiddie train/roller coaster, bumper cards and the Disk-O, which is geared for teens and adults. You have to buy game cards, which are like credit cards, that have a number of points. You slide the card on a scanner on the video game or ride you want to enjoy. Games/Rides can be 2 points or 10 points depending on complexity.


They do have a store where you can exchange tickets for prizes, but you better earn a lot of tickets to get any prizes. BEWARE: you need your game card to transfer your tickets too and if you don't do it right, you could lose all your tickets. One of my kids lost over 100 tickets by not swiping his card correctly. Happy Day, when I mentioned it at the front desk, they comp'ed him the tickets and strongly re-enforced how to correctly transfer tickets to the card.


BONUS

If you have a toddler or preschool size child, iT'Z has developed a Tiny Tikes area with inflatable jumpers and games and tiny rides like the cars you see in front of grocery stores that just rock back and forth. My 5 year old loved the inflatables and spent a lot of time here. It also created a "Home Base" for my Pre-Teens. I stayed in the Tiny Tikes area and my 10 year olds could go play and check back, and I could see the game floor and try and keep tabs on the boys.


BUMMER

There really is no good place for parents to create a "Home Base." (We were lucky to be there on a slow day. I suspect the toddler area fills up quickly.) If you have older children who don't want Mommy following them around, you cannot sit anywhere and still be able to watch your kids from a distance. The dining rooms are walled in with no windows and no views of the games and rides area.


A bit pricey but a good experience.


Trip Stats
  • Who: Mama, three 10 year old boys and one 5 year old boy

  • What: iT'Z Pizza, http://www.itzusa.com/houston/index.htm

  • When: Thursday, Noon-ish

  • Where: Northwest Houston off Hwy 249 near Willowbrook

  • Why: Indoor Play

  • Total Cost: $81.83 which breaks down to.....

  • $44.85 - for 3 Summer Thursday Specials of 90 minutes of unlimited play

  • $19.99 - a coupon from a door flyer for 4 buffets and 4 drinks

  • $16.99 - for 1 Eat and Play Combo (buffet and 50 game points)

Thursday, August 13, 2009

Disney Train Tour, "A Christmas Carol"

Houston, Texas - Family Fun? NOT! DO NOT GO! This was a miserable experience for my kids and me. I received an e-mail promoting the "one day only" event the day before it was supposed to arrive in Houston, so I suspected the crowds might not be that big. BOY, was I wrong.

The gist - Disney is promoting its new animated feature "A Christmas Carol" starring Jim Carey. They have outfitted a train to be a rolling museum with cars with costumes and behind the scenes information. The big reward is the last car of the tour which allows you to have your picture digitally taken and morphed into one of the characters from the movie.


The Problem - oh, there are so many

  • 3 hour wait for what was supposed to be a 20 minute tour

  • 100+ heat with little shade and little to no breeze. They had 3 small misting fans near the end of the wait, but not everybody got to enjoy them. Those who were fortunate to stop in front of one, huddled around them, blocking the air to others in rows farther back.

  • 100+ heat with little to no water or other beverages. I don't think any of us anticipated this kind of a wait. I took two bottles of water with me but those were gone before the end of the first hour, and we still waited two more hours. The Amtrack train station had vending machines but after a 30 minute wait in line to get to the vending machine, my friend with me discovered the machine was out of water and only took exact change. It would not take her dollar. She had to buy chips from the neighboring machine to get change to get a drink. Near the end of the line we did find 2 water stations offering dixie size cups of water which did help, but not enough for older people or very young children.

  • Staff - the staff outside was very patient and understanding, but the staff inside was rude. We were told to hurry along. I just waited 3 hours to get in this train and now you are telling me to hurry!?!

  • Exhibits - the first train car had costumes. Why would you display costumes if the actors never wore them? Supposedly the actors wore black jumpsuits with wires and acted in front of a green screen. If there was an explanation somewhere, I wouldn't know since the staff told me to "hurry along." They had a number of screens with different stuff being shown but you couldn't hear anything coming from the speakers over the crowd noise. As far as I could see, there were no written explanations of what you were seeing, but again, I was told to "hurry along." From what I could tell, there was nothing on the train that you would not see on the DVD in the 'Behind the Scenes" section.

  • Snow - We live in Houston so snow is a pretty big deal. The radio stations were promoting that Disney would bring snow to Houston for this one day event. There was no snow. There were two pillars that periodically spit out the top a handful of bubbles. They were pitiful bubbles to boot.

Bonus

For waiting 3 hours and "hurrying along," we were ushered into a very small booth to have each member in our group's photo taken digitally. Each picture was then morphed into 4 different characters from the movie. You got to pick your favorite and supposedly that picture is being e-mailed to me for each member of the group. I still haven't received the e-mail, but the directions did say it could take up to a week to get the pictures.

My dilemma was when to cut and run. In all fairness, we were told when we got in line that we could be waiting 2 to 3 hours, which we did. The deceptive part was how fast the line moved in the beginning. The first hour went very fast. The lined twisted and turned, and there were radio stations to talk to and booths to sign-up for sweepstakes. We decided to wait a little longer. At an hour and half the line turned behind the train, and then we could see exactly how long the line truly was. We were mortified. We had already invested so much time, but we could tell the line was just as long if not longer over here. We hoped the line would move fast like the first part but we were very wrong. The line came to a crawl and did not twist and turn and there was nothing to look at or do. At the end of the line we did get treated to one carol by some strolling singers. We did see two screens showing trailers for the movie, but you couldn't hear the screens over the crowd noise. Besides, what you saw on the outside screen was exactly what you saw on the inside screens.

I suppose if we had not waited 3 hours in 100+ heat with little to no shade or water and told to "hurry along", it would be worth the trip. I guess if you happen to live in a small town that the train is visiting. Go. But if you live in one of the 4 largest cities in the USA and the event is coming for only one day, skip it.

Trip Stats

  • Who: two Mamas, one 10 year old boy, one 8 year old girl, and two 5 year old boys
  • What: Disney Train Tour of "A Christmas Carol," http://disney.go.com/disneypictures/christmascaroltraintour/
  • When: Tuesday, we arrived at 9:45 am and left at 1:15 pm
  • Where: Downtown Houston Amtrak Train Station
  • Why: Museum
  • Cost: Train Tour was free, but parking in downtown Houston cost $9, plus the $2 spent on vending machine chips and $2 spent on vending machine sodas

Monday, August 10, 2009

McKinney Falls State Park

Austin, Texas - Texans are known for their Texas Pride. I am a native Texan, and I am just bursting with Texas Pride. The simple size of our great state offers a tremendous diversity in geographical formations. Traveling east to west through the middle of Texas you will start in lush green forests followed by rolling hills and ending in a dessert. Thankfully, many treasures are being preserved, maintained and rehabilitated by Texas State Parks and Wildlife. Visiting the Texas Parks and Wildlife website http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/ you will find all sorts of information including information about hundreds of state parks. This week we visited McKinney Falls State Park in Austin, Texas.

We are visiting family in the Austin area and were looking for something close and cheap. Woo Hoo, McKinney Falls State Park fit the bill perfectly. It is located in south Austin near the airport just a 10 minute drive down Hwy 71 and I-35 to Hwy 183 to McKinney Falls Drive. It was a cheap $5/adult to enter for a full day. Then we enjoyed exploring, fishing and just simple family fun.

The park has preserved the ruins of some of Thomas McKinney's homestead. Thomas McKinney was one of the first 300 settlers in Texas. The park has a visitor center full of interesting historical information. The park offers a number of trails and easy access to the "Upper Falls" where you can swim.

We spent all of our time at the Upper Falls in the swimming hole. We did very little hiking, but we did have a lot of fun watching fish and turtles and listening to birds and bugs. We swam and threw rocks, lots of rocks. The good and the bad of it....the good being a Friday, work day, we had the swimming hole almost completely to ourselves. The bad, Texas is experiencing some massive and serious drought conditions and poor McKinney Falls is suffering. What normaly is a spread of falls across a massive rock has dwindle down to one trickling fall. The rock is still really interesting and easy to view since it is not under water, but you can tell the area is suffering.

We had a great day and enjoyed this tranquil spot. Bonus being a State Park, there were bathrooms, picnic tables and trash cans readily accessible. We recommened McKinney Falls State Park.

Oh yeah, if you are a bike rider, I understand they have an extensive hike and bike trail which looks like at least part of it is paved. It looks like a great place for entire families to ride together.

Trip Stats:

Sunday, August 9, 2009

Tranquility Park and Hard Rock Cafe

Houston, Texas - We were downtown for an errand and since I had the kids, I decided to park in the theater district and do a little walking tour. We, again, rode the elevator in the JP Morgan Chase Tower to the 60th floor to the viewing deck. We really enjoyed the view of downtown and could see as far as the Astrodome, the Galleria, and the 290 corridor.

From the viewing deck, I could see city hall and the corners of Tranquility Park. It didn't look far so we went for it. That was a mistake. The official weather report says the high was only 96 degrees, but it felt much hotter. The heat just sucked all the life out of us. From the tower it was only 3 city blocks to the park, but those were some long, hot blocks. The park was a huge disappointment to the kids. They were too tired to run and there just wasn't anything for kids there. There were some trees and some shaded picnic tables. The tables were all occupied by some young adults playing rap music. The fountains were nice, but the metal bridge is a hugely bad idea in the heat of a Houston summer.

Two more blocks of walking, and we made it to the Hard Rock Cafe. On a Tuesday afternoon, there was no crowd. It is a nice little place with plenty of pictures and rock n' roll collectibles. The food was a little pricey, but not bad. We paid $35.00 for one salad, two kids meals, a glass of water and tip.

The 10 year old and I recuperated enough at the Cafe to walk a block and a half back to the car, but the 5 year old did not. At the Cafe the 5 year old just layed down in the booth and went to sleep. I had trouble getting him to eat or drink anything. The heat really hurt him. I mustered the strength to carry him back to car. He was limp and argued about eating and drinking the rest of the day. Thankfully, by morning he was back to his old self.

Trip Stats:

Saturday, August 8, 2009

Minute Maid Ballpark Tour

Houston, TX - Minute Maid Park, http://houston.astros.mlb.com/hou/ballpark/index.jsp , is home to the Houston Astros professional baseball team. As a native Houstonian living everyday in one of the biggest cities in the country, I don't go to tourist attractions often. I am busy living an everyday life, raising two boys and trying to make ends meet. Tourist attractions are usually over priced for everyday people.

As a volunteer for my son's Cub Scout Pack, I was in charge of obtaining tickets to an Astros game highlighting a Scout Parade. Since I had to go downtown to pay for the tickets, I decided it was time to do the tourist thing and take the Ballpark Tour. I shelled out $9 for one adult and $5 for each child age 3 - 14. The tour was worth the time, travel and money.

They offer public walk-up tours year round, Mon. - Sat., at 10 am, noon and 2 pm. We were there on a Tuesday to take the Noon Tour. Traditionally, they have 50 to 60 people on this walking tour, but on our day, we were the only ones. They didn't cancel. They didn't bump us to 2 pm. They gave us a private tour of the park. For me and my two boys, it was awesome.

Tamara, our tour guide, was a wealth of information about the ballpark, the Astros and baseball history. She even had a few tidbits of information about the history of the railroad. The ball field was added to Union Station which has a long history dating back to the 1800's. The Astros have made an effort to preserve some of the history and have reconstructed Union Station to its original glory.

The tour is a walking tour so be prepared. It took about an hour and 10 minutes, but it did not seem long. We saw the stadium from several points of view where Tamara stopped and gave us tidbits of interesting information. We stood in the upper deck, in box seats, in the VIP lounge, the broadcasters booth and then the best part for us, on the ball field, in the dug outs and in the pitching cages. The 10 year old loved it all. The 5 year old enjoyed the pigeons and running on the field. But don't touch the grass. It was a game day so the grass was off limits. Apparently you have to have a college degree to maintain that grass, and we just weren't qualified.

We recommend the Minute Maid Ballpark Tour.

Trip Stats:

  • Who: Mama, one 10 year old boys and one 5 year old boy
  • What: Minute Maid Park, http://houston.astros.mlb.com/hou/ballpark/index.jsp
  • When: Tuesday, Noon Tour
  • Where: Downtown Houston
  • Why: Indoor/Outdoor Education
  • Cost: $9.00 per adult and $5 per child age 3 - 14.
  • Parking: When it is not game day, you can park in the Diamond Lot for free (corner of Texas Avenue and Hamilton Street, connected to the ball park). The streets around the ballpark have meters so read the signs carefully. There are also a number of surface parking lots which can get pricey.
  • Notes: Purchase tickets in the Team Store in Union Station. There are restrooms in Union Station. There is no time for potty breaks on the tour. If the roof is open, the tour moves inside and outside so it will be hot in the summer months. There are no vending machines or snack shacks open for tours. I had a cooler in the car with snacks and drinks which worked out well to give the kids a snack before going in and a healthy drink when we came out.

Friday, August 7, 2009

Monkey Business (Inflatable Jump Place)

Houston, TX - Monkey Business, http://www.monkeybizness.com/ , is an extremely fun, slightly dangerous place to take your kids. Monkey Business is a place like Pump It Up, an inflatable party place. Monkey Business hosts open play times so anybody can come and have fun. This is a great alternative for rainy days.

Here is the fun part. They have two rooms but may only have one room open depending on number of participants. Both rooms are identical so no loss if only one room is open. Each room has a plain square jumper with some super sized boxing gloves that little ones can hardly even pick up much less box. They have another jumper with jump space and a small slide inside. They have a jumper with a climbing cone for your real monkeys. They have the super, tall slide and an obstacle course. Plenty of space to run around, jump and have fun.

Here is the slightly dangerous part. You have a lot of kids, all ages jumping. Kids are not always cautious or wait their turn, so accidents happen. One trip, my 10 year old twisted his ankle. Another trip he slid down the slide on his elbow and rubbed/burned off his skin. The wound was larger than a quarter and took several weeks to heal. My 5 year old has never been hurt, and he is the adventurous one.

I suspect because toddlers are usually early risers, the morning crowd usually has more little ones than older ones. Lunch time and later, you will see more and more big kids.

Tip: They allow you to bring in your own snacks and drinks. They do have a vending machine for drinks in the lobby. You can order pizza, but they call a local pizza parlour for delivery so plan to wait 45 minutes for food. No food or drink are allowed in the jump area, but they have benches and a "party" room where you can eat and drink.

We still enjoy this place just be aware of the natural hazards of kids and exuberant play. Don't forget your socks.

Trip Stats:

  • Who: Mama, two 10 year old boys and one 5 year old boy
  • What: Monkey Business, http://www.monkeybizness.com/
  • When: Wednesday, late morning
  • Where: Northwest Houston
  • Why: Indoor play
  • Cost: $5.00 per child age 1 to 18 before 11 am; $7.50 per child after 11 am; adults are free, parking is free

Thursday, August 6, 2009

Quintana Beach

Quintana Beach, TX - This was a nice surprise find. Living in Houston my entire life, I have always driven down to Galveston Island to enjoy the beach. However, after Hurricane Ike, the island just isn't the same. The beach is overrun with sea weed and the Strand is more bars than family fun.

Since we were making the trip to Lake Jackson to visit the Sea Center of Texas (see yesterday's post for more details), I did a little research around the area to see what else is there. I was happy to find Bryan Beach State Park (we did not find it) and Quintana Beach (jackpot). NOTE: websites of interest for this area are listed at the end of this post.

Quintana Beach is a 15 minute drive from the Sea Center of Texas. We didn't find the official County Park, but we did find a clean, park on the beach, stretch of sand and surf. We followed TX 288 from Lake Jackson until it dead ended into Hwy 36 and then you will find signs that will direct you through Freeport, over an intracoastal waterway on Fm 1495 and onto CR 723. We turned left and followed a long and straight road with high berms on either side. The first drive we came to said "no Beach Access," but the next one we found said "Welcome to Quintana Beach." Reviewing the Yahoo map, I think we turned too early. If we had gone until the road dead ended, we would have found the County Park. Even though we were not at the official park, we had a good time.

About the beach, this beach you drive directly onto the beach and pick a spot to park. There were no restrooms or other facilities, but they did have some trash cans. There were a number of birds, but the birds had no interest in us and did not bother us. The sand was perfect for building sand castles. The water was shallow for a long way out. One of the 10 year olds wanted to walk out until it reached waist deep on him. We made it to upper thigh high on him before we decided we were getting too far from shore and turned around. Being so shallow, the 5 year old loved it. There was a constant lapping of little waves which made splashing around a lot of fun.

Take a picnic lunch and plenty of other snacks and drinks. Once you cross the intracoastal bridge, there are no shops or restaurants.

We went on a Thursday afternoon and we were almost the only people there. To our left, about 100 feet away was another family, but to the right you could barely make out the shape of the next car, it was so far away. We could see what appeared to be a nice fishing pier, but we didn't check it out. Driving in sand with my minivan was not something I wanted to test. I did see one or two other cars drive down there, and they did not appear to have any troubles.

Anyway, a good trip, we had a lot of fun.

Websites of Interest:

Trip Stats:

  • Who: Mama, two 10 year old boys and one 5 year old boy
  • What: Quintana Beach, http://www.quintana-tx.org/#Brazoria%20County,%20Texas
  • When: Thursday, afternoon
  • Where: along the coast in Freeport, TX (15 minutes from Lake Jackson)
  • Why: Outdoor play
  • Cost: Free
  • Travel Times from Cy-Fair/Northwest Houston: 1 hour and 15 minutes to Lake Jackson another 15 minutes to Quintana Beach. We drove back during prime time Houston traffic (4 pm) and it took us 2 hours to get from Quintana Beach back to Cy-Fair. We did utilize the 290 HOV.

Tuesday, August 4, 2009

Sea Center of Texas

Lake Jackson, TX - The Sea Center of Texas, http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/spdest/visitorcenters/seacenter/ , is a cute aquarium that is worth the visit if you are in the area.

The Sea Center of Texas is quite a drive from Houston. But bundle it with a trip to Quintana beach (see tomorrow's post for more details) and you have a full, fun day's outing. From the northwest (Cy-Fair) area of town it took me an hour and 15 minutes to get there. It took me, two 10 year old boys and one 5 year old boy about 45 minutes to slowly walk through and see everything.

The Sea Center of Texas is FREE and offers a "touch" tank. The day we were there; they had a number of different types of crabs for the kids to pet. The kids loved it. Once done with the Touch Tank, turn around and find a table with crafts/coloring. Moving past the Touch Tank you come to a series of floor to ceiling tanks with a variety of fish including the ever popular shark. Continue viewing the tanks until you work your way back to the beginning. I think there were 5 tanks to view.

Outside they have a boardwalk where people can enjoy the sights and sounds of a fresh water wetland and a salt water wetland. It is a good length and has a couple of benches for resting. The Sea Center of Texas is also a fish hatchery. They offer tours of the hatchery, but bad for us, they did not offer any tours the day we went.

Hatchery tour or not, the Sea Center of Texas was a very nice stop.

Trip Stats:
  • Who: Mama, two 10 year old boys and one 5 year old boy
  • What: Sea Center of Texas, http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/spdest/visitorcenters/seacenter/
  • When: Thursday, late morning
  • Where: South of Houston near the coast in Lake Jackson (not Galveston)
  • Why: Outdoor play and education
  • Cost: Free Admission and Free Parking
  • Optional Cost: Donations are welcome and if you donate $5 or more, the gift shop will give you a poster.

Monday, August 3, 2009

Downtown Houston

Houston, TX - Finding things to do with the kids that won't break the bank is a little tricky. We have been to the swimming pool a lot, and it is too hot for the local park. What to do? We live in the suburbs so a trip downtown sounds like the thing to do. Since you will have to pay for parking and most likely lunch, here are a few things to consider that are free.....

JP Morgan Chase Tower - This building has a view deck on the 60th floor. Just take the express elevator up and enjoy a view that reaches from downtown past the Galleria. Only the windows directly outside the elevators are available to the general public, but it is an outstanding view. The glass goes from floor to ceiling so even the little ones can enjoy this spectacle.

Discovery Green Park - In an earlier post I discussed this park. Good things: sidewalk dancing fountains the kids can get totally soaked in and bathrooms. It has nice walkways and beautiful gardens as well as space for shuffle board, bocce and a small putting green.

Parks - Now remember this is downtown so playgrounds and bathrooms are not available at most parks. These parks are intended to offer some peace among the hustle and bustle of downtown. They usually have some kind of interesting sculpture, shaded seating and nice landscaping. The best reviews I have found are at a website called Downtown Houston at http://www.houstondowntown.com/Home/Lifestyle/WhatToDo/Parks/

Recommendation - Be prepared to walk a lot.

  1. We parked at the public parking garage at Walker and Main Street.
  2. We walked one block to the Main Street Square. My 5 year old enjoy watching the trains drive by. The fountains were fun to look at too, but these fountains are just for viewing and not for playing in. The down side is there are a number of beggars and street musicians trying to get a dollar or borrow your cell phone. We walked around the square and then headed over to the JP Morgan Chase Tower. Walk Main Street up to Capitol Street and turn left and go one block.
  3. There is a Burger King across the street from the tower so we had a quick lunch and then went up the JP Morgan Chase Tower for a view from the 60th Floor. We didn't continue our walk simply because I didn't realize how close we were, but if I had thought it through we would have continued our walk to Tranquility Park. Continue walking down Capital to Smith Street and take a left about one block.
  4. Tranquility Park has water pillars and interesting walk ways. Can't play in this water either but nice to look at. Continue walking down Smith Street and you will come to Herman Square.
  5. Herman Square is right in front of City Hall and is just a nice reflection pool with shaded benches. You are now at Walker Street and just four blocks from the Parking Garage.
  6. Downtown Tunnels - if the heat is getting to you, explore the tunnels. You can go one block from Herman Square and get to the tunnels from the Wells Fargo Plaza. The tunnels will wiggle over to the parking garage at Walker and Main. There is a good map of downtown and the tunnels at Houston Downtown.com, http://www.houstondowntown.com/Home/GeneralInfo/GettingAround/Maps/

By now the kids should be wiped out from walking. Definitely leave the downtown area by 3:30 pm to make sure you are ahead of traffic. Bonus for us suburbanites though, kids count when driving on the HOV (High Occupancy Vehicles). The HOV opens outbound at 2:00 pm for vehicles carrying 2+ passengers. Go to METRO to get schedules and maps at http://www.ridemetro.org/SchedulesMaps/HOV.aspx .

Trip Stats

  • Who: Mama and one 5 year old boy
  • What: Downtown Houston, http://houstondowntown.com/home/default.asp
  • When: Wednesday, lunch time
  • Where: Downtown Houston
  • Why: Outdoor play
  • Cost: Free walking tour, lunch was about $11 at Burger King and then parking.....
  • Parking is not free: We paid $6 for a little over one hour. The price goes up the longer you are there. I didn't catch the maximum, but it is not unusual to pay $10 to park in downtown Houston ($20 for special events). There is parking on the street, but look for the meter boxes. It is hard to find and not free either.

Sunday, August 2, 2009

Discovery Green Park

Houston, Texas - Houston is hot. They talk about times being "Africa" hot, but boy howdy, have they tried "Texas" hot? Not just any "Texas" hot, but "Houston" hot? That is hot. In June and July so far we have had 9 days of 100+ heat. Not a big enough number for ya'? How about more than 40 days of 95+ heat.

So what do we do to cool off? In the good old days, we played in the sprinkler. Today the modern kids play at splash pads and dancing, sidewalk, water fountains. Discovery Green Park, http://www.discoverygreen.com/ , in downtown Houston across from the George R Brown Convention Center has a sidewalk, dancing fountain that the kids can get totally soaked in. Thankfully, there are bathrooms adjacent to the fountains so changing in and out of swimsuits and/or wet clothes is not an issue as long as you have brought spare dry clothes.

Lucky for Mom, there were plenty of seats around the fountains and the fountains are recessed a bit into the ground making a natural bench around the fountains (you will get wet if you sit on the edges).

There were at least 2 day cares when we where there, and it was crowded. My 5 year old was not slowed down a bit by the numerous bodies. And surprisingly, when all the noisy critters left, my little critter wanted to leave too. I guess the noise and busy-ness added a sense of excitement.

Discovery Green Park is more than just a fun fountain to get wet in. It does have restrooms and a couple of restaurants (didn't go to the restaurants so not sure what the prices are like). It has nice walkways and beautiful gardens. If you bring your own equipment, you can enjoy a game of shuffle board or bocce or even some putting practice on a small putting green.

The park does have a playground, but most of it is fenced off. The playground is disappointing. It is just a bridge with a couple of short slides. Skip the playground and just enjoy the refreshing water fountain.

Trip Stats
  • Who: Mama and one 5 year old boy
  • What: Discovery Green, http://www.discoverygreen.com/
  • When: Wednesday, late morning
  • Where: downtown by the convention center
  • Why: Outdoor play
  • Cost: Free
  • Parking is not free: We parked in the Convention Center underground parking and paid $5 for one hour. The price goes up the longer you are there. I didn't catch the maximum, but it is not unusual to pay $10 to park in downtown Houston ($20 for special events). There is parking on the street, but look for the meter boxes. It is hard to find and not free either.

Saturday, August 1, 2009

Kids Movies, G-Force

G-Force, http://disney.go.com/disneypictures/gforce/ , is a kids movie. I have heard a couple of official Movie Critics "boo" this movie. I disagree. I am guessing these critics don't remember being a kid and certainly don't have kids. So here's just my two cents....

I took four 10 year old boys and one 5 year old boy, and they loved it. To them, it was a simple story with some really cute characters, funny lines and cool action sequences. The transformer at the end was a good touch. The favorite line in the movie that, of course, my 5 year old learned, "Get your face out of my butt. (other character) Get your butt out of my face." Yes, I am a proud Mom.

From an adults view the story was predictable, the characters shallow, the humor was cheesy and the action sequences were just not plausible. Now, did I go to a kids movie expecting an epic tale of courage, of good triumphing over evil, of a personal journey of discovery to find what family truly means? No. These are all loosely touched on in the movie and slipped right over the heads of my kids. Did I go to a kids movie about guinea pigs expecting a realistic story with plausible action and engaging dialogue? No. Get real people.

What I am not sure of how I feel is what the kids talked about on the ride home. The kids spent the entire trip quoting the commercials and debating whether or not they saw it in the movie. I am sad my kids have watched the commercials enough to have them memorized, and not sure if it is misleading of Disney to promote scenes that are not going to make it to the final cut. Anyway, just be aware that not everything that was promoted in the trailers is in the movie.

Overall, it was a good movie with some really cute guinea pigs. To answer my oldest son's favorite questions: 1) Blaster was my favorite character, and 2) my oldest son is most like Hurley, incredibly cute, love for sweets, heart of gold and tremendous inner strength when it really counts.