THE ADVENTURES OF NICO AND NATALEE: Family Vacation in San Antonio

A big thank you to the US government for a family vacation last week in San Antonio. Ed had to be in the historic and fun filled city of San Antonio (one of my favorite cities) for the Annual Food Show, so the kids, Gigi and I all tagged along. We met up with Gigi on Monday at the hotel, which by the way was quite a blessing in itself! The hotel, Homewood Suites, was right on the Riverwalk and had two bedrooms, two full baths, a living room and a kitchenette. It was practically an apartment and we blessed with getting a much cheaper rate than they typically charge for the room(s). With so many of us and there being so much luggage and "stuff," this situation worked out great and we were not too squished.

Anyway, we met up with Gigi on Monday afternoon at the hotel and then immediately hit the street, and walked on over to the Alamo. Believe it or not (it was hard for me to since I have been in TX my whole life) Ed had never seen the Alamo! We took ourselves on a little tour around the grounds, visited the gift shop of course to get Natalee her own Davy Crockett hat (Nico got one when he was just 2 months old) and snapped a few pictures. Being that we were conveniently staying on the Riverwalk, we had almost all of our meals right in the middle of all the hub-bub. Monday night we ate at The Lone Star Cafe, which was good, but Ed and I had the realization then that there was not much hope for sticking to our diets that week. I think one of my favorite parts of breaking my diet was having a glass of wine each night with Ed. After the kids went to bed, Ed and I headed out to the very chic restaurant and lounge, Zocca, within the Westin Hotel, which was immediately next door to our hotel on the Riverwalk. We would sit outside, watching the tour boats do their last rounds, and enjoy our adult time (Thank you Gigi for watching the kids!).

Tuesday, after Ed and I had a nice run together down the Riverwalk, we got the kids and Gigi and walked around downtown San Antonio, making a pit stop for Ed to register for his Food Show and conference. Then as we were making our way to the River Center Mall, we stopped in a couple of stores, one of which had the Old Time Pictures. It was so fun doing this and Nico looked adorable as a tiny cowboy! (I will have to post the Old Time Picture later once we get home and I have a scanner). The River Center Mall was right around the corner and inside there was an exhibit called the Dinosaur Quest, which had eighteen life-size dinosaur skeletons. After a little lunch at La Paloma, we jump on the Rio Tour Boat Cruise. It was pretty hot by this time of the day and we were all tired, so back to the hotel for a little rest was next on the schedule! That evening Ed had a banquet to attend, so the kids, Gigi and I went to dinner alone....we planned for some yummy Mexican food, so as to not torture Ed. After a bit more shopping in the stores around the Alamo, we found ourselves at Rio Rio Cantina, where I finally had the enchiladas I had been waiting for for months! That night the Riverwalk seemed very crowded and it could have been that President Obama had been in town giving a speech that same day, so we we lucky to find somewhere to eat without having to wait.

On Wednesday, while Ed went to the Food Show, Gigi and I took to the kids to the Natural Bridge Wildlife Ranch and Safari. This is where we drove through the safari to see and feed the hundreds of animals located on the grounds. The goats, ostriches, and alpacas were a little more friendly and ate out of my hand. The zebras, deer, bulls, and buffalo were not scared of the cars, but preferred the food just being thrown to them. Other animals such as rhinos, giraffes, and camels were behind fences at the time. Natalee seemed to thoroughly enjoy seeing the animals up close and was just smiling away. Nico was a bit apprehensive of the animals being so close to the car and he did not want to try feeding them out of his hand; however he did throw food towards them out the window. Before heading back to the hotel for some rest we hit the Riverwalk once again for a delicious lunch. This time we ventured into Casa Rio, which was established in 1946 and was the first restaurant on the Riverwalk in San Antonio.

Wednesday night was fabulous! Gigi stayed with the kids at the hotel while Ed and I met up with ta friend of his, Dick who is the President of the Hennesey Association. Dick took us to the amazing little place for dinner and drinks. The Rhein Steakhouse was founded 1967 and has quite a history. My meal was one of the finest I have had that I can remember. The food was amazing...and I learned what a Mud Ball is! Oh my gosh, it is heavenly: Scoop of Vanilla Ice Cream rolled in Oreo Cookie Crumb, topped with Hershey’s Syrup and Whipped Cream!

Thursday was our last full day in San Antonio. We lazed around the hotel for a longer than we had on the other mornings. After Gigi and I finally got the kids and ourselves out of the room, we walked over to the La Villita Historic Arts Village, did some window shopping and had a nice lunch at La Villita Cafe. After our tummys were full we drove over the Kiddie Park, America's oldest children's amusement park, as it first open in 1925 and features rides from that era. It was extremely hot that day so between the heat and Nico being tired, which led to him making some bad choices, we did not stay for too long. After returning back to the hotel, sadly, Gigi had to leave to head back to Houston. We said our goodbyes and that evening Ed, the kids and I spent our last night in San Antonio together having a fabulous dinner at Budros, A Texas Bistro. The food was to die for...the wine was fabulous and the service was great. It was a perfect ending to such a wonderful week.

Friday morning we took our time packing up the hotel room, getting our last runs on the Riverwalk in, and having lunch before starting the long drive down to the Rio Grande Valley for a week long visit with Pops and Ninny.

The Riverwalk at night where our hotel was located.

Picture of Zocca, the lounge and restaurant within the Westin that Ed and I went to each night for a little wine time.

Walking to the Alamo and taking notice of the historic monuments.

At the Alamo and posing with one of the cannons.

Proud Texans.

I love that I was able to share a piece of Texas history with my family. Especially since we may be taking our family vacations on the east coast in the near future.

Gigi and her precious grand-daughter. I love that Natalee recognizes her and just smiles and smiles when she sees her.

The happiest baby. She is such a trooper.

Trying on funny hats! Hat #1

Hat #2

Hat #3

Daddy decided to jump on in the game!

Dinosaur Quest exhibit

Precious....the love they have for each other is beyond sweet.

Riverwalk boat tour

Humm....what should I order? Tacos or enchiladas?

We are having dinner at Rio Rio Tuesday night.

About to start our Safari drive.

This big guy was blocking the road.

Checking out the deer and the goats.

The goats were hungry and not afraid to eat out of my hand.

The ostriches were hilarious! They follow the car, starred right at me and ate directly our of my hand. I think this guy would have gotten in the car if we would have let him.

The Alpacas were adorable and so sweet. What gentle animals they are and they just came right up to eat from us.

Goof ball! Someone got tired and went to the back seat.

Natalee was more than fascinated with the animals.

We were trying to leave the Safari here, but this guy was taking up the road!

Instead of being pushed, Nico wanted to push his friends down the Riverwalk.

Lunch on our last day at La Villita Cafe in the La Villita Historic Art Village.

At the historic Kiddie Park.

Riding all the old school kiddie rides

Trying the cool down...it was a hot day!

We had such a fabulous dinner on the last night in SA. Here is just one of the appetizers we had....salmon bruschetta! I think was the best meal I have had in a very long time.

Dick and Ed after dinner at the Little Rhein Steakhouse. Sorry for the poor picture quality...it was taken via phone and the lighting made it difficult.