Dallas Spring Break

By complete accident we seemed to be on a tour of southeast Texas having visited Houston, Galveston, San Antonio, and Corpus Christi all within a few short months.  We decided to keep the tour going by spending Spring Break in Dallas.  Other than flying through, we've never really spent much time there.  We stayed a few days at the Four Seasons Dallas at Las Colinas.  It was far enough to feel like we were getting away and close enough to make the trip easy and convenient.  The resort grounds were beautiful and it felt like a refuge in the middle of the city.  Things started off well and Brenna was excited when a tray of cookies for her picking emerged from the front desk while we were checking in. We were pleasantly surprised upon arrival to discover that despite the fact that pool was not scheduled to open until April, the hotel chose to open it for the day for their guests to enjoy the unexpected warm weather. So, we ditched our plans for the first evening and spent the afternoon enjoying a swim in the pool and then relaxing in the hot tub.

The housekeeping staff made Brenna feel like a princess. They put her name in stickers across the shower door and gave her a special kit of bubble bath, shampoo, and conditioner. The next day we came back to the room to discover they had made her bed with princess bedding and left her a fun stuffy. 

Brenna and I had a great time completing the resort scavenger hunt. It wasn't as easy as I had expected.  Some hints were tough to decipher, but at every turn we were met with friendly staff faces and knowledgeable advice to help us along the way.  Jacob and Brenna enjoyed the sports club and spent an afternoon playing a few sets at the indoor tennis courts. 

One day we ventured out for some shopping and fun at Grapevine Mills.  We conquered two escape rooms and spent some time in the arcade.  The next day we braved the spring break masses and visited the Dallas World Aquarium and Zoo.

San Antonio Thanksgiving

We decided to take a little trip during our Thanksgiving break.  We knew our time in Texas would be drawing to a close very soon and we hadn't had the opportunity to get over to San Antonio yet.  We visited there when Brenna was just a baby and she doesn't remember it now.  So we packed up and headed to the JW Marriott San Antonio Hill Country Resort for a few days of taking in the tourist sights.  The resort was all decorated and ready for Christmas.  The front entrance had large ornaments hanging from the pavilion, the lobby was decked with Christmas trees, and the back outdoor patio was covered in the Christmas light displayed called Light Up the Night.

Moody Gardens Galveston Day Trip

One pretty clear day in October we headed down to Galveston to spend the day at Moody Gardens.  We got there early and enjoyed a leisurely walk along the patio to take in the views of the bay and the Colonel paddlewheel boat.  We headed to the Rainforest Pyramid first to catch all the animals stirring during the morning hours.  The rainforest was Brenna's favorite because all the animals are out in the open with you.  We had fun with some very friendly ducks and birds that didn't mind if you got close.  Next we headed to the Aquarium Pyramid to watch the penguins and seals and pet the stingrays.  Finally, we quickly walked through the Discovery Pyramid.  Even though the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle exhibit wasn't our favorite, Brenna enjoyed seeing all the different types of real live turtles that were part of it.  We were able to catch the Backyard Wilderness in the 3D IMAX which was interesting and we experienced an earthquake through the 4D FX theater production of San Andreas.  We had a great day!

Corpus Christi Tag Along

Over the last year, Jacob has traveled often.  There's been several international trips, but much more often it's been quick trips back and forth to Corpus Christi, usually weekly.  Sometimes, he'd fly down for a day or two; sometimes there and back in the same day.  Once Brenna got out of school for the summer, we tagged along for one of his business trips.  As an indicator of how often he travels there, when we pulled up at the hotel, the valet knew him by name.  

Brenna and I slept in each morning, while Jacob went to meetings.  We hit the breakfast buffet in the hotel restaurant and then spent our days at the pool.  Surprisingly and despite it being summer, we had it mostly to ourselves.  I guess Corpus isn't really known for it's tourism!  One evening we had dinner on the top floor of the hotel at The Republic of Texas and took in the view of the bay from the observation deck.  On our final afternoon, we visited the Texas State Aquarium and got a look at the USS Lexington.  It was a fun and easy getaway, even if Jacob had to work alittle!

Maui Vacation

Hawaii has been on our bucket list since we got married.  After years of "not right now", things seemed to fall into place and we finally decided it was time.  We were back in the USA, which made the trip a little shorter.  Brenna was old enough to appreciate the trip and remember it, and Jacob had racked up lots of air miles thanks to all his international travel with the new job.  So, I jumped into action and started planning.  It was fun, since it was something completely new and different that I'd never tackled before.  After raking through which island to visit, which region of the island to stay on, and what resorts we liked, we settled on Maui!  It turned out to be an adventure of a lifetime!

We started our trip with an easy 3.5 hour mid-morning flight out of Houston to Los Angeles.  It was my first time in California and the views of the mountains were really lovely as we made our approach.  We had a quick 1.5 hour layover in Los Angeles, which gave us just enough time to grab a bite to eat and restock our snack supply for the next flight.  Then it was off to Maui!  

Coming into Los Angeles

Smoky Mountain Thanksgiving

This was our first Thanksgiving in four years that we actually had as a holiday where both Brenna was out of school and Jacob was off work.  With just a few weeks before Thanksgiving, we decided to join Jacob's brother and his family for a holiday trip to The Great Smoky Mountains.  Dolly Parton was our host as we stayed at her DreamMore Resort for the week.  The resort was beautiful and we enjoyed the cool fall colors and weather.  

McAlister Disney Vacation 2017

After three years in Canada, we've learned that it helps everyones perspective on life to take a little break in the winter, find some warmer weather, and leave the dreary cold behind.  So, way back in January we got away for a Disney World vacation.  The weather was perfect, the crowds were low, and we had a wonderful time.

We surprised Brenna with a limo ride from the airport to Disney World!

Canada Day in Detroit

Just as American's celebrate Independence Day on the July 4th, Canadian's show their nation's pride on Canada Day on July 1st.  This year we mixed up our celebrations and spent Canada Day in the States with a fun day trip to Detroit and we celebrated Independence Day in Canada with a trip to Niagara Falls (post to coming up).

For Canada Day we decided to drive into Detroit to explore Great Lakes Crossing.  It's a large indoor outlet mall and entertainment complex.  Lots of friends had raved about what a great day trip it was. This was another item on my hit list of places I wanted to visit while we're here, and it seemed like Canada Day would offer a great chance to do it since Jacob had the day off and Brenna just got of school the day before.  We left first thing in the morning and made a short detour to Oakland University for a special treat.  We got to enjoy the only Chick-fil-A that Detroit has to offer that doesn't require a security pass (the only other one is in the McNamara terminal of the Detroit Airport).  We walked around the Student Union a little bit while we waited for the food court to open.  Brenna enjoyed the Saints and Sinners Fountain.

Crystal Mountain Michigan Spring Break

We're trying to make the most out of our time up north.  We've slowing been moving through a hit-list of places that we wanted to enjoy while we were here.  These are the type of places that we might not have visited otherwise.  One big item on our list was to experience skiing.  Neither Jacob nor I have ever tried it, and considering how well Brenna has embraced the winter climate, we made it a priority for this year.

I found a great resort in north Michigan called Crystal Mountain that seemed to have everything we were looking for.  In January, I made all the arrangements for a Spring Break Ski Vacation.  It had been a mild winter, but the resort assured me there would be skiing until April.  I planned it just like I plan all our other trips; with great attention to detail.  I made reservations for snowmobiling, snow-shoeing, and ski lessons.  We also planned for spa appointments, the adventure course, and a hiking trip to the Michigan Legacy Art Park.  As the date approached, we weren't "warming-up" but we were hitting temperatures above freezing.  I was concerned that we may not see any snow on this ski vacation.  As it turns out, we did have snow.  Granted it was more man-made than natural, but it provided the slopes we needed to try our first ski adventure.  Unfortunately, because of the above-freezing temperatures, most of the other trails on the mountain were snow-free and eliminated our opportunity to try snowmobiling and snow-shoeing.  At first I was a bit disappointed, but after our first couple of days at Crystal Mountain I realized it was a better fit us.  We got the best of both worlds.  We could enjoy the all the outdoor activities with mild temperatures and still take in the winter-type skiing.  It did rain 2 out of our 5 days there, but there were plenty of activities to keep us busy and we enjoyed some down time in the cabin with board games and family movies.

We drove roughly 4 hours all the way across Michigan with the cats.  We reserved a 2-bedroom, 2-bath, pet-friendly cabin so they could join us on this vacation.  The cabin was just what you would expect from a cozy ski cabin.  It was settled on the outer edge of the mountain and backed up to a small pond.  The living area had a large window that looked out over the pond and the Canadian geese kept Pickles entertained during his stay.  He spent most of his time perched on top of the kitchen counter for the best view of the backyard.  Moose preferred the solitude of the master bedroom which had a very large sky window that gave him views of the tall maple trees outside.

Henry Ford Museum

While my Mom and Dad where here in May we decided to visit the Henry Ford Museum in Detroit.  We had heard from both Canadians and Americans that it was great day trip.  Jacob was in Arizona on a work trip, so it was just me, Brenna, Mom and Dad.  Originally I thought it would be a short excursion and then maybe we would do some shopping after, because how long could you really spend in a car museum.  But, based on the suggestions of friends we planned for the whole day and I'm glad that we did.  

We visited both the Henry Ford Museum as well as Greenfield Village.  The Henry Ford Museum building itself covers 8 acres with 40 foot ceilings.  It documents the genius of ordinary american people by recognizing and preserving the objects they used in the course of their everyday lives.  We saw the cot that George Washington sleep on during the war, the chair that Abraham Lincoln was assassinated in, the Presidential Limousine that JFK was assassinated in, and the Goldenrod which is the fastest car in the world.  We sat in the bus that Rosa Parks rode when she refused to give up her seat to a white gentlemen in Montgomery, Alabama.  I enjoyed reading the life timeline of George Washington and its very honest documentation of his character (not as heroic and upstanding as you may think) and his rise to power as our first president.  I also enjoyed reading life timeline of Abraham Lincoln (whose character was documented just as we've idolized him to be as Honest Ab) and the struggles he faced during the civil war with views from both the north and south sides.  Of course, along with the historical aspects of our country, there were lots of planes, trains, and cars.  

Brenna loved moving from exhibit to exhibit and even though some of this was out of her current scope of interest, the museum did an excellent job of having  kid-friendly stations that kept her entertained.  There was a paper air plane making station with a runway set up to see exactly how far you could fly your plane.  There was a hug toy train exhibit complete with streaming video from a tiny camera attached to the top of the locomotive, so you could see yourself on the big TV screen as the train made the curve coming out of the tunnel.  Finally, there was a mini-garage where Brenna learned to change a tire and replace an oil filter.  

After we finished up at Henry Ford we moved on to Greenfield Village, which is an 80 acre outdoor replication of America's colonial times.  Some building were authentic and had been removed from the previous location and resettled at Greenfield Village.  Building like Noah Webster’s home, where he wrote the first American dictionary, Thomas Edison’s laboratory where he invented the light bulb, the courthouse where Abraham Lincoln practiced law, and the bicycle shop that belonged to the Wright Brothers were just some.  We got to ride in a Ford Model-T to tour some of the grounds.  Afterward, Brenna and Mawmaw enjoyed the amazing kids playground, while Pawpaw and I toured Edison's lab.  The lab had all original equipment and materials.  After the building had been relocated to Greenfield Village, Henry Ford invited Edison to recreate his original experiment to create the lightbulb.  At the time, Edison was in his 80's so Ford had a chair provided for him at the experiment table so that he could sit rather than stand.  After the experiment was complete, Ford had the chair nailed to the floor.  Edison was the last person to sit in it and its never been moved.

Next, we made our way through the railroad junction and roundhouse, the craftworks where we watched them blow glass, and the farm lands where we saw horses plowing the fields.  Finally, after more than 6 hours, we headed home and still had not seen all there was to see.  They also offered a factory tour where you could visit the Ford assembly plant and watch the new F-150s being built, but that would have to be saved for another day.

So, it was a great visit and I'm glad we got to experience it.  I highly recommend making the time for it if you're ever in the Detroit Area.

Brenna exploring the halls, playing house, and the human hot dog!

The Detroit Zoo

We loved the Houston Zoo and visited it many times over our stay in Houston.  It always guaranteed a fun time and was a favorite spring and fall outing with friends.  Last week we were excited to take a day to visit the Detroit Zoo.  We looked forward to a new adventure and exploring the park.  It was a beautiful day and we spent the better part of it enjoying all the exhibits.  The Detriot Zoo was not as large as Houston, but it was just the right size to get out and enjoy a few hours of outdoor fun.  We also visited their education center where we watched the 4-D Rio experience and also the Journey to the Center of the Earth simulator.  The simulator was a first for Brenna.  The main event was a heated chased onboard a giant bumble bee.  She was a little scared and hid underneath her jacket for the first few moments before her curiosity got the better of her and she joined in the chase.  It was a great day and only made me appreciate more the wonderful weather here for this season.  Here's some pictures from our day.

Blessington Farms

The day after Christmas we made a trip to Blessington Farms for some Christmas strawberries.  We visited Blessington in the Spring, but we were never able to pick strawberries because they were all picked out!  This time we got there right as it opened and were some of the first in the field.  The weather was beautiful and the temperature was just right.  The strawberries are amazingly sweet!

Kemah Boardwalk

A few weekends ago, Jacob surprised me and Brenna with a fun day trip to Kemah.  It's been years since I've been to Kemah and Brenna had never been.  The weather was beautiful, the temperature was just right, and our little family had a fantastic day.  We got there right when it opened and started off the morning at the carnival rides.  The crowds hadn't showed up, so we practically had the entire place to ourselves at least for a little while.

Gorgeous Day!

Blessington Farms

A couple of weeks back, we had a rare free Saturday.  It was beautiful Spring weather so we decided to make a trip to the new Blessington Farms and pick strawberries.  Unfortunately, they were all out of strawberries!  The berries are grouped in pods off the ground and the farm only has a small area of pods compared to the acres of strawberry patches the Froberg's farm has.  I personally prefer the traditional patches at Froberg's, but Blessington had alot to offer in the way of other activities.

The McAlister's Take Disney - Part 1

Oh my!  Where to begin?  This was a vacation like no other!  We got together with Jacob's twin brother and his family for a McAlister Family Vacation.  Brenna enjoyed all Disney World had to offer with her two cousins Ella and Leah.  The kids had a fantastic time!

Planning was fun and alittle frantic.  There's alot that goes into a Disney Vacation; hotel, tickets, flights, dining reservations, tours, and just managing what to fit into your time there and what to leave for next time.  As part of our vacation celebration, I put together goody bags for the girls.  They were filled with fun stuff that I thought might come in handy while we were at the parks.  Mickey Mouse ear hats, light sticks, flash lights, portable fans, princess jewelry, water bottles, bubble necklaces, princess chap stick, princess bath wash, activity books, and finally I made personalized autograph books so the girls could collect the signatures of their favorite characters.

The McAlister's Take Disney - Part 2

Day 2 Continued:  We stayed at the Disney Contemporary Resort in Magic Kingdom.  The monorail runs right through the lobby, which made things very convenient.  The hotel was beautifully designed, with A-frame supports that allowed for wide open space throughout.  Here's a few shots around the hotel.

This was the view from our balcony

The McAlister's Take Disney - Part 3

Day 3 Continued:  After breakfast at Chef Mickey's and a quick bus ride, we walked through the gates of Animal Kingdom and headed straight to Africa for an African Safari.

The McAlister's Take Disney - Part 4

Day 4: We visited Dinsey's Hollywood Studios. We got there shortly after the park opened and got lucky enough to walk straight in to Disney Junior Live! Disney Junior characters are some of Brenna's very favorite. Mickey Mouse Clubhouse is the only reason she got interested in Disney World to begin with. The puppet stage show included 4 her of favorite tv series; Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Handy Manny, Little Einsteins, and Jake and the Neverland Pirates.

The McAlister's Take Disney - Part 5

Day 5:  We're Magic Kingdom bound to finish up where we left off.  They had Extra Magic Hours, so we were able to hit a few rides before our breakfast at Crystal Palace.  The kids had been dying to drive the cars, so off to the Speedway we go. After they got their adrenaline rush we headed off for breakfast with Winnie the Pooh and the 100-Acre Wood crew.

Houston Space Center

My parents came down for Brenna's birthday party, and after 10 years of living in Texas, we finally went to the Houston Space Center.  I knew going into it that this little excursion would be more for the "Big Kids" than for Brenna, but I knew there would be some fun stuff for her too.  Anytime Mawmaw and Pawpaw are around its a party for Brenna no matter where we are.  The Space Center takes a long time to cover everything.  We left after 6 hours and I still didn't get to see or do everything that I wanted.  I think the return trip will have to be when Brenna is alittle older and can get more out of it.

We more-or-less stuck with the educational side and toured the grounds, astronaut training facilities, Mission Control, and the museums.  It amazing to try and wrap your mind around what humans are capable of creating.  The idea that a group of people would have enough faith in the brain power of a handful of engineers and rocket scientists to strap themselves onto a piece of metal that contains thousands of gallons of rocket fuel that will propel them into the unknown at 125,000 mph is just crazy.  They do have a beautiful memorial on site to the astronauts that have given their lives in the pursuit of space travel.  I'll never forget watching the news coverage of the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster in 2003.  One other thing I noted was that there was no mention of the recent funding cuts effected by our current President or that because of those cuts the next trip an American will make into space will be on the high ticket price of independent business or by hitching a ride with Russians.