This weekend while mommy was out of town, I took the kids to San Antonio to visit their Godfather, Chad.  Because of my crazy schedule we had to plan this well in advance but it was well worth the trip.  It was also the first road trip by myself with the kids. 

Friday afternoon we got in the car and headed out of town.  Just leaving Houston can be a challenge but eventually we got to cruising speed and kicked on the DVD player.

The kids did great until their movie was over.  On the way to San Antonio the Buc-ees franchise has a sign about every 3 miles.  Personally, I think the signs look awful but the kids wanted to go there because their uncle Stephen has a shirt with the beaver.  So we stopped in, went to the bathroom, purchased a pulled pork sandwich (it was awful) and grabbed a couple of shirts.  Yep, you guessed it...mass marketing at its finest.

We arrived in San Antonio and got a good night's sleep before a big day at Sea World.  The kids were excited to see Chad and play with Nicole.

If you plan to go to Sea World this summer be sure and purchase your tickets online.  They are cheaper and you don't have to wait in line to get in.  It was a good start to a crowded day.  Our other cousin, Bryan, and his son, Noah, met us in San Antonio too.  Whitney and Noah were excited to see each other.  So life was good at the Dolphin Pool.

We caught (get it) the Shamu show where James and I sat in the "Splash Zone."  After the killer whales splashed everyone, James decided he wanted to move higher.  Luckily we didn't get too wet.  The show was cool but a little anti-climactic.  This was the best part (below).

Everyone was hungry, so we had the tradition $350.00 Turkey leg.  James and Chad were the best at chowing down.

After the food and shows we headed to the water park so the kids could play.  It was pretty nice because the pool was only 2 feet deep and we could see the kids anywhere.  We hung out in lawn chairs and watched the kids have fun. 

The kids played until they could play no more.  They voluntarily wanted to go home so we knew they had fun.

Before we left, I took Noah, James and Whitney into a candy store and told them they could get whatever they wanted but it could only be one thing.  Its funny watching them struggle with a decision when there is so much to choose from.  Noah and Whitney went with the cotton candy and James likes food on a stick.

We headed home and everyone fell sound asleep.  After a couple hours the house came alive again just in time for a little yard fishing and backyard play.  Chad has this little fishing rod that James played with all weekend. 

Whitney and Nicole got cleaned up and were ready to play in the play house.

Nicole would do everything she could to avoid the camera.  Finally I tricked her into looking at me and I grabbed a few quick smiles.  She is such a sweet little thing that we don't get to see very often. 

We took the beautiful lighting and cool weather as an opportunity for family portraits.  We really miss these guys and wish they still lived in Houston. 

 Nicole was a real stinker and would taunt me with sweet smiles right before I put the camera to my face.  So I just ran around her and took as many quick images as I could.  We call this a shotgun method.  150 images are taken but only a couple hit the target.

 Chad was very interested in modeling as a young man but decided modeling wasn't going to raise a family so he decided to get into real estate. As you can see here he probably made a wise choice.

To marry a Clark male takes a lot of energy and resistance to obnoxious behavior, stupid jokes and every day ballyhoo (I love that word).  Stacie has settled in nicely with the Clark crew.  I realized she has come full circle when she shot me the ever typical, "My Clark husband is an idiot and you better get that camera out of my face!"  look.

And Lastly I grabbed a few images of the sweet puppy, Suerte.  He is not real happy with me taking his photo.  I think we miss seeing him trample though my backyard the most. 

We had an awesome time and got home safely.  I survived a trip by myself with the kids and it was great to see the family.  Thanks guys for letting us hang with you and chill for a couple of days.