We spent the last few days in Houston, Texas. It was at the limit of our daily drive-time from our last stop at Gator Grounds and the home of a few of my old childhood friends. We figured it was a good place to spend a few days. We didn’t have any plans other than seeing one of my best friends and groomsmen, Nick, on Sunday night.
We spent Friday mostly in and around the campground. Adelaide loved the playground and we even snuck in games of mini golf, shuffleboard, and pickleball.
On Saturday, we found a place called 7 Acre Wood that had a petting zoo and backyard-type playgrounds and activities just down the road. At $6.00 for the whole family, it was a great value. The animals included baby goats, big goats, sheep, deer, donkeys, llamas, and a long-horned cow. The place felt like a friends big back yard in terms of the landscaping and types of things to play on. That means, it didn’t have paved paths, beautiful landscaping, or anything fancy. Just a clean, safe place to play in a low-key environment.
On Sunday, we decided to meet up with Nick downtown Houston. We spent the day at a big park in the Museum District called Hermann Park. It was amazing! There was something for everybody at the expansive park. Water features, beautiful flowers and trees, walking paths, and of course a playground. After a day at the park, we trekked over to Waugh Bridge to see Houston’s bat population fly out for the nightly hunt. Nick even joined us for it! He’s lived in Houston for something like 6 years and hadn’t seen it. Austin is famous for their nightly bats flying, but Houston has some too. It wasn’t quite as neat as we’d hoped and expected, but definitely worth the stop and a checked box on the list of things to see. Nick’s girlfriend joined us for dinner afterwards. They’re a lovely couple and we hope to see them again soon.
On Monday, we ventured over to the Woodlands Mall. We see malls as a fun place to walk around, window shop, and get a very toned-down glimpse into an area. That evening, we met up with another old childhood friend, John, and his fiance. It was great to see John. He and I were physics lab partners, calculus slackers, and trouble makers as kids. He and his fiance have been in Houston for something like four years and are doing very well for themselves. We had a great dinner and hope to see them again soon too!
Houston was pretty fun, but we want warmer weather and beaches so we’re headed south next.