San Antonio Staycation

I don't even know where to begin. We had been looking forward to our trip to San Antonio for a couple months now, hyping the kids up to go to Sea World to see dolphins, penguins, sharks, etc. All packed and ready to go in the new Tahoe! The drive down was actually pretty good, making it in a little under 5 hours. The boys did great, entertaining themselves with movies, snacks, etc.We arrived at the Hyatt Wild Oak Ranch around 3pm on Sunday and got all checked in. I stopped by the concierge desk, bought our tickets for Sea World  and booked us a slot on the hotel shuttle there first thing in the morning. All set!

After getting settled into our room, we headed down to the lazy river at the resort. It was complete with a sandy beach that the boys LOVED!

 

 

 

 

And they had a pool bar where Mommy & Daddy could get a cool 'beverage' as well. After having some fun in the sun, we ordered dinner from the hotel restaurant and then ventured down to the fire pits to make s'mores! It was so relaxing and fun!

 

On the way back to our room from s'mores, the concierge came running out frantically, telling us that they just found out that Sea World changed their schedule and is CLOSED this week. W.T.F.?!?! I thought this was a joke. We ran back to the room and I grabbed my iPad to look it up. Depending on where you click on their website, it says they're open this week, and some say closed. This can't be happening! I have promised two little boys a trip to Sea World! I checked their website a hundred times in the past two months booking this trip, ensuring that they were open. This was the last full week they were to be open, before resulting to weekends-only. I had no idea what we were going to tell the boys.

Woke up early the next morning, went down to the concierge desk and confirmed yes, they were indeed closed until Friday. Ahhhhhhh! The whole point of this trip was to go to friggin' Sea World! I didn't know who to be mad at, the hotel, Sea World, myself?! Needless to say, I was feeling the mother's guilt of promising my boys something spectacular only to let them down. I guess it sorta didn't make me feel as bad since the hotel still thought they were open (selling tickets and booking people on the shuttle), as did other hotel guests. This was quickly turning into an expensive staycation......5 hours away from home. At this point, there was nothing we could do. We were already in San Antonio and just had to make the best of our trip.  After getting ahold of somebody in the Sea World HR department, I gave the lady a piece of my mind. I directed her to where on their website it STILL said they were open and she quickly refunded my $200 in tickets. The money wasn't the point, we wanted to see Shamu, dammit!

 

 

 

Luckily, we planned to stay at a resort with lots of activities, not just a run-of-the-mill hotel. We ventured down to the Riverwalk area and ate at the Rainforest Cafe. Austin loved it, while Chase wasn't too sure about the animals coming to life every fifteen minutes. They got to paint at the kids camp at the resort and got glitter tattoos.

 Most of the time, we just relaxed out on the beach and played around in the lazy river. It definitely wasn't what we expected from our trip, but we had to make the best of it. Jordan and I loved spending so much time with the boys and created some great memories. The boys loved building sandcastles and Austin even made some friends down in the water. One night, we even got to watch a movie outside under the stars on big screen. And we grilled out on one of the grills one evening for dinner. Austin kept saying that he loved camping. :)

 

 

The guilt ate me up and now we're planning another trip back down to San Antonio in about a month to spend a long weekend at Sea World. I hate to give them by business after they basically just screwed me over, but I have to give the boys what I promised! They asked a few times if we were going to Sea World, and I just told them they were closed and we would have to take another vacation really soon to come back. That (surprisingly) ended their inquisition and that was that.

 

 

On the way back home yesterday, we stopped off in New Braunfels and visited two of our favorite spots........ate lunch at the Gristmill and stopped in to Gruene Hall. Jordan and I have been here many times and it was great to bring the boys by (although, I don't think either one of them appreciated their greatness!).

 

 

Jordan said our trip reminded him of National Lampoon's Family Vacation, where Chevy Chase's family drives all the way to Wally World, only to arrive at an empty amusement park. Don't think that the thought of breaking into Sea World didn't cross our minds! :)

Summer Lovin'

Hey there! I've been kinda MIA lately. Work has been pretty busy and the boys keep me on my toes when I'm at home. I'm wayyyyy behind on blogging......

• Austin wrapped up his second season in t-ball
• Our family welcomed my new nephew Connor into the world 3 weeks ago
• We've been hanging out at the pool alot, getting the boys more comfortable with the water
• We have a family vacation in San Antonio next week, heading to Sea World for some fun!

Since I'm on PTO all next week, I'm hoping to get a chance to catch up on some blogging, so stay tuned!

 

In the meantime, this is what the boys have been up to!

 

Anniversary Post #6: If I've Learned Anything....

Wrapping up the Anniversary Week blogs with this one. :) After ten years together, we've endured so much. Alot of laughter, many tears, a few fights here and there, countless celebrations and plenty of heart-to-hearts have made us much wiser after all this time. We're not perfect, so by no means do I expect our marriage to be perfect. Here are OUR tips/must-have's (in no particular order) to survive and stay in love. Because what's the point in staying together if you aren't happy?!

 

• Make time for yourself. Even though you're married, that does not mean you need to spend all of your time together. Whether you choose to spend some time alone or with friends, it's important to get away. This is where Jordan and I differ. I would prefer to just have a few hours to myself getting a pedicure and reading a book where I can enjoy the quiet; Jordan would rather meet up with some buddies.
• Make time for yourselves; especially after you have kids. It's easy to get 'lost' and just keep going through the motions. Sometimes, you just need to reconnect with each other, and you definitely shouldn't feel guilty about getting a sitter. We're thankful our daycare does a parents' night out every month!
• I know it sounds obvious, but communication is key. Nobody is a mindreader, so if you don't let  me know what I did that pissed you off, how will I know!? But at the same time, it's all about the delivery. Jordan often tells me I need to work on my delivery. :)
• Split the responsibilities. Our rule of thumb is if I cook, Jordan cleans up. And we usually tag team on the laundry. This past year, we finally gave in and hired a house cleaner, and it has been amazing! It wasn't fair to either of us to spend our day off cleaning this big 'ol house, when we'd rather enjoy some quality time with the family.
• Pick your battles. Sometimes you just have to let things go. Simple as that.
• Make sure you enjoy plenty of 'together time' and make it a priority. I won't elaborate any further on this one. :)
• When things get bad, remember one of the things that you love about the other person and/or drew you to them in the beginning. Then build back up on that. There's a reason you're together to begin with.
• Never go to bed mad at each other. We've tried to go to bed after a fight before; it's useless. Nobody gets any sleep and those emotions just fester up even more. There have been times where we've stayed up til 4am hashing something up.

Anniversary Post #6: Happy Anniversary!!!!

It's finally here! This day, 10 years ago, I walked down the aisle to become Mrs. Hougham. We were young, in love, and ready to take on our new life together. Over the years, we've grown up, made mistakes, made up, and managed to make it through to reach the big decade mark. Crazy!

Thank you to Jordan for sticking this out with me, truly through the good, the bad, and the ugly. He's been my rock for so long, and I couldn't possibly imagine my life without him.  Here's to another 50 years!

Anniversary Post #4: The Years in Numbers....

ONE loyal beagle, Brady, who has been with us since the beginning. That dog is crazy, but we love him anyways!

TWO rambunctious boys (mini-me's of their Daddy), who made our family complete

THREE tattoos inked during our marriage (all within the past month)

FOUR different residences (two apartments, two houses)

FIVE employers over the years

SIX cruise vacations

SEVEN days of stubble on Jordan's face is my absolute favorite (I hate a clean shave!)

EIGHT months of dating before the surprise proposal on the beach

NINE different vehicles between the two of us (of which 5 were Chevrolet trucks!)

TEN years of wedded bliss! (Okay, every year wasn't as blissfull, but we made it!)

Anniversary Post #3: Music of the Heart

Do we have 'a song'? No, not really. But there are several songs that have stayed with us over the years, or some that just remind us of our relationship and certain times. Here they are, in no particular order. ;)

 

• Somethin' 'Bout a Truck by Kip Moore
• I've made it no secret, that I love a man in a pickup truck. In fact, it's one of the first things that attracted me to Jordan. His white Chevrolet Z71 jacked up with big tires totally got me excited. He's driven a Chevy truck since then!

• Feet Don't Touch the Ground by Stoney Larue
• This is what Jordan dubbed 'our song' years ago. I just asked him why and his response was 'That's just the way I feel when I'm around you.' He then followed it up with 'It's ironic, since we're both so close to the ground.' Silly!

• Your Everything by Keith Urban
• Our first dance at our wedding was to this song, so that one's a shoe-in!

• Freeze Frame Time by Brandon Rhyder
• This song use to bring sad tears to my eyes during a rough time for us when we were desperately trying to build a family. Now, it's just happy tears, but I still get chills when I hear this one.

• I Won't Give Up by Jason Mraz
• I think this one's pretty self-explanatory for any marriage. You have to fight for what you want. It's hard and it takes work. Enough said.

 

Anniversary Post #2: Cliff's Notes of a Decade w/the Houghams

Similar to what I usually do for the New Year on the blog giving highlights of each month, here's a highlight reel of our decade together.

 

2003: Obviously, the highlight of 2003 was our wedding. I don't remember much about it, but I know the reception was a blast. After our nuptials, we vacationed for a week on a cruise. It was my first, and I was hooked! And our first Christmas together as the Houghams, we welcomed our first 'baby', Brady! Even though we were married, we didn't see each other much while both working and going to school full time. What were we thinking?! Oh yeah, young and in love!

2004: Wow, alot happened the following year. We celebrated our first anniversary on a Caribbean cruise (again!), while soaking up the sun and drinking way too much rum punch.  Jordan graduated from college in August, we purchased our first home in November, and I graduated in December. We were sooooo glad to finally be done with school; now time to be full-fledged adults.

 

2005: In January, I began my journey at KPMG into the hectic world of public accounting. Geez, the hours were a killer! During my first busy season, I grew accustomed to 70hr workweeks. Jordan was understanding and supportive. While we weren't working, we enjoyed our free time hanging out with friends, going to concerts, floating the river, etc.   We may have gotten married really young, but we could still have a good time! :)

 

 

2006: Hmmm. I don't really know what the highlight of 2006 was. As I looked back through all of my pictures from that year, it really looks like we did a lot of partying and relaxing. ;) Isn't that what you're supposed to do before you have kids?!

 

 

2007: This was a tough year for us. After trying to get pregnant for a year solid, we finally got good news, only to suffer a miscarriage shortly after.  Needless to say, I was devastated and went into a bit of a depression. Jordan was my rock and just kept telling me to be patient. We also sold our first house on a whim, in a week, and then lived in 600 sq.ft. of fun for six months while our new house was being built.

 

2008: After many prayers, we finally found out that we were pregnant again. Then after months and months of non-stop all-day sickness, we finally became parents to our first son, Austin Jordan, in November.  All the tears and heartache were finally worth it when we held our sweet baby boy in our arms after my c-section. Our lives would never be the same.

 

2009: We finally fell into the swing of this whole parenting thing. Our new trio spent lots of time in the pool, playing outside, made a trip to Sea World, etc. As Jordan and I had updated our roles to Mommy/Daddy, there was definitely a new norm to get used to. The days of being spontaneous, packing up and going somewhere, were long gone. Watching Jordan become a father to our son made me fall in love with him all over again (gag!).

 

 

2010:  In the Spring, we learned that conceiving our second child wouldn't be nearly as exhausting. We also took our first big vacation as a family, Austin in tow and Chase in my belly, on another cruise. We had a blast but I was literally exhausted and miserable most of the time enduring all-day sickness once again and chasing after a toddler.

2011: We started 2011 off the first week by completing our family and welcoming little Chase Cooper into the world. Chase proved to be just as good of a baby as his big brother. However, adjusting to two kids was crazy and hectic. In the summer, we ventured to Great Wolf Lodge on a mini staycation and splashed around a bit. That was about as much of a vacation we got that crazy year.

2012:  I made a big decision to take on a two-year rotation in a different group at work. The constant struggle for a work/life balance finally gave way, and I've really been enjoying my new role. Jordan also got a promotion at work and moved to the AT&T store a few miles away from our house, which was convenient! As the boys got older, we were able to keep enjoying more activities. Man, they grow up fast!

 

 

2013: We celebrated our anniversary a bit early last month, enjoying some time in Miami before heading out on another Caribbean cruise. We had a blast and definitely enjoyed our adult time away from life and all its responsibilities.

Wow, it has been a CRAZY ride these past 10 years. It hasn't always been pretty and fun, but no marriage is. We've worked through alot and fought to get where we are today. I know everyone gets married under the assumption that they'll stay married and make it to the 10yr mark. But let's be honest, it only happens about half the time. I'm definitely thankful that I took that big leap with Jordan ten years ago. We definitely fast-tracked it more than most, but our life is basically what I had hoped it would be ten years later.