July 19 - Houston/Galveston

So on our way back last night we stopped off at our neighborhood Wal-Mart for some ice and milk. Every time we walk out of one of the Wal-Marts down here, I feel a real sense of accomplishment. I mean really, these stores should have their own zip codes. Since we started on this trip (actually, it was well before that) my mother-in-law has been generously offering, sometimes to the point of insisting that we trade in our 10-year old tent for a new one. Sure our tent has a few leaks, the zippers on both doors are broken (which means we climb in the window – no big deal, right?) and the screens show evidence of a hole or two which have been carefully stitched up over the years but even given all of that, it’s still a roof (albeit a leaky one) over my head. Well I finally broke down and accepted the kind offer and we left with a monster 10-person, 3-room ‘lodge’. James and I agreed we would not try out the new tent until Lake Powell because we have just one more night in Galveston (and we’ve got a hotel in San Antonio, a cabin in Carlsbad, and family to stay with in Tucson). I’m not so sure the waiting idea was a good one. We were awoken in the middle of the night by a wild wind and rain storm and spent a portion of the night standing up bracing the poles with our bodies. Needless to say, I started the next day with a pounding headache. No problem, popped a couple of ibuprofen and headed off to the Houston Children’s Museum (what better place to be when you have a headache, right? Headache + Screaming Children = Perfect). Built in 2009, the museum was beautiful and bright, and had amazing hands-on exhibits and activities for the kids. A highlight of the day was ‘Kidtopia’ where the kids were issued ATM cards and then went in search of jobs so they could make some cash which they could deposit in to their accounts via ATM machines dotted around the ‘city’. Very cool. Emmett became an EMT, Abby a veterinarian, and Ben a news anchor (even Aidan got involved ‘policing’ the town as a crime fighter). The icing on the cake was that we all got in free with our Boston Science Museum membership card. And while we’re on the topic of big savings, I’d just like to put it out there that the 3 nights camping in Galveston came to a grand total of $15. Our stay should’ve cost us $45, still pretty cheap, but the ranger was having ‘computer issues’. The way I figure it, those three nights in Galveston cost about 70 cents a night for each of the 7 of us (eat it up Dave Baker). Well, I started this post moaning about last night’s weather but really I shouldn’t have because tonight the wind was so bad, one of our main poles broke (which we didn’t realize until we got up in the morning). We spent the majority of the night tucked in under the tent which lay on top of us like a blanket. Ah, camping. You’ve just got to love it! One last thing I almost forgot to mention. We had another jellyfish encounter when we all took a late afternoon swim today. This time, Emmett was the victim but this time the jellyfish were about 6 to 8 inches in diameter -ewww. After some vinegar and meat tenderizer from the Park Ranger, he was as good as new.