Houston Trip Highlights

Day 1 Highlights:

• Visiting Noah and Laura's SWEET Apartment
• Watching The Music Man in Miller Park

Noah and Laura's pool was like a tropical resort!

The outdoor theater at Miller Park

Day 2 Highlights:

1. Visiting Noah's social study class
2. Visiting Laura's English classroom
3. Eating lunch with Laura at a DELICIOUS Mexican restarant
   
4. Going the the huge Galleria Mall

A sibling reunion in Mr. Dunlap's class

Posing on Mrs. Dunlap's stage

The freaking HUGE Galleria Mall!

Day 3 Highlights:

1. Visiting the "circus" elephant at the Houston Zoo (the baby elephant did some tricks for us!)
   
2. Getting drenched by a fountain while paddle boating
3. Watching The Time Traveler's Wife after a yummy Costco lunch (felt like home!)
   
4. Going to an Astro's game and watching the most awesome fireworks of my life!!!
   

It was so muggy outside (like being in an armpit!)

This picture is from online (I didn't get any good ones of the stadium or firework show, but we were sitting on the top right side near the fireworks!)

Day 4 Highlights:

1. Visiting the Jacinto Monument (where Texas won its independence!)
2. Visiting the USS Texas (a battleship that fought in both world wars)
3. Exploring some old mansions in Galveston
4. Visiting the beach in Galveston
5. Eating to-die-for steak and shrimp at the Saltgrass (thank you Noah and Laura!)
6. Strolling through the Kemah Boardwalk and taking a ride on the ferris wheel
   

A depiction of the battle at Jacinto

I would love to have a wrap-around porch like this one day! Come on, Seb!

Our trip to Houston was fun, refreshing, and well needed. We had a wonderful time visiting with Noah, Laura, and Sethrina, and we feel extremely blessed that we were able to spend time with them. Noah and Laura were amazing hosts and made us feel right at home. Their apartment was lovely with arched entries, granite counter tops, and a resort-like pool! It was no surprise that we ate like kings because Laura's is an excellent cook! She served up some delicious meals including a fondue bar, chocolate chip cookies, the best tempura sushi I've ever had, and homemade pecan pie! Mmm!!!

We were so grateful they took time out of their busy schedules (it was the start of a new school year for both of them) to take us on a tour of Houston. My favorite part of the trip was just getting to see everyone again. We hadn't seen Noah, Laura, and Sethrina since Christmas (I did spend time with Sethrina in May, though, for my friend's wedding), and it was so nice catching up. Noah and Laura are doing some amazing things in the schools they teach at and their students are lucky to have them. One of the highlights of our trip was getting to visit their classrooms. Noah's school was already in session, so we dropped by his homeroom class and let the students interview us about BYU. We then gave them good behavior raffle prizes. It was a lot of fun. We did something fun everyday - again, thanks Noah and Laura for doing all of that planning!

We definitely want to visit them again soon and make family visits a tradition!