We spent our first vacation of the summer at the beach, and of course we had a great time.
Once again we traveled to our favorite little condo in Corpus Christi, right on the beach. Everyday the Bearded One set up our tents and chairs and we basked in the Texas sun with our toes in the sand. Our whole family came with us this year and the boys had so much fun. We played in the sand, painted seashells, fed the seagulls, and braved the ocean with the yucky jellyfish 🪼 (yes we all got stung!)
We only had one day of bad weather so we decided to take the boys to the Corpus Christi Museum of Science and History. It was fun for the kiddos, lots of history and interactive exhibits for the boys. Plus, teacher get a discount!
We had a fabulous beach trip, as always, and I already miss the salty air!
Pro Beach Tips:
Bring lots of snacks of course
Vinegar helps neutralize a jellyfish sting (thanks lifeguards)!
Bring watercolors to paint seashells
If you check out the museum, you have to eat next door at Railroad Seafood and Brewery (best crab cake I’ve ever had!)
We knew we’d be laying my grandma to rest this summer in Saint Louis, MO, and in order to get there, we had to plan.
To get to St. Louis from our home in Texas we were looking at an 11 1/2 hour drive one way. With a 2 year old and a 4 year old that task seemed almost impossible so we decided to break it up in to multiple days.
Our first day of driving was supposed to be about 5 hours but of course took much longer;we knew it would. We took into consideration potty breaks, bathroom breaks, and honestly the occasional snuggle breaks for our sweet toddler.
We stayed in McAlester, OK the first night and it was just okay. The hotel was decent, the area was fine, the biggest letdown was the dirty pool. I intentionally booked every hotel along the way with the pool in mind and unfortunately that didn’t work out as planned. But we made the best of the situation and had dinner and ice cream at the Braum’s next to the hotel.
Day two we planned to see my little brother and family in the Kansas City area. We really had such a great time. Nothing makes my heart happier than seeing our sweet boys enjoy their family, especially their cousins. We stayed in Lenexa, KS the second night and in hindsight we definitely would have stayed with family. I did not pick a good hotel, it was a tad sketchy and the bearded one got stuck in the elevator! (Which of course we can laugh about now).
Another 5+ hours in the car on day 3 and we finally arrived in St. Louis. I picked my favorite hotel for our 3 night stay, Hilton Home2Suites. If you’ve never stayed, I highly suggest it. The rooms are huge and have plenty of space for the littles to run around. They have a large kitchen area, pool, breakfast everyday, and so much more. It’s our go-to hotel on long vacations. The first night there we picked up some groceries and used the hotel grills for our dinner.
While in STL we attended my grandmother memorial at the Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery. It was definitely difficult, but I was happy to be around my loved ones.
After the service we all went to a pretty good restaurant, Three Kings Public House. Once again our boys got to see more of their family.
We didn’t want to rush back home to Texas so we decided to do some sightseeing and explore STL a bit. First we picked up my older brother and went to see our old house, my grandmother’s house, and hit up a few favorites like Ted Drew’s and Imo’s (you can’t go wrong with frozen custard and pizza).
The next day we wanted to check out the science center but it’s closed on Tuesday and Wednesdays so we went to the zoo instead.
Fun fact: The STL Zoo is free! My brother and I have so many great memories of the zoo and it was the perfect place to take the boys. We stayed all day, saw all the animals, and road the train a couple of times. It was the perfect ending to our whirl wind road trip.
After we left STL we traveled home a different way, which took us through Arkansas. We stayed in North Little Rock in a hotel downtown. The hotel was good but once again the pool was closed. We did however find a cute little park on the river and let the boys run off some of that energy from the long hours in the car.
Our last day in the car was the longest at just over six hours (before all the stops). But at last, we made it home safe and sound. After 4 different hotels, 6 days on the road, and ridiculous amount of hours in the car, we finally made it home.
My biggest takeaways from this road trip would have to be
Go with the flow, stop often, don’t get stuck on the minute to minute plans, you will eventually get to you destination
Pack snacks, lots and lots of snacks, our boys have their own snack boxes
Keep them entertained, we bought dual DVD players which we used a lot
The Bearded One and I have enjoyed camping since we were kids. We’ve always camped in a tent, cooked over an open fire, and all those other seemingly baffling outdoorsy things some people just don’t understand. We really want our boys (currently 4 and 2) to experience and love all the same adventures as us, but we decided they’re a little too small to sleep on the ground and run around an open flame. We desperately wanted them to experience the spirit of camping but in a safer, less taxing kind of way. So I did my research and settled on Jellystone Park in Waller, TX.
Of course I’ve heard Jellystone before but I’ve never experienced it for myself. After reading reviews, checking out fellow traveler pictures and blogs, and looking for discount codes, I settled on the perfect cabin.
If you’ve never seen or heard of Jellystone do yourself a favor and check it out. Their website gives so much information on the lodging, amenities, and overall experience. They have everything from tents sites, to multi room cabins. Activities and amenities include a fishing pond, pillow jumper, gem mining, restaurant, and my favorite, the thing that sold me, a pool and waterpark playground.
The night before our Jellystone adventure we packed up and hyped up the boys about their first camping trip. I didn’t realize camping required so much, but it definitely was quite a bit to pack.
The Bearded One and I took a half day off work in preparation for grocery shopping before our arrival. About 30 minutes before we were supposed to leave I received an email from Jellystone Waller saying they had to cancel our reservations due to the previous night’s storm and massive power outages!
Of course I was in panic mode, but long story short, I was able to cancel for a full refund and rebook the Jellystone Tyler location (which was an extra 2 hours away).
The boys did pretty well in the car, and it honestly wasn’t as bad as I was anticipating.
We arrived around 5pm and still had plenty of time to check out the waterpark, which the boys absolutely loved. The waterpark stayed open until 7pm and opened the next morning around 11 (the sign said 11 but it was open at like 1030ish).
After a night of s’mores and late bedtimes we were excited to wake up and explore all the park had to offer. We started with the pillow bouncer, then drove around to find the playground, and finally did a little gem mining for treasures. You have to buy the bag of gems which was about $9 but it was totally worth it.
I think the waterpark was our favorite, our boys love the water. We spent hours at the water playground, enjoying the waterslides, getting ice cream and of course purchasing a few adult beverages at the bar (yes the campground has a bar!).
There was so much more to explore and do at the park but we just didn’t have the time. They have an app that you can download that gives you a play-by-play schedule of events happening around the park. It was very family friendly and we will definitely be back. Despite the unexpected turn of events, I give our first experience at Jellystone a 9/10.
Travel Notes:
Packing with toddlers is no joke, here’s an example of my packing list for reference.
We celebrated Christmas and O’s birthday with a winter trip to the indoor waterpark Kalahari in Round Rock, TX. This was our second time there and it did not disappoint.
I personally am not a huge waterpark fan, but I really do enjoy Kalahari. I don’t know if it’s because it’s inside, or we go in the winter and avoids the crazy TX summer heat, but it really is a great experience.
We were fortunate enough to stay 3 nights this year and I think that was plenty of time. We enjoyed the waterpark right when it opened at 10am, then again after nap, around 3pm each day. The first 2 days weren’t very crowded (several districts were still in school) and the boys were able to play in the toddler/kid area for hours.
This year O was tall enough to enjoy the tandem tube slides with the bearded one. He went on quite a few and loved every minute of it. Baby L (Mr. Independent) was also able to enjoy the waterslides in the kiddie area and had so much fun climbing and sliding all by himself.
I was perfectly content watching the shenanigans and smiles all day. We also did several activities together like the wave pool, lazy river, and the occasional dip in the outdoor hot tub to warm up.
For those of you that haven’t been, Kalahari isn’t just a waterpark. It has restaurants, shops, and a huge arcade, all of which we enjoyed.
The convenience of onsite restaurants can’t be beat and we ate there several times. The pizza place was perfect for lunch and we enjoyed dinner at B-Lux, which had yummy burgers.
After traveling so much with a 3 (almost 4) year old and 20 month old, I’ve picked up a few tips and tricks along the way.
Tip & Trick
Get your owns snacks for the hotel, we have a big old snack box we pack and fresh fruit and veggies I chop before we go.
Buy portable bed rails, little O slept all by himself on the pullout bed and I knew he was safe with the bed rails
Buy robes for when you leave the waterpark and head back to your room. You have to walk through the arcade and lobby and it can be a bit chilly. The resort lets you rent towels but the boys loved their robes
Don’t stress the schedule and routine; we have a very strict “bath at 7 bed by 8” for both our boys, which is a Godsend during the school year but, we were very lax during vacation and we all survived!
Take a few pictures, then put the phone away and enjoy time with the babes. They are only little once .
The Adventures of Messy Bun and The Bearded One 