(My husband is informing me that the above title may not work, for some reason, but I can’t see the harm in it so it’s staying as is.)
I loved me some Corpus Christi, really loved it. The last time we vacationed there my youngest was around 8 months. It was good but there was a lot of time spent watching people frolic in the water while I tried to keep sand out of her eyes, and awkward how to feed her while wearing a one piece moments. Gizmo was not a fan of beach life at the time- not at all.
She absolutely loved it this time. Gizmo was still my charge and The Kid stuck with daddy for most of our beach time, this works for us because The Kid is adventurous and I tend to freak out a lot.
We stayed at the Radisson across from the U.S. Lexington and it was really nice to be able to have a coffee and overlook the beach first thing in the morning. It has other cool features too that we didn’t use like room service, an exercise room and a bar on the third floor.
We hit The Texas State Aquarium on our first day. We did this last visit too but thought the kids might both get something out of this time. They really loved it and I have to admit seeing dolphins that close up(I could have sat in front of the viewing window all day) and feeling how slimy sting rays are when you touch them is not too shabby for grown ups either. (Essentially, I pretty much touched sting ray booger I later found out.) The food wasn’t the best but we weren’t really expecting it to be, we just wanted to avoid a hunger meltdown. The Goblin King and I avoided it by the way, do not try to talk to me when I’m hungry- I’m all green hulkish. And later that night we ate at Pier 99 which I loved, live music on Saturday night, a fish platter to die for and cool photo ops in front of the restaurant. The inside is a little crowded, I recommend going around to the back and eating there- much more space and it has kitschy pipe chairs and an open air feel to it.
The next day we packed up our stuff and headed to South Padre Island. It’s a bit of a drive but so worth it. We went to the Malachai beach state park and it’s really fantastic. I packed up a picnic and we were able to stay almost all day. It was cloudy and a little windy which may have made the Goblin King and I lax in applying sunscreen but the kids were covered and ended up sunburn free. (Goblin King is still suffering by the way.) A very nice feature of the state park is the visitor center, you can buy snacks, sunscreen, beach gear or souvenirs there. What I liked were the showers, I was able to give us all a rinse off and change before heading back into the chick car. The water was freezing but it was okay for a quick rinse off.
We were lucky to be able to visit Port Aransas based on Sean from averagesupermom’srecommendation. I glad we checked it out, we thought it was a really cute and fun town. We parked near the shore line and watched a pelican swoop in next to a group of fishermen right in front of us which was awesome. It was also nice to sit and watch the yachts pass by. We walked further on and found the most lovely kid’s park that I’ve ever seen. The kids played until they were asking to go back to the hotel and we set off without getting to check out the local restaurants. But we definitely want to go there again sometime and possibly see about renting out a little cabin/cottage.
All in all it was just a really great trip,the fact that we went in February meant that some days were a little chilly but there were also nice sunny days as well. We did hit some snags but that was bad communicationon our part. I ended up putting my netbook adapter and phone charger in a separate bag which ended up staying behind(which means that I’m stuck on a dinoputer until I can replace it). I also highly reccommend double checking your car for crayons before leaving it parked in the sun all day. A small black crayon nib left on one of the seats while we were at South Padre led to a disaster. Disaster. I’m so packing crayon color wonder markers next time.
But we had fun nevertheless and I’m happy we did it. I’m hoping other people have vacation disasters too? Otherwise I’m going to feel like a real dingbat.
March 3, 2011 at 4:05 pm -
Good to know! I’ve been wanting to go down to Corpus or Port A since we’re only a few hours away but still haven’t made the trek. Maybe someday…
March 3, 2011 at 5:41 pm -
Thanks Jess! Wait….you mean I was only a couple hours away from you?! Wasted tweet up oppourtunity
March 11, 2011 at 4:02 pm -
Hey Lydia – thanks for the shout out! I was partying like a rock star at Mardi Gras on the 3rd and I’m just now getting caught up on blog reading. Glad you liked Port A! Isn’t it a cute little town. It’s much bigger now than when I lived there back in’93. I also live on South Padre for a few years. I love it down there, too. We haven’t been back in forever!! Your post makes me want to get down there soon, though. But I’ll leave the crayons at home.
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