virginia meets texas, part three

On Monday morning we all went to the park Britton, the hub, and I frequent on the weekends. It has a good mix for younger and older kids, and isn't usually crowded until the afternoon. We planned on just the girls going to the American Girl Doll Store for lunch and some shopping while Britton took a nap. But she was really falling apart and I suspect the hub was foreseeing an horrific afternoon of Britton losing her cool. So, we dropped her off at daycare and decided that all of us, men included, would go to the store.

Let me tell you - the place makes me want my own doll. Let me repeat - not a doll for Britton, my own that I can dress up and do her hair and Britton won't be scribbling all over her face in crayon. Jessica still has her Rebecca doll (which has since been retired and you just know Jessica could fetch a pretty penny for her on ebay). And Caroline got her doll, "CJ" (Caroline Jr) for Christmas this year.



The hub and I went to this doll store in Dallas to get Caroline some outfits for Christmas, and we were blown away. There are TONS of outfits, different dolls, accessories including a bath tub and an RV, hair care kits, a salon, and - a bistro. So this time we set up reservations and all got treated to lunch. We were expecting tiny food (maybe because it's a doll store full of 18 inch dolls?) but were surprised at the cheese fondue and turkey paninis.




By Tuesday morning the hub and I had learned our lesson and took Britton to daycare. The girl just needed her familiar routine. And then the group of us took off for the Dallas Aquarium. We've never been, so we were surprised by the price ($21 per adult!) but even more blown away by the exhibits. This is an amazing collection - open-air habitats, re-creation jungles, and of course aquariums.




My friend the manatee. Inspiration for the mermaid.



I love penguins almost as much as I love elephants.



If Jessica had created a better distraction, this miniature monkey would've been in my purse and on the way to my house before security knew what was happening.



Jessica in awe of the archway tanks. These were especially incredible when we walked underneath the shark tank during feeding time. Not for the faint of stomach.



Tim wanted to go to Cabella's after the aquarium, so of course the hub wanted to stop by In-N-Out Burger for lunch. He'll come up with any reason to be within twenty miles of Allen, Texas just to stop there. But Jessica and the family hadn't ever had their burgers, and since they are so delicious we just had to make the stop. Hey, this place is a tourist destination! And we needed sustenance for the duck-blind shenanigans we pulled in Cabella's.




It may have been chaos, we may not have always gotten along, but this is a trip worth repeating every year. Whether it's Texas or Virginia or somewhere in between, these are the trips that make memories.