Houston and back

This one's out of order. I forgot to post it! Driving down the HOV lane! Crazy!

Ricky's car after the break in.

Ashton playing with a stingray.

Pretending to be screaming on the ferris wheel.

The Great White that got out of the tank!!

Sharks on the shark train tour.

A very big snake!! (300-pound reticulated python)

Kanton and Ashton looking at fish in the aquarium.

The Houston skyline

Leaving in the early morning fog. We're supposed to be following the van in front of this car, which we can't see.

Well, we took our first trip to Houston for Braden's class field trip. I am so glad that my mom convinced me that I could not drive there. We took the HOV lane (high occupancy vehicle). Our van was driving down the freeway with no lights and no traffic at 65 mph between the two other lanes. It was pretty scary. I am glad I was not driving. We saw the Houston skyline which was pretty impressive to a girl from West Texas. The biggest town I had been to was Dallas, and I think Houston was way more hectic.

The field trip was to the Downtown Aquarium. The kids had a blast looking at jellyfish, alligator snapping turtles, a 300-pound reticulated python, and petting the sting rays and sharks. Yes, I did say petting the sharks! I touched them, too. They were so awesome. We saw a white bengal tiger, and there was a train that took us through a tunnel full of sharks! The audio tour mentioned that the 5-inch thick glass over our heads was holding 700,000 gallons of water, not to mention that there were several aggressive sharks in the tank. The front door closed, leaving us sitting in the train in the dimly lit tunnel surrounded by the sharks. As I smelled the gas from the train get stronger and stronger, I couldn't help but wonder what would happen if we passed out in the tunnel and the door didn't open. I am a worrier like that. It did open, and we rode out of the tunnel. The audio guide mentioned a great white that escaped the tank, and we found it a few yards ahead when the great white jumped out of the water, sprayed us, and scared the kids on the train! They did ride the train again and still jumped when the shark sprayed water in the air and came up out of the water again.

There was a carousel, a fun little ride that went up in the air and down over and over so that you get that feeling in your stomach ...the one that only roller coaster enthusiasts would understand... called Sharky's Dive, and a ferris wheel. For a woman who is afraid of heights, I was proud of myself for braving the ride so Braden could ride. I must mention that there were no seat belts, which I freaked out about as we were leaving the safety of the ground. We did make it. We got lost from the group on the way home, but more people got lost following us. So, we had them lead us out after getting directions from the phone.

Last night, someone broke into Ricky's little car outside the apartment. They busted his window out and stole the front of his radio (because they couldn't get the rest out), his planner that had business appointments in it, and free phonebooks and cd's from Ricky's job. We had to buy a new window today, which we weren't planning for. Let me just tell you how upset I was with my husband when I found that he had left our van, parked next to the car, unlocked all night with our DVD player inside! We are not leaving that out there any more! I think I will be checking the van myself from now on! The police came and lifted prints. Hopefully, they will get a match. That is very scary when someone does this to you, and you just don't know why. I am thankful that it was only the window and not my van and DVD player for my kids. I hope that they are caught.

That's all that has happened the last two days. I think we are worn out from the excitement around here.