Stopping to smell the flowers in San Antonio

A few weeks ago, Sammy and Charlie's Auntie G emailed me to let me know that she and her husband were going to be journeying to San Antonio, Texas, to visit with some family.  I couldn't resist the opportunity to see the two of them, so we made arrangements to meet at the San Antonio Botanical Garden the weekend they were in Texas.

The boys and I tackled the eight-hour drive to San Antonio on our own (Captain Husband wasn't able to take the time off) last Saturday and checked into a hotel on the northwest side of town where we explored for a little bit before settling in for the night--it had been a long day in the car and we wanted to be well rested for our visit with Auntie G and Mr. P!

Sunday was a beautiful day to spend wandering through the gardens (although a little too humid for me--two years in El Paso has definitely ruined me in regards to humidity); all of the greenery and flowers were a welcome sight after the long drive the day before through the Texas desert.  Both of the boys really seemed to enjoy themselves and the extra attention that Auntie G and Mr. P lavished on them.

Before we knew it, it was time for the boys to take a nap, so we said our goodbyes and headed off on our separate ways.  I'm so glad we were able to meet up and visit, even if it was only for a little bit; hopefully we'll be able to get together again soon!

High-flyin' fun

As I was driving along I-10 the other day, I noticed a new billboard on the side of the road advertising the War Eagles Air Museum in Santa Theresa, New Mexico.  I made a mental note to check it out online as soon as I got home, because I knew a certain little boy would probably love it.  Turns out I know Sammy pretty well...if you look closely at the photo above, you can see the exact moment at which Sammy's mind was blown--he spent most of the time exploring the giant hanger and saying things like, "Whoa!" and "Oh, wow!"

Sammy was in complete and utter heaven and on his best behavior the entire time.  Even though he wanted to touch all of the planes, Sammy did a great job of listening to me and my mom and managed to look only with his eyes.

In addition to a huge collection of vintage aircraft, the museum also had a really nice display of classic cars from the 1920s through the 1970s.  Sammy had a great time pointing out all of the "fast" cars (i.e. any of the red ones) and telling us the different sounds that they make.

The highlight of the entire trip, however, was the one and only helicopter on exhibit.  Sammy kept walking back o the corner where it was displayed and saying, "hi helicopter!" and then making helicopter noises.  He would get rather upset when we walked around the hanger and he couldn't see it anymore--I think we probably did a total of four laps around the 64,000 square foot building just so he could see it over and over again. 

I'm pretty sure that this week's visit will be the first of many trips that we take to the War Eagles Air Museum--this is one obsession of Sammy's that I have no problem indulging.

Foto Friday: Spring has sprung

I had really hoped that Sammy's stomach issues (and mine) were the result of a twenty-four hour bug, but it turns out that whatever this is wants to linger a little longer, which means Sammy and I spent all of yesterday holed up at Casa L to the third in recovery mode.  This translated to me curled on the couch in the fetal position while I let Sammy watch copious amounts of Nick Jr.  Whatever works, right?  We both seem to be on the up and up now, but I have the feeling it may be another day or two before we're back at one hundred percent.

Anyway, here are few spring photos that I took on our trip home from San Antionio; we had made a brief pit stop in Fort Stockton to check out Paisano Pete (the world's second-largest roadrunner statue) and stretch our legs a bit.  Surrounding the visitors center were several beautifully blooming wisteria trees and their perfume was just heavenly, attracting all sorts of insects (along with me and my camera).  Here's hoping your weekend is filled with all sorts of spring loveliness!

The Queen of the Missions

Our next stop along the Mission Trail was the San Jose Mission; completed in 1782, this magnificent complex was the largest of the missions of the area.  This self-contained community was home to approximately three hundred and fifty Native Americans at its height and was sustained by extensive fields and herds of livestock.

The architectural carvings of the San Jose Mission were unlike any that I had seen in San Antonio and were truly works of art.  I think Fr. Juan Agustin Morfi summed it up when he said in 1778, "In a word, no one could have imagined that there were such good artists in so desolate a place."  Above is the famous Rose Window of the San Jose Mission Church, which is a masterpiece of colonial Baroque artistry--even Oscar Wilde was impressed when he visited the Mission in the summer of 1882: "Those old Spanish churches, with their picturesque remains and dome and their handsome carved stonework, standing amide the verdure and sunshine of a Texas prairie, gave me a thrill of strange pleasure."

The Mission fell into disuse and disrepair over the years until it was restored in the 1930s by the San Antonio Conservation Society and the Works Progress Administration.  One of the buildings that was restored at that time was the large granary, which now houses a miniature-scale model of the Mission compound as it would have appeared in the eighteenth century.

The gorgeous barrel-vaulted granary also retained remnants of colorful trompe l'oeil frescoes of architectural elements, such as columns and chair-rail moldings.  It was also a good fifteen degrees cooler in there, which made it a nice place to stop and linger while soaking up the history.

Walking around the Mission, it was easy to see why it was known as the Queen of the Missions--beautiful details popped up in the most unexpected of places, like this carved downspout along one of the walls of the church, or the somber putto framing the rear entrance into the chapel pictured below.  I easily could have spent several more hours exploring the Mission, but the three of us were getting a bit peckish so it was time to head back to the hotel and figure out what to do for dinner.  I know if I ever happen to find myself in San Antonio again, I'll definitely be setting aside a full day to explore all four of the Missions in great detail.

Wordless{ish} Wednesday: Sampling the local fare

{One of the hard parts about being in San Antonio was finding places where the three of us could eat--Captain Husband tends to gravitate towards more American fare and likes many of the popular chain restaurants, whereas I'd like to try food from local eateries or at places that we can't find in El Paso, which can be a bit difficult now that we live in the southwest because I have the lowest tolerance for spicy foods ever.  It's actually kind of embarrassing how much of a wuss my tongue is.  Fortunately Sammy is pretty easy going and will usually try whatever we put in front of him and if he doesn't like that, he'll gladly pick and choose from our plates. }

{On our last day in San Antonio we headed out onto the River Walk to find lunch and wound up dining at the Ibiza Restaurant, which offered a mixture of Mediterranean and South Texan cuisine.  Our food was absolutely delicious--did I mention the heaping portions of sweet potato fries?--but Sammy was more interested in the condiments.  Some people's kids, right?}

On a mission to see some history

I hope you guys aren't getting too tired of all of my photos from our recent trip to San Antonio; I promise there's only a few more days' worth to go.  There was just so much fabulous history on display that I can't help but share as much of it as possible.  On our second full day in San Antonio I managed to talk Captain Husband into taking a short car ride to visit the San Antonio Missions National Historical Park; the park actually preserves four of the five Spanish frontier missions in San Antonio (the Alamo is the fifth).  Our first stop was the Mission Concepcion, which was completed around 1755 and is one of the best preserved of the Texas missions.

The entrance to the church building was surrounded by an elaborately carved stone portal; according to period descriptions regarding the church, the facade was further decorated with brightly-colored frescoes, which have long since been lost to the ravages of time.

While the exterior is bereft of any painted ornament, the interiors of several of the Mission buildings still retain remnants of their colorful eighteenth-century frescoes.  These ceiling and wall ornaments were revealed and preserved during a restoration project undertaken in 1988; today only four rooms clearly show the remnants of these beautiful works of art; the two ceiling ornaments pictures above were found in the baptistry (left) and the library (right).

I could have spent several hours wandering around this architectural gem (CH was keeping Sammy happily occupied outside on the grounds of the park while I explored), but we had more missions to see before they closed for the day.

Foto Friday: A round-up of Green

In an effort to thin out some of the photos that I still have to go through from our trip to San Antonio, and because tomorrow's Saint Patrick's day, I've decided to feature not one green photo but four today. There was definitely no shortage of green to be had during our short stay in San Antonio--I'm still kind of in withdrawal.

Teeny tiny cactus sprouts and spikes at the Alamo.

Beautiful memorial fountain at the Alamo.

Architectural ornament on a late nineteenth-century building on Houston Street.

Gorgeous Gothic-revival iron fence in the historic King William District--I want to go to there.

I hope you enjoyed a bit of the greenery that San Antonio had to offer--have a great Saint Patrick's weekend!

The Alamo

One of the highlights of our trip to San Antonio was getting to see the historic Alamo in person; I remember learning about the Battle of the Alamo back in elementary school and being so taken by the sacrifices made by the men who had bravely fought there for Texan independence.

I was a little surprised by the small size of the monument--for a place that looms so large in American history, I was expecting something much more grandiose.  But the time-worn and battle-scarred eighteenth-century facade did not disappoint, especially since one could walk right up to it and examine all of its architectural details up close.

We had hoped to take the tour of the chapel but long lines and an increasingly cranky Sammy (who was long overdue for a nap) kind of put a damper on those plans, although we did enjoy walking around the grounds and checking out the Long Barracks and other structures on the site.  We'll definitely make sure to take the tour the next time we find ourselves in San Antonio.

Wordless{ish} Wednesday: The Tower of the Americas

{Located just a short walk away from our hotel was the Hemisfair Park, a lushly landscaped city park that was built to host the 1968 World's Fair.  There are a number of gorgeous historic structures within the park that are in the process of being slowly rehabbed, as well as an awesome playground where Sammy ran himself ragged, but the biggest (or tallest) highlight of the park was the 750-foot tall Tower of the Americas.}

{After a quick ride up in a glass-fronted elevator, the three of us were greeted by beautiful panoramic views of San Antonio and the surrounding areas.}

{I had a lot of fun finding the places we'd already walked to, like the Torch of Friendship sculpture, which was a pretty easy landmark to pick out thanks to its vibrant red color.}

{Sammy spent most of his time running around the observation deck, "chasing" after the airplanes and helicopters that flew by the tower.  Needless to say, he napped very well that afternoon.}