Houston Zoo

Well we finally made it to the Houston Zoo today and it was lots of fun. P really had a good time running around and looking at all the animals and S was a little angel sleeping a good chunk of time in the stroller. Even when she was awake she didn't mind hanging out even though it was quite warm.

If you've never been before it really is pretty cool and I'm not really a zoo person. We left around 9am from Pearland and arrived about 20 min later so the drive is really short and there wasn't much traffic, not even when we entered the zoo parking lot. I do recommend arriving early so you can get a spot in the zoo lot, which is free, otherwise you'll be walking a long way for paid parking.

We only stayed for about 2.5 hours leaving soon after lunch and a quick stop in the gift shop for a toy for P. I think that was the perfect amount of time for a toddler and a baby, although we didn't see the whole zoo. But that wasn't the point, it was for P to enjoy herself and to see something new.

I think the best part is the children's zoo which includes a playground, a splash pad and petting zoo. If you've walked for a while and want a few minutes to catch your breath, the playground is perfect so your little one can keep going. Then when you need something different you can walk next door to the petting zoo to see some goats. And I was very impressed to see they had a hand washing station right outside the exit to the petting zoo for when you were done and needed to clean up. They even had step stools for the little ones. The carousel looked fun but we skipped it this time since it required another ticket purchase to ride and I'm not a fan anyway.

When it was time for lunch, a quick stop at the Macaw Cafe near the entrance and the gift shop is where we headed. Surprisingly the food was pretty good for zoo food. We got chicken and fries for P and we each had a hamburger. They had highchairs too and a few tables indoors with the a/c and plenty of other tables outside in the shade.

Although all the bathrooms were quite small they were still just large enough for me to maneuver the 29" wide double stroller around and they all had changing tables. They weren't the cleanest though so I'd recommend something like we have, a padded portable changing pad you can spread out. Then you only have to clean the outside of it at the end of the day but you know your kid is on a clean surface each time. I wish they had a few more bathrooms throughout the zoo but when we needed one it wasn't too far of a walk.

One cool little thing I noticed on our way out was a vending machine full of baby related items. It's the coolest thing I've ever seen. There were pacifiers and diaper rash cream and other things that you can buy just in case you lose yours or just forgot something at home.

I certainly won't be coming during the summer but for the fall through the spring I think we're going to purchase a membership and spend lots of time during cooler weather. So overall it was a successful trip with the exception of our exit. You always know when P has had lots of fun by the temper tantrum she throws when it's time to leave. Today was a category 5 so she LOVED it!

Brushy Lake playground

Since we're building a house in Sienna Plantation right now, we try to get over to our lot to see the progress every now and then. We brought the girls with us today so we could see how the playground near the new house would work out for us. I was very happy with it and I'm not usually happy about playgrounds because they never have activities for toddlers. This one is different.

There are still certain areas my 2 yr old just isn't ready for but she still had lots of fun. They even have a couple swings, one for babies and young children and one regular swing for the big kids. It's very pretty and well maintained and right next to a covered picnic pavilion.

When we get moved into the new house, I can see us spending lots of time at this playground.

It's located right next door to the Brushy Lake Recreation Center at Heritage Trail Ct. and Brushy Lake Dr.

BJs Brewhouse - Pearland Town Center

BJs is a restaurant I went to quite a few times while living in Dallas and the one I found in Pearland is just as good.

The food has always been good and drinks are even better, but the best part is the kid-friendly atmosphere. I was surprised the first time I took the girls to lunch with a friend at how accommodating the staff was. The hostess set up a booster chair for my 2 yr old like a champ and that sucker was going nowhere. As an over protective mommy I was very happy about that.

The kid's menu is good with lots of choices (as far as kids are concerned anyway) and they even have happy face shaped french fries which are really cute. And like most restaurants they have crayons and an activity mat to color on but their crayons are shaped like triangles so they won't roll off the table. If you've ever spent time with a toddler at a restaurant you know how often you're picking up crayons off the floor and how annoying it can be.

The staff has always been good at getting us a table that is suitable for the stroller I always bring with me so I have plenty of room to maneuver and without blocking the path of their servers or other patrons.

This place has been on my list of favs for a while and will stay there because they continue to satisfy. And because of the great bar they have it's also a great parent's night out spot. They get a thumbs up from me!

Little Gym - Pearland

During the summer we had our 2 yr old registered at Little Gym in Dallas and she loved it. She's always climbing on things and loves to explore and this was a perfect fit for her. When she was a baby we had her at Gymboree but as she got older it just didn't work out for her personality. She's much too independent for it now.

I had intended on having my youngest at Gymboree during the school year after we got settled in but the schedule just didn't work out for us. There was a Little Gym class available in the right time slot though, and it was close to our apartment too.

Well I'm glad I didn't enroll and only signed up for an intro class because I wasn't impressed. I'm sure it would have worked out for my oldest but the baby classes are just nothing like Gymboree. I felt like they just didn't have enough activities for my baby that were appropriate for her and it was really boring. She didn't seem to get anything out of it. To top off our experience, after the class was over I needed to change her diaper but they didn't even have a changing table in the restroom. Why would you offer classes to babies and not have a place to change them?

I just can't recommend the Little Gym for babies, it's just nowhere near as good as Gymboree, and I can't recommend their Pearland location because of the lack of changing tables.

Looks like we'll have to wait until my baby is older so she can enroll in the Gymboree class for the next age group up.

Parent's night out - Sakura sushi

We had a quick pseudo night out on Monday and found a sushi restaurant near our apartment that was amazing. Most of my posts will be kid-centric but this really was so fabulous that I had to share. We went to Sakura Japanese Steak House at Business Center Drive and FM 518 / Broadway in Pearland, TX.

I usually only stick to my usual sushi favs but decided to try all new stuff and everything we ordered was delicious. We tried the Godzilla roll, Victoria's Secret roll and the Red Lobster roll. The flavors were so good we didn't need soy sauce at all.

We ordered too much so there was leftovers that we had tonight and it was still amazing. I've never had any sushi that tasted even halfway good after a few hours but this was outstanding.

Imagine how awesome it will be when we can actually eat in the restaurant next time rather than doing take-out. Yummy!

Houston Galleria: Play Area

I grew up in Beaumont, about 2 hours outside Houston, and use to spend lots of time at the Galleria growing up. But 20 years later I'm not as impressed with it as I used to be. Maybe that's because I got spoiled in Dallas with all the shopping options and the quality of the Dallas Galleria which is in a league of its own.

Since I knew where to find it, I got to the Galleria in no time and went right to my old favorite parking location in the blue parking garage only to find it's not stroller friendly. Every entrance into the mall from this garage has stairs and no elevators so if you're going, so far the only recommendation I can make is the yellow garage. We found it after getting into the mall later on and saw a direct access area with no stairs and no need for elevators, at least not that I saw from that level. I'll have to update this section later on when I get more familiar with it, so for now, just avoid the blue garage if you have a stroller.

Once we found the play area located on level 2 right outside Borders Books, I needed to change my youngest and didn't find a bathroom. I had to change her on the floor at the entrance to the play area only to discover a changing station inside the play area opposite the entrance. It's great that they have it there but you can't see if from the entrance and the nearest bathroom is one level down and around the corner - not close at all. They are building one but as of Sept 2010 there isn't one nearby so if you have a potty trained toddler, go to the bathroom before you get there.

The play area itself is kinda cute. It's an exact replica of the mall showing all the stores. There are some younger child's toys along the walls here and there but the play structure takes up most of the space in the center.

I should warn you now that I'm an over protective mother and like having an eye on my girls at all times. If you have one older child playing and get distracted by the younger one for a diaper change, you could turn around and not see your child at all because of how the play structure is built. There are lots of nooks and crannies for them to hide and crawl in so if you worry about strangers kidnapping your kids, this might just give you a heart attack. I came to the conclusion that I'll never go to this play area alone, instead waiting for a once a month trip with my husband so each of us has a child to watch at all times so I don't worry. If you're more nonchalant about how you watch your kids in public, you should have no problem here. I just didn't like it from a safety standpoint.

Having stated my own reservations about it, my daughter liked the play area. She had lots of fun climbing and jumping and that's the only reason we'll go back.

I forgot to take a photo when we were there so I'll update this post with a photo next month when we return.

Introduction

My name is Wendy and my family just moved into the Houston area from Dallas. I have 2 daughters and I'm married to a wonderful husband. We're currently building a home in Sienna Plantation in Missouri City, TX and hope to be all moved in by Feb of 2011.

Since we're new to the area, we don't know where all the kid-friendly places are so I'm always looking for recommendations to restaurants and activities for the girls. With the heat, playing outdoors isn't the best so one of my challenges is finding indoor play areas so we don't get cabin fever being stuck in the house all day.

The purpose of this blog is to document all the kid-friendly places I find so I don't have to remember all of them and to share them with other Missouri City moms that are looking for similar activities for their children.

I always try to include photos whenever I remember to shoot them, and sometimes you'll see lots of photos if I really like a location. Comments are always welcome, especially if it's an update on an older post so all my information is as up-do-date as possible.

I don't always have time to post daily because having a 2 yr old and a 7 month old keeps me pretty busy, but I will update as often as I can when I learn of a new location to try.

Feel free to email me directly if you have a location to recommend because we're always looking for awesome places.