San Antonio: The Riverwalk

It was to be our last morning in San Antonio.  With only a few hours to play around with before needing to be at the airport, we decided to drive over to the Rivercenter Mall which allows you access to the Riverwalk.   The Riverwalk has this cool ambiance to it.  Then you add these little restaurants that sit riverside and you start imagining yourself dinning peacefully and watching the world go by.   Someday that still would be cool to do, but we just walked it - or as far as we really could with the time we had.  It's quite the distance.

They do have tour boats that go up and down but not one of them from what I could tell could accommodate a wheelchair.   But I really enjoyed the walk. There are interesting people to meet along the way - which is kind of how I like life to be.  You never know who's meant to cross your path or bring you a message that you need to hear.   There was a homeless man, sitting on one of the garden lawn edges who had a wrapped up beer can partially covered by a brown paper bag.  Such a sweet and pleasant man.  Who was so complimentary and kind to Noah as we were walking.  Sometimes those who have the hardest journey in life turn out to be those who can recognize and appreciate other types of struggles.  He wanted to make sure we had seen the best that Texas had to offer and had hoped that we were able to see the Alamo.  He had a good heart.  We wished him well and kept walking.   I'm sure not many people stop to chat with him.   It's likely as taboo to be homeless as some perceive it is to have a disabled child. 

Many restaurants invited us in to dine with them on the water's edge.  I wanted so badly to take them up on their offers, but time simply didn't permit.  But, I'm glad they approached us, knowing we'd need to carry Noah's wheelchair in some cases up a few steps in order to dine with many of them, they didn't think twice about asking us.  Maintenance boats and workers that maintain the Riverwalk's greenery were also very polite and kind, moving their hoses out of the way so Noah's wheelchair could easily go by.  Even other people across the pond enjoying brunch would wave to us as if they'd always known us. 

It's a really beautiful thing to feel like you're seen.   There are a lot of times when you feel invisible to the world.  I can go to Target or or to the grocery store and people will either do their best to look away or you can't get them to stop staring.  Being approached and spoken to doesn't happen as much as you might think it does.  Let alone a stranger waving to you just because they are making kind bodily gesture to say hello.   There is also some rich history along the Riverwalk which I loved.  Many buildings with signs that told their stories.   Many rusted and worn from age, but still hanging strong. 


The water was an interesting shade of algae green.  And occasionally you could peak through the green to see a plastic spoon or a piece of trash, but for the most part it looked like the maintenance crew did an excellent job of cleaning and maintaining the river.  It's a peaceful walk, and Noah loved it.  He's very much an outdoor individual.   There was a costume convention going on the day that we were leaving so the boys were greeted with some very interesting characters - Star Wars, Disney,.... things with glitter and tails and horns... oh my.   But colorful people that we welcomed on our path too.  Some even were kind enough to pose for pictures. 

Then we got an exciting phone call that the family we had wanted to badly to meet had come to the mall so we could say a quick hello before we had to leave for home.  That was a really fast walk back, because we were eager to see them for as long as we could.  We had connected with this family sometime ago through special needs groups and resources.  They are the sweetest family you could ever imagine.  Sammi is just a pinch younger than Noah and has a different diagnosis.  She has Osteogenesis Imperfecta  (OI).  But nothing stops her.  She has the most precious spirit you could ever imagine.   She is a child that when you are around her, she makes you feel nothing but joy and happiness.  She's got spunk and this incredible energy that lights up when you're around her.  She's so much fun and she made me smile and laugh.  And she has the perfect older brother, John and sister, Sarah.  Kind, tender and super polite and helpful.  They are such a beautiful family, and meeting them was the best gift before we left.  And it really made the trip feel full circle and complete. 

Sammi is getting a power wheelchair soon.  Her mom and I spoke briefly about the financial challenges of trying to afford a handicapped accessible van.  It's not easy - not easy at all.  I wanted so badly to hand her the keys to the rental van that had been provided to us on the trip and say drive us to the airport and then it's yours.  I know that kind of need, I know that kind of struggle and trying to figure out how to make it all work.   My heart still now that I'm home I keeps thinking about how can I do more to help them.  They are so deserving of good things to come their way.  And this endless cycle that all of us do to try to figure out ways to financially help our children.  It's a very painful place to be as a parent.  Knowing there are so many things that your child needs for their daily living and that would make the world of difference in their quality of life - but you fail to be able to access it because it's always of reach.  Imagine walking up each morning feeling that defeated.   We do the best we can do in the moment - but a handicapped van - and  ramp just to allow your child to go to the mall or a grocery store, or see the world... I keep thinking if I pray hard enough on it that Sammi will get her van, somehow, someway that precious little girl and her family see some wonderful and amazing things come their way.  I love them.  I hope I get the chance to get back to San Antonio someday to be able to spend more time with them.

We soaked up our handful of maybe 20-30 minutes at the Disney Store together, we said our goodbyes, I wanted to hug Sammi, but us special needs moms know we have this unspoken pact that we don't touch each other's kids because we understand how medically fragile they are and GERMS!!!!  So we do that kind of we'll see you around virtual hug kind of thing.  It doesn't matter what the diagnosis or condition that our children have, we recognize our lives mirroring each other.  Our worries, our fears, our greatest joys, the pain and incredible beauty we get to experience each day with these amazing souls - we know it because they live it too. 

We headed back to the hotel and quickly checked out and headed to the airport.  We got a bit lost trying to find our departure pull-up, but our hosts were there to rescue us and guide us the rest of the way.  I didn't want to leave.  For just a few short days they not only gifted Noah with this beautiful vacation but they gave me so much peace from the daily strains and struggles that come along with special needs parenting.  I pray they are blessed a thousand times over for what they are doing for families like ours.

Love,

Noah's Miracle by Stacy Warden is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

San Antonio: The Aquarium & Sea World

Noah was blessed with a surprise visit to The San Antonio & Aquarium and Sea World.  He had been telling his speech therapist for weeks that he has wanted to see a dolphin and visit the beach.  So we were exceptionally excited to be able to make one of his dreams come true.  Sometimes surprise blessings turn out to be the things that take up the most room in your heart.  There is something to be said for the unexpected coming your way.   And I never thought not in a million years that Noah would ever get to see a dolphin in his lifetime - no matter how many times he told his speech therapist he needed to see one. 

The San Antonio aquarium was easy to find.  It has a little splash park right before the front entrance which feels rather necessary with the Texas heat and humidity.  While, I'm used to some hot temperatures combine that with humidity and it's a whole other weather beast!   Surprisingly, the one I was most worried about - being Noah with no ability to self-regulate temperature did very well with that Geleeo liner in his wheelchair.  We still did have to occasionally seek some shelter and time out from the heat, but overall he trooped right through it.   Our aquarium here at home is very different - so we were so surprised when we turned the corner of the entrance to see a complete exhibit of life-sized dinosaur robots that actually roared.   It scared Luke so bad because he thought they were real.  And they did look pretty real.  And they sounded pretty real too.  A very cool exhibit - especially for little ones.   Noah kind of looked at the dinosaurs like he was calling their bluff - his eyes said it all:  I know they aren't real.    But he still thought they were neat.

The aquarium was very disabled friendly with a ramp to the main features.  Which was wonderful.  Sometimes you go to a new place a little nervous about if it's wheelchair capable.  And it was great.   It's a smaller aquarium but still so much fun.  It had fish, birds, snakes, spiders... mixed in baby stingrays, and turtles.   All the things that little boys just adore.   Noah loves seeing new things and especially loved it when his dad took him out of his wheelchair and took him up the stairs to look at the aquarium tank from up above.   Views that Noah doesn't normally get to see unless we are his legs.   He absorbed the moment draped over his daddy's shoulder.

Luke, being the incredible little brother that he is, even handpicked some special 3D books that made noise and told us we had to buy them for Noah.  He's so sweet like that, but I must really teach him soon how to assess price tags on things!   Insistent that Noah needed it we took it to the cashier and it found it's way to our suitcase.  Chris and I just looked at each other and shrugged - we were building memories and this isn't something we get to do everyday. 

After the Aquarium we made our way to meet our hosts to pick up tickets for Sea World.  Even typing it, I'm like pinch me.  Sea World.  For REAL!   Yep, we made it all the way there.  And here is the best part:  They arranged for Noah to have a meet and greet with a dolphin!

We stopped to have a quick lunch.  There are some familiar food chains in Texas, but a lot of things at the same time that we were unfamiliar with and don't have here.   We decided to stop at a place called Luby's for lunch.  A Cafeteria style place.  It was really fun, we've never been able to dine out at a place like that with Noah.  We've thought about it.  But, what has held us back is how to you juggle holding a food tray and pushing a wheelchair.  But, we braved it in the name of new experiences.   We probably hadn't been in there more than 2 minutes before someone greeted us and held our trays for us as we went down the food line and picked out our lunch.  We didn't even ask for help.  I think that's the biggest thing - I always welcome the help, in fact many times I flat our crave it.  But I feel immense guilt if I were to ask for it.  So when someone instantly recognizes I need a hand and is there for me, I want to literally wrap both my arms around them and hug them, and try to make instant friends for life. 

The food was great, and they had Noah's favorite - cheesecake.  Everyone was super friendly and spoke to him too, which made my heart smile.  I love it when people can see a little boy - and not a little boy in a wheelchair who can't talk back.  Texas is exceptional like that.  A very friendly and loving State - hands down I wish it was a bit more like that here.  While we still have our occasional good people out our way, it's not to the degree of hospitality and friendliness that Texas has.

We ate our lunch and soaked up all the hydration we could get and headed out to Sea World for our adventures.  Sea World is huge.  And I mean really huge.  The parking lot alone I think blew my mind.  I don't think we have any attraction out there quite that big.  All of the handicapped parking was taken.  So we unloaded Noah and then had his daddy find any parking spot he could find.  It was really the only option when you need ramp access.  I was a tad worried that Sea World would not allow Noah's juices and foods through the gate and they don't permit outside food and drink.  Although they did check his bag they didn't mention a thing and let us through.  Which was kind of them.  I always feel like I'm on guard to defend Noah's needs.  What a relief.  Everything was just perfect. 

The heat was really hot, and a blower mist fan we had bought at our local zoo for Noah died literally not even 5 minutes into Sea World.  I still don't know what was wrong with it, but thank goodness we spotted a Shamu spray/mist fan and we gladly forked over money for it.  It was HOT!  We had no idea where we were going.  We looked the map and kind of just went with a path that led us to the Orca Whale Show!   We were blessed to have reserved seating so Noah could see well - even in his wheelchair.   It's amazing how big Orca Whales really are.  Massive.   You always think well they're big - but never that big.   Noah was glued to the tank and had his classic giggle and smile.  Luke was so in awe that I'd ask him a question and he wouldn't respond because he was so absorbed in what he was seeing.   It was a really great show, just the right amount of time - about 15 minutes, not too long, not too short.  We decided we needed something to keep Noah hydrated so we grabbed a frozen lemonaide and tried to feed it to Noah.  First time he's ever had a frozen lemonaide and he loved it.  We could not spoon it fast enough for him.  Which made keeping him hydrated a thousand times easier.

We still had to catch some shade when we could and go into gift shops here and there to give us some relief, but Noah didn't even demonstrate any kind of signs of heat problems in his skin tone and face.  We had a little bit of a walk to the Dolphin Cove, and met with a very nice man who coordinated Noah's Dolphin visit.   Other staff kept the other dolphins busy, while one named Nellie was isolated to play with Noah.  She was really sweet and very friendly.  Noah and Luke were able to feed her fish and pet her.  You'd think that a Dolphin would feel a bit like a fish - on the slimy side - but not at all, a hard like surface much like touching our skin, dry and hard.  I think Noah didn't even know what to do he was beyond excited.  Nellie playfully splashed and waved to us goodbye.  It was a truly special moment.  And something I know that Noah and Luke will never forget. 

In fact, since we've been back Luke keeps telling us each morning he's ready to go to Sea World and Noah won't stop migrating towards his stuffed dolphin - a gift from the Sea World staff for Noah.  Sea World certainly captured their interests.  We were worried we'd be stuck in rush hour traffic to find a place to eat so we opted to stay at Sea World to eat.  It's really expensive to eat at Sea World and I'm not sure I'd advise it - unless you're in a position like we were and kind of had to.
You can watch the video of Noah's special day here:



We headed back to the car, from a beautiful experience and day.  I almost wish it didn't have to end.  I value these special moments that we can enjoy as a family.  We knew that our travels were coming to an end.  The next day we were scheduled to hop a plane for home.  We knew we'd need a little bit of an activity to keep Noah occupied before checking out of the hotel so we opted to drive up the Rivercenter Mall and walk the Riverwalk  and meet another special needs family that I've come to know and adore that live in San Antonio.  

When you meet a special needs family for the first time, it's not the whole book - just the first page and another chapter waiting to be written.

Love,



Noah's Miracle by Stacy Warden is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

San Antonio: CRIT USA & Soluna

Right across the street from Morgan's Wonderland is a new therapy center called CRIT USA (Children's Rehabilitation Institute of Teleton.)  It almost feels like it really shares the same parking lot with Morgan's with Morgan's Academy in the middle (a middle and high school for children with special needs).  CRIT USA is a really large therapy center so you can't miss it from the street.   It opened in November of 2014 and is a 45,000 square foot state of the art facility that cost 18 million dollars to build.   I had the opportunity to schedule a tour while in San Antonio to view it.  I was in awe of it.  From the moment you walk in the doors you can very much tell how unique of a therapy center it truly is.  I've been in a lot of therapy centers and have seen nothing even close to this before.  

What makes this therapy center even more unique is how it accommodates providing therapy to children with relying on help from financial donors to ensure that every child can participate in therapy with a sliding scale of $1-$20 per therapy.  If you have a child with special needs you probably just fainted when I told you that amazing fact.  No insurance?  No medical necessity approval?  No PAR's?  No restorative potential questions?  None of it.  Your child needs therapy and you can't afford it - end of story this is the place you make a mad dash to.  Treating children with special needs has become a million dollar industry, with equipment and therapy costs not covered by insurance parents are draining all of their resources to offer their children a chance at recovery and a quality of life.  So just imagine if there was a place (and I'm telling you that there is) where those worries were taken care of? 

CRIT USA is extremely clean.  Hand sanitizing stations line the facility, the floors are clean, the walls are clean, chairs and tables all clean.  I even witnessed therapy mats being cleaned after each use.  Extremely important when you are dealing with medically fragile children.   They have all the traditional therapies; Physical Therapy, Occupational Therapy; Speech Therapy, mixed in with some great new technology Lokomat, which is like a robotic outfit that assists with weight bearing, standing and patterning of walking.  Children walk while engaging in interactive games and dance programs on a screen in front of them.

They also have a beautiful sensory room for therapy, and likely the most gorgeous warm water pool I have ever laid my eyes on.  I didn't even know what to do with myself I kept thinking someone just pinch me I'm dreaming as you'd never guess that something like this existed, let alone all children with special needs be able to access it.  Most families in fact come from out of state (families from 38 states have so far traveled for therapy), and spend about 2 weeks each stay, with room and board generally at the Ronald McDonald house, or by stating with other families that they have connected with that live locally in the area.  And families come a few times yearly.  That of course is the hardest part would be traveling for therapy, and in our case really hard as it takes two parents to travel with Noah because of his high needs and taking 6- 8 weeks off from your employer isn't going to be possible for most people yearly.  Ideally the center has the potential to be so highly beneficial for children that you'd want to take your child multiple times weekly, year round.

A large physical therapy area had really nice and new adaptive equipment.  Various styles of gait trainers, standers, even recreational adaptive bikes.  Tons of money just in equipment alone - to use while there lined up neatly, nicely and again very clean in a row.  It was like a gorgeous show room of equipment.  They have a really quaint and quiet parent's room where you can wait during therapies or take a moment to rest, clean restrooms with adequate changing spaces, activities for siblings and recreational activities through the week for children to participate in, they have their very own complete medical staff of neurologists, psychologists  and nutritionists to accompany their team of therapists.  It's just beautiful. 

The concept of CRIT is something that I celebrate and admire greatly.  Sometimes it feels like everyone is standing in line to just take advantage of an already bad situation financially with special needs families.  CRIT even has what they call a "shop"  but you go in and get what you need.  Pre-loved items, new diapers... it's all there to help you along your stay at no cost.  You go in and get what you need.   CRIT has the right idea 100 percent.  They are giving so many children a real chance at help because they aren't charging these families an arm and a leg for help.  Generous donors are paving the way for possibilities for all of these children.  And I'm all for telling insurance companies they can go hug a rock - most of the time that avenue feels worthless anyway.

There was also a beautiful sense of community as you walked the halls.  Other parents openly saying hello, smiling, waiving.  It was certainly friendly, warm and welcoming.  I hope CRIT USA expands, I'd love it if they planted one in Colorado.  While predominately a Spanish/American facility it accommodates and services all children with special needs and nationalities.   If you are in the San Antonio area this center is definitely worth scheduling a tour/visit to determine if you think it is a good match for your child's needs.  If nothing else your jaw will drop from all the fancy technology and resources it has to offer.   This center gets a high five and a fist bump!  It is amazing.

After our tour we met the co-founders of Project Angel Fares for dinner at at wonderful restaurant called Soluna.  Texas has amazing Mexican food.  A really pretty restaurant with incredible plants and flowers.  We were greeted by Melissa and Kevin's son, Dylan.  He gave us the biggest hug.  A truly sweet and special young man.  I could tell in his genuine hug that he is going to grow up in his parent's footsteps and do amazing acts of random kindness.   He had such a tender way about him for his young age.  Our hosts could not have been more lovely and true to their mission of helping children and families on the special needs journey.   They have a sincere and honest passion, the kind of people when you are around them that inspires you personally to find ways of doing more - giving back more, helping more - being everything you can be to be that guiding light for someone else trying to find their way out of the darkness.

Dinner was scrumptious, and I think that Soluna had the best guacamole and queso that I have ever had.  The presentation of food was just lovely.  Comfort food at it's best.   A must dine place if you are visiting San Antonio.  After dinner we headed back to the hotel for the comforts of some great complimentary water and got some rest for our surprise visit to the San Antonio Aquarium and Sea World!!!! 

Love,



Noah's Miracle by Stacy Warden is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

San Antonio: Welcome to Morgan's Wonderland!

We anticipated a very hot day at Morgan's Wonderland before we traveled (being an outdoor activity) so we purchased a product called Geleeo, which is a cooling liner designed for baby strollers.  We gambled on it working and it did!  Fabulous product.  If you have a child that overheats in hot weather or has difficult regulating temperature I recommend it.   With our Geleeo installed in Noah's Convaid Trekker Wheelchair off we headed towards a day of accessible amusement park fun! 


We were greeted by the Project Angel Fares team and Channel Fox 29 news when we arrived.  Our excitement was just overflowing.   We never dreamed that Noah would ever have the opportunity to visit Morgan's.  And here we were!  We were given wrist bands for the sensory areas and bands so that if a child gets separated from you that they can easily be found.  They have a giant map on the wall with lots of little butterflies demonstrating all the visitors to Morgan's Wonderland from each state.  We placed our butterfly on the map.  Our little stamp that we had been there! 

We did some interviews for Fox 29 for a piece they were doing on Project Angel Fares and Morgan's Wonderland, and spent some lovely time with Morgan's staff and Project Angel Fares.  They are the warmest and most loving people you could ever wish to meet.  I wish they would have been able to spend the entire day with us.  We enjoyed their company so much.  When you enter Morgan's Wonderland the first thing you come to are two giant hands holding a butterfly.  The butterfly has always felt symbolic for the special needs journey; as a butterfly is proof that you can go through a great deal in your life and still become something beautiful.  It is the most perfect statute for a place like Morgan's Wonderland.  It felt like looking at hope, and an instant reminder of what mattered most.  These precious moments.

Luke immediately scampered off, and I don't think I have seen him more happier in his life.  He had hit playground heaven.  And Noah and daddy quickly followed and chased Luke up a playground that was fully handicapped accessible.  There was nothing that Noah could not do.  It's kind of hard to imagine it - as our days are full of obstacles that being barrier free with a wheelchair was such a wonderful feeling.  Noah was in pure delight.  Smiles, giggles and full body extension spoke volumes about the joy Noah was experiencing.  The park is much bigger than I imagined and there is so much to do.  We only did each activity once, simply due to the heat but if it had been cooler we would have done every activity there multiple times. 

It's hard to have a favorite thing about Morgan's Wonderland because every activity within the park is so well thought out and perfect in accessibility.  They even considered the heat and had large fans that were  blowing water mist throughout the park.  All activities from train rides, to carousals, to car rides were all fully accessible allowing the child to remain in a wheelchair.   Everything dreams of made of when you have a child that is confined to a wheelchair and is very limited in being able to participate and play like other children can.  Noah got to fish for the very first time in his life from an accessible dock that was fully sheltered from the sun.  Although we did have one good strong bite, we lost the fish and never were able to pull one from the water.  (Which hopefully is a sign that someday we'll be lucky enough for find our way back to Morgan's to give it another try).  They are expanding Morgan's and building a water park that opens in 2017 that will have amazing accessible features.   I am crossing my fingers and toes that we'll find a way to get Noah back to see it. 

They also had a Toyota Accessible vehicle display in the park.  Three vehicles that any family with a child in a wheelchair would simply drool over.  Noah's daddy had to sell his truck a few years ago to help pay for Noah's out of pocket medical and equipment costs.  Something that was really hard for him and for us to do.  He loved his truck.  But we were really out of options financially so through the years we've sold off many of our possessions just to try to keep going for Noah.  So when Chris laid his eyes on A Toyota Sienna that had an extended cab with captain's chair in the back seat with one that lowered to the ground to transfer Noah up and into the truck and a hitch mounted lift to lift Noah's wheelchair into the truck bed with a shell that would retract for easy loading and I think I seen his mouth hit the floor.  Drool would have followed but I think it was so hot it evaporated quickly.  Chris was staring at his dream vehicle - and the idea that it was accessible for all of Noah's needs made it that much sweeter.  Yet the price likely makes it a dream that may never be reached retailing at around $40,000.  Accessible vehicles have some really tough prices.  

I think that is what made Morgan's so special.  When you have a child with special needs you watch all your dreams slowly die one by one, and your life gets more altered with each passing day.  I was watching Noah & Luke's dreams come alive - and even Chris' seeing that truck and holding out hope that maybe someday it could be real, and mine as well as my biggest dreams are moments of us all playing together as a family without limits.  Morgan's Wonderland is a place of possibility.  It felt magical there. 

They had amazing sensory areas and green screens for children.  Children of all abilities could make virtual paintings that are automatically emailed to you so you can save your child's masterpiece all by a programed wristband.  Sensory activities for vestibular motion like riding mechanical horses, and playing like you were shopping with a miniature store. 

Morgan's also has an incredible event center where they hold events and activities.  So much thought and effort went into building that park.  Sometimes I find myself looking at things and saying if only they asked a special needs parent we could make things a million times better - but there is not one thing that Morgan's could have done or built better than they did.  It is special needs perfection. 

Noah got to meet Humphrey - a turtle that wanted to hang out under his wheelchair.  Which was really kind of sweet.   And sadly Luke mis-stepped and didn't see that there was a tiny gecko by his feet which was a tad traumatic for him once he realized what had happened, I wasn't sure how to explain that to Luke or how to comfort him properly through that, so I rather ushered him to another part of the park and tried to distract his thoughts with another activity.  Honestly I was just praying we'd see another gecko so he'd think it was still alive to make it easier on him, but we never did. 

We had some hotdogs at the park at the concessions stand, decent food I thought and we sat at a large picnic area and had lunch together.  That was our very first picnic together as a family.  Noah almost being 7 years old and our first picnic lunch with picnic tables.  I think people can't really understand the significance of how limited our experiences are having a child that is severely disabled so something like this you can't even really properly put into words.  When we were inside Morgan's Wonderland we were a "normal" family in every sense of the word.  There was not one thing there we couldn't all do together; the place of ultimate family participation.

If you'd like to watch our news story about our trip to Morgan's Wonderland you can find it here

We delight in the beauty of the butterfly, but rarely admit the changes it has gone through to achieve that beauty.' Maya Angelou Love,



Noah's Miracle by Stacy Warden is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

San Antonio: The Alamo & Heroic Resistance

Visiting a piece of history always feels significant.  We're all gracing this earth with our individual life's story.  Who would have ever thought that 297 years after the Alamo was built that a little boy named Noah and his family would step through the Shrine's front door.  While our visit placed no significance and possessed no value to the Alamo itself, our visit contributed to our life's story.  Something we never thought we'd do, or see, or experience as a family with a severely disabled child. Even though we visited the Alamo in the evening hours the heat offered us little to no relief.  The sun followed us through the courtyards as we took temporary shelter from the branches of majestic trees.  Canons, and historic relics sprinkled about telling the story of the 1836 Battle of the Alamo.

I admired the feeling of strength of the Alamo possessed and those who fought for 13 long days, never giving up.  Just like Noah fought for those long 13 minutes to live.  Never giving in and willing to fight to the bitter end.   To a large extent I recognize that fighting drive.  Pressing on at all costs.  Defending, pursuing, and fighting with all that you have - even in the end knowing that a favorable outcome is likely against you.  The courtyards were peaceful with vibrant shades of green.  Cactus plants so large it felt like it's own defensive wall. 

 Noah was very much interested in the walls that lined the courtyard that told the story of the Alamo.  Although Noah does not yet know how to read, (or at least I'm assuming he doesn't even though we do read to him frequently).  He wanted to just spend time in front of them.  Watching, looking and absorbing it.  Sometimes people give Noah little credit for the the strong comprehension abilities that he does have.  I could tell that he was having his own personal experience with the Alamo.  His eyes were alert, his body temporarily calm from his continual spastic movements.  He was learning, engaged and interested.

The Shrine itself looks very small when you view it from the street, but once you enter it's much higher than you'd expect.  A bit of a cathedral-like feel mixed with a hint of historic castle.  Of course there were signs that said you couldn't touch the walls, but I could visually tell they were rough but firm despite age.  Some corners of the ceiling looked like they were suffering from the beginnings of water seepage, but presently didn't seem to be effecting the integrity of the Shrine.  While the ceilings were high the Shrine itself didn't have an abundance of square footage.

Luke & Mommy

Although air conditioned now, it was still incredibly hot.  I visualized a stone on the ground to memorialize the finding of 4 bodies in 1937 and joking to myself that they must have passed from the Texas heat.  There were no pictures permitted within the Shrine.  So it is really one of those places you must see for yourself.  You do have a sense that a very honorable and majestic place to visit.   Noah let out an incredibly big sigh inside the Shrine.  Almost as if displaying relief or conveying a profound understanding about where he was and what he was experiencing. 

Thank Goodness for Texas Water

Noah & His Daddy at the Alamo

There are some really beautiful statutes that line the street near the Alamo.  I have a thing for Angels and really liked the Angel memorial.  There are shops just across from the Alamo.  You'd assume that the Alamo would be out in the middle of nowhere, but it's really almost in the center of everything.  Across the street there was a Ripley's Believe it or Not Museum of sorts and haunted house.  That was certainly interesting and filled with some odd things you just don't see everyday.  It was fun to walk in and out of street shops and it also helped relieve some of the heat to keep it manageable.  All very worthwhile to see if you are traveling down to San Antonio to Morgan's Wonderland.

We concluded our first day in San Antonio trying to unsuccessfully hunt down a Chick-Fil-A for Noah and settling on hotel food, refreshing showers, and tucked ourselves in nicely to get ready for our exciting day ahead at Morgan's Wonderland.  

Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails.  Explore. Dream. Discover. Mark Twain


Love,



Noah's Miracle by Stacy Warden is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.