Lost Pines, Texas

. . . so where are we spending the day and night . . .

. . . Hyatt Regency Lost Pines Resort.  for several years I have read many reviews of how great this place is and heard friends tell me that their entire family had a blast while staying at Lost Pines.  I have often checked the room rates and quickly exited.  When I knew we would be in Austin, I checked the rates and found a really great rate so booked it.  I thought why not give it a try?  I am a loyal Hilton Honors person so stay there to enjoy our Diamond Perks.  I knew staying here we would be bottom of the barrel when it came to prioirty and extra perks but for the price was fine with that fact.  We arrived before check in so we could enjoy the resort before our room was ready.  We quickly changed into our swimsuits and headed right for the Crooked River Water Park (free)!  It was HOT!  We could only find chairs in the sun but eventually as people left, I claimed another set of chairs in the shade.  I like to have a sun chair and a shade chair!  Colin was off having fun as was I too.  I would hop in the lazy river to try and cool off . . . it is summer in Texas and the water is really warm . . . it wasn't that crowded but busy.  We both worked up an appetite so ordered and early dinner and dined by the lazy river.  As we were waiting on our food to arrive Colin was asking deep questions . . . one that I remember is "did the first man have a belly button?  You know he was just put here so wasn't connected."  Oh my, I think I probably choked on my water.  Thankfully, our food arrived . . .

. . . and he totally forgot about those serious thoughts . . .

We enjoyed the water for a bit longer before checking into our room.  Now, I booked the cheapest room possible and was told we would not have a balcony, but we did.  The room was large and the bathroom was even bigger!  We were able to relax a bit  . . .

. . . before we headed out to participate in the evening activities around the resort.  First fun time was s'mores (free).  Colin burned his hand with the first marshmallow so had to do a take two . . .

Then it was off to the outdoor movie (free) . . .

Thankfully it got dark within a few minutes and the movie which happened to be The Rescuers Down Under started . . .

It was not the most comfortable laying on hard grass with only a small pool towel.  All I could think about were the chiggers (red bugs) but had thankfully brought bug spray.  I am sure the people near us were annoyed at my constant spraying of my arms and legs!  We both enjoyed the movie but were so ready for some rest . . . and a shower too.

zzzzzzz Good Night zzzzzzzzz

I was hoping to be able to sleep late but we had an early wake up because other guests decided to slam doors and gather outside our room in the hallway or on their balcony to plan their day.  Ugh!!  So we just got up and went to grab a bike to explore the resort . . .

. . . the bikes were nice (free) but you really are limited on where you can ride them so it did not take us all that long.  I was glad because it was so hot and humid!  We headed to Firewheel Cafe for breakfast.  Colin had the buffet ($8.95 for kids) and I ordered off the menu . . .

. . . I can not justify paying $19.95 for a breakfast buffet but for a child it was a great deal!  It was nearing check out time so we changed into our swimsuits and dropped our single bag with the bell hop.  The great thing was we could have stayed all day long and enjoyed the resort.  I usually get annoyed with the additional resort fee charge, but I think this property does a good job at making it worthwhile . . . trust me I don't say that very often!  So back to the lazy river for a couple hours of fun.  I really needed a day of nothing.  As I was changing into dry clothes for the drive home, I realized that I forgot something in the room.  As I was getting dressed this morning I hung my pajamas on the back of the bathroom door.  Yes, the same pajamas I just bought yesterday.  I told Colin to stay put and took off.  By this time we had checked out at least 3 hours ago and my room key was probably not going to let me enter our room.  I ran upstairs and as luck would have it they were cleaning our room . . . I asked the attendant and she didn't understand so I pointed to the door and she said no . . . I did not believe her so I started to enter the room and she said "oh, these?" . . . bingo they were still there.  We loaded up the car and head north on I-35 . . . thankfully it was a super easy drive home which isn't always the case when traveling this road.

***When I say FREE it was part of the resort fee which I think was $24 per night.  There were also craft activities that were free, but we did not participate.  Also, the wifi in the room was free and worked well and self parking was free too.  We only used a small part of the free activities and was content paying the resort fee . . . not that I had a choice.****