Adventures at the Aquarium!
Yesterday, Audrey & I went to the Aquarium of the Pacific with our friends Sara & Miles. We had such a GREAT time! I definitely want to go back with Jeff sometime!
First off, Sara lives in Long Beach (which is where the aquarium is located) so she bought a year pass. That Audrey and me in for free! That was a great way to start our visit :)
When we first walked in, we saw the giant aquarium with scuba divers inside. They were getting ready to start a little presentation about feeding the fish. We were able to get up close to the tank for a great view. Audrey and Miles were amazed at all the creatures swimming past! Both of them pointed excitedly and tracked the fish as they swim by. One scuba diver even dove down to where we were seated and waved to Audrey & Miles. The kids were fascinated!
Next, we made our way through the aquarium, stopping to park our strollers in front of the occasional fish tank for Audrey & Miles to get a close up view. They would sit staring and pointing and laughing and babbling as all the fish swam by! We watched some seals "play" with each other in their tank and then made our way outside to the shark area. There were some open petting areas but I wasn't comfortable letting my 11 month old stick her fingers in a tank of sharks! We just looked and Audrey pointed away to her heart's content!
Then it was time to go visit the larakeets, cute little birds that will eat out of your hands (if you pay $3 for some nectar!). We watched other people feed the larakeets, which once again was extremely fascinating for Audrey & Miles!
After the larakeets, we paused to have lunch. Then is was on to the penguin exhibit! Audrey got to pose next to a fake penguin and then watched real penguins swim around. Audrey & Miles had a great time watching the penguins (and watching each other watch the penguins!).
Back inside, we saw some seahorses, sea anemones, jelly fish, and otters swim around. Audrey & Miles also got to touch a starfish! I was impressed with how gentle they both were with this fun little sea creature :)
Before we left, I got Audrey a souvenier - a little Aquarium of the Pacific t-shirt! Then we said our good-byes and headed home. Audrey was completely silent the entire time - the aquarium weared her out and she took a nice long nap! I have to say, this was the most fun I had with Audrey so far all summer! :-D
Here's a video followed by some pictures:
Click here to view these pictures larger
First off, Sara lives in Long Beach (which is where the aquarium is located) so she bought a year pass. That Audrey and me in for free! That was a great way to start our visit :)
When we first walked in, we saw the giant aquarium with scuba divers inside. They were getting ready to start a little presentation about feeding the fish. We were able to get up close to the tank for a great view. Audrey and Miles were amazed at all the creatures swimming past! Both of them pointed excitedly and tracked the fish as they swim by. One scuba diver even dove down to where we were seated and waved to Audrey & Miles. The kids were fascinated!
Next, we made our way through the aquarium, stopping to park our strollers in front of the occasional fish tank for Audrey & Miles to get a close up view. They would sit staring and pointing and laughing and babbling as all the fish swam by! We watched some seals "play" with each other in their tank and then made our way outside to the shark area. There were some open petting areas but I wasn't comfortable letting my 11 month old stick her fingers in a tank of sharks! We just looked and Audrey pointed away to her heart's content!
Then it was time to go visit the larakeets, cute little birds that will eat out of your hands (if you pay $3 for some nectar!). We watched other people feed the larakeets, which once again was extremely fascinating for Audrey & Miles!
After the larakeets, we paused to have lunch. Then is was on to the penguin exhibit! Audrey got to pose next to a fake penguin and then watched real penguins swim around. Audrey & Miles had a great time watching the penguins (and watching each other watch the penguins!).
Back inside, we saw some seahorses, sea anemones, jelly fish, and otters swim around. Audrey & Miles also got to touch a starfish! I was impressed with how gentle they both were with this fun little sea creature :)
Before we left, I got Audrey a souvenier - a little Aquarium of the Pacific t-shirt! Then we said our good-byes and headed home. Audrey was completely silent the entire time - the aquarium weared her out and she took a nice long nap! I have to say, this was the most fun I had with Audrey so far all summer! :-D
Here's a video followed by some pictures:
Click to viewClick here to view these pictures larger