aquarium

Yesterday we had a great opportunity to go to the Monterey Bay Aquarium with our whole family and our friends for a home school day. We took off at 8:30 in the morning because Darren and I absolutely love a certain cinnamon roll shop on Cannery Row and we were determined to have a yummy snack before the aquarium. With treats in hand we found a bench and started to eat but looked up just in time to see a family from our group. Sheepishly we gobbled up our cinnamon rolls and spent some time talking with them. We were able to check in and enter without waiting for the rest of our group so we got the kids busy at the touch pools and bat ray tank right away. After such a long car ride they really needed to DO something!

After a while we were able to meet up with the rest of the gang. We ate our lunch outside and headed back in for more sights. I really liked the jellyfish and shark exhibits but the darkness was very uncomfortable for Cameron so we didn't get to stay as long as we would have liked. The kids really enjoyed the seahorses, otters and penguins. After about three hours fish fatigue set in and we were done.

No day in Monterey would be complete without a stop at Dennis the Menace park so we took the kids over there to completely exhaust them before the long ride home. The kids loved climbing on the train engine and Jason took bravery to a new level as he explored the very top of the train. They also loved the suspension bridge, crazy slides and tunnels. When we were convinced that they were worn out we piled into the car for the ride home. Have you ever driven for two hours with three children in the back seat and experienced total silence? We have, and it is a beautiful thing!