California Trip Part 2

The Beach

After our long day at Disneyland, I had planned for us to rest and recuperate with a day at the beach. Unfortunately, it was overcast and cool in the morning so Dan and I didn't even bother with our swim suits. For the most part the kids were content to just dig in the sand and I was happy to just sit, but Dan, who grew up near the beach, was bored. So we only stayed for an hour or so because Dan wanted to go to the Long Beach Aquarium in the afternoon.

 Evie decided that she LOVES Capri Sun. At Disneyland and at the beach, she was thrilled and content if I gave her one to suck on.

 Evie wasn't all that thrilled to dig in the sand. Mostly she just wanted to be by me and to eat Cheetos.

 Anna is throwing sand at the waves, in the same way she blew raspberries at the fireworks. Anna kept asking us if there were sharks in the ocean. I don't think we ever convinced her that she didn't need to worry about sharks.

 Wet Evie: When I tried to get the girls to dip their toes in the water, Evie followed but only because she didn't want to be too far from Mom.

The Aquarium

 Touching jelly fish with Grandpa

 In the Lorikeet Forest

 Whenever Evie sees a bird, she gets excited and starts yelling, "quack quack!" She also gets pretty excited about seeing dogs too. There was lots of yelling "quack quack" in the Lorikeet forest and if she could, I think Evie would have hugged every one of those birds, but since they have a tendency to bite, we made her look at them from a distance.

 I think Anna's favorite part of the aquarium was playing on this fountain right outside the Aquarium. She was dragging in the aquarium, but when she saw this fountain and the other kids, she got a burst of energy and did several laps around it before I told her that it was time to go.

 After the aquarium, we went to dinner at our favorite Long Beach restaurant: Lucille's. They have an eclectic set of chairs in the waiting area and when Anna saw this one she said, "Look Mom! It's just my size." And then she jumped up and tried out ever other chair.

By the time we made it to Lucille's, we were all exhausted, especially the kids. So, we didn't get to enjoy much of our meal since we spent most of our energy trying to keep them from throwing tantrums and food. Evie wasn't too interested in the macaroni and cheese we ordered for her, but I gave her the lemon from my water and that kept her entertained for a bit. Despite the sour taste, she kept putting it back in her mouth.

All puckered up from that lemon

Saturday we flew home in the evening, so we spent most of the day at Dan's parents' home. We played hard and had a good time.

Living Seas Aquarium

In February I bought a season pass to the aquarium, knowing I'd have to go at least three times for it to be worth it. We managed to visit the aquarium four times before Anna turned three (and I'd have to start paying for her admission). It became one of our favorite places to go, especially in the winter.

 Anna and I loved the penguin exhibit.

 Evie was just thrilled to run around.

 I love that dirty face!

 I don't think Anna ever had any intention of actually touching the sting rays but she sure likes putting her hands in the water and then washing them off at the sink nearby.

 Evie loved growling at the fish and she especially enjoyed these little tanks that were right at her eye level.

We also met up with Heather on one of our visits. Anna asked Heather, "Where are your friends?" meaning Heather's parents. I guess she wanted them to come too.