To The Aquarium

Last Friday, we hit up our pretty ballin' local aquarium.  We got in for free because I am ninja-good at sneaking in places for free, or we got in on our friend's buddy pass.  You decide the truth.  It was amazing, and I even cried a little bit at the penguin exhibit.

We were there along with half the schools in our county.  I was loaded down with a stroller, three winter coats, a camera (duh!), and a few snacks.  Logistics were tricky, but I was on a total can't-believe-my-kids-get-to-experience-this high, so I basically floated on Cloud 9 for a few hours as we went through both buildings.  

We've watched and tremor-ed at Jaws For Toddlers Finding Nemo so we're all about sharks and fish and scary scuba divers.  We also read a lot of Curious George Goes To The Aquarium, and we understand that sometimes a penguin needs rescuing.   During breakfast I explained to Burl that we were going to aquarium.  There was no explanation needed-he just needed to know when we could go.  

Burl was so excited.  He enjoyed it all.  While some exhibits were more exciting than others, he showed an interest in it all.  Fern was along for the ride, mainly watching Burl as her cue for when to get excited.  

About crying at the penguins: Oh, man.  I might tear up just writing this.  Burl's face was full of wonder.  He was amazed.  He moved from window to window in fascination.  There was a lady in there feeding the penguins, talking to the onlookers.  If that wasn't enough, three penguins started chasing each other.  They were swimming, leaping out of the water, spinning, circling, jumping on the land.  Most of the penguins were putting on tricks as well, and it was almost too much to take in.  I watched my kids as they stared.  They were amazed, entertained, excited, and fascinated.  That look on their faces made this mama a little teary.  The bigness of what we were seeing met the smallness of my babies, and I got all mom-emotional right there at that penguin exhibit.

That moment set the tone for the whole trip.  We were giddy.  Toting around all the stuff, weaving in and out of crowds, and getting Fern in and out of the stroller proved to be small sacrifices for the whole experience.  

Thanks to those who got us in.  This trip was wonderful and we really enjoyed ourselves.  

Last time we went, Fern wasn't born, and Burl was the same age that Fern is now.  Oh, and I was about 40 pound heavier.  In case any of yall are numbers people.  It was fun to read about that trip.