Cousin Love

After we returned from California we soaked up as much cousin fun as we could. On Sunday we went to church with Aunt Laura, Uncle Jeff and the girls and then out to lunch. After the girls naps we met them at the pool and then cooked dinner out at the house. On Monday we hit up the Y again. Leah loved being able to work out with her pass. And then we spent Monday afternoon at the pool again!

Tuesday the Omni was having some extra fun at the pool. The girls had a blast with the Jenga game and really loved the water balloon fights. They also got to enjoy their first chaco taco! Later they got to swim with Tony and Cece again while I went to a massage appointment. The highlight of that swim was when Tony pulled a dead squirrel out of the tank, yuck!!! That night we dressed up in our red, white and blue, picked up some Pizza's for dinner before heading over to see the family. After dinner we found a spot and got settled in for some fireworks. It was Nat and Jo's first time and they did great. I think it helped that they had cousins to watch with! It was a great trip and we are so glad that they are coming to Illinois in a few weeks so we can have some more family fun!

La Jolla Cove

And just when you think California can't get any better, you visit La Jolla Cove and you totally understand why people pay the crazy money to live here. Seriously gorgeous! And we got there nice and early in the day, around 9AM so we got up front beach parking. We couldn't have planned it better if we tried.

The girls gushed over the sea lions and seals and then got right to work looking for shells. I told them not to get wet and to stay close to shore...we didn't have swim suits on, and it was cold...they're wearing jackets! But they didn't listen, total shocker. Next thing I knew, all three had wet shorts. Oh Well!!!

We walked up the shore a ways for different views and to see more of the sea life. The girls found crabs and snails and minnows. They loved watching the seals and sea lions splash and swim the most. I did too! For lunch we walked up to a little place on La Jolla drive. They had breakfast for lunch, and then we walked back to the van. After about 4 hours our time was coming to an end. We enjoyed the views while they lasted and then hit the road back to Arizona.

San Diego Zoo

This is Hattie's adventurer pose :)

So this may be a little bit of a picture overload, but it was such a fun day at the zoo. We seriously spent over 9 hours covering every inch of the San Diego Zoo. It was a fantastic day, and It seriously almost brought tears to my eyes seeing the excitement in the girls faces. The only thing missing was Mitch, it really made me sad that he wasn't there with us, and totally had me looking forward to our trip to South Carolina later this month so he can have all these experiences with the girls. `

We started right away with the bus tour. I had read that it was the best way to see the zoo and map it all out. And it was! We got to see so many animals right off the bat. The girls thought it was a blast, and we were there early so we beat the crowds. It also kind of gave us a chance to look at the guide and figure out what shows/talks were where so we could map out our day.

We started out in the kids park, the girls enjoyed the petting zoo, and we moved on from there. The Polar Bears were a favorite, and the Koalas! We don't have them in St. Louis or Decatur, so the girls thought they were great. We loved seeing the Snow leopard and while we were walking through there was one on one of the overheard bridges pacing back and forth. He was ready to POUNCE on something, but thankfully the gate was locked! But still, the girls got a kick out of watching him moving back and forth.

Around that time we were nearing the gondola's. The girls remembered the gondola rides we took in Salt Lake City, so they HAD to do it. And it was the perfect time to take a trip back to the entrance of the park...it was lunch time. Hattie rode with Ellen, and Leah and Kiersten rode with me. Leah was acting all nervous but I think she secretly loved it. After a quick lunch, we kept on trekking. We saw the giraffes and the elephants. And took a small break for a 4-D movie, Ice Age. The girls loved it! They laughed and laughed, and got a big kick out of the water and the shaking chairs. And then we visited the Pandas. The line was long, and we waited quite a while but they were well worth the wait! They were so adorable, and we actually saw one climb a tree and then take a seat and have a snack. They were a big hit! The girls each got a souvenir snow globe. Off to La Jolla Cove tomorrow for another day at the beach!