I have long known that I was the odd night owl born into a family of morning people. Not just morning people. Perky morning people. The next generation seems to be carrying on the tradition. Both of my sister's children are early risers. From the moment their feet hit the floor they are running, tumbling, balls of overflowing energy.
Most people sleep in on their vacation. If I'm on vacation with my family, I am up earlier than I would be if I were working. This was no different. I had heard noises coming from other parts of the condo shortly after 6am. At 6:23am, the door to my room opened, the light was flipped on and there were lots of giggles. Small children trying to be quiet and giggling but really being anything but quiet. I opened my eyes and looked at them and they both gave up any pretense of being quiet and started cheering and giggling. Then they were off through the condo. My sister walked out of her room, looked at her children and said 'Really? It's vacation!' and went back into her room. While I was in the restroom, Sydney and Drew came into my room looking for me. Through the closed door I could hear Drew saying 'Where is she?' They didn't realize I knew they were there (and it's a very good thing they were not quiet- I don't think I would have handled being startled very well at that time of morning). When I went out, they were hiding next to the side of the couch in my room. I saw them before they saw me, which prompted them to scream that I was a monster.
With peals of laughter they ran out of my room, through the condo screaming that they were being chased by a monster. For much of the morning, the kids were monster hunters, running away from any adult that they deemed a monster (fortunately, we shared that roll). It did keep them occupied until it was time for the main event of the day, Sea World.
Sea World was a place we went often when we were visiting my Grandparents. When I was a kid, Sea World was the Shamu show, the dolphin show, the sea lion and walrus show, a pool to pet/feed the dolphins, and a couple other things. It was, other than the drive to Orlando, a pretty easy day for everyone. My sister had told me Sea World was very different from what I remembered, but I was still blown away.
Ambient music plays as you walk through the park. Drew loves to dance, and as we walked along, he was shaking his hips and boogieing. I took a video of him, and I really need to send it in to Ellen. The way he was dancing looked just the way Ellen does.
We spent some time feeding sea lions and seals. Sydney was very eager to feed them, so Mom bought five trays of fish. Then Sydney saw that we were feeding them actual fish, and she got a little squeamish. But only a little. She quickly got the hang of it and both of the munchkins enjoyed it. I was very glad to see that Sea World has hand washing stations throughout the park. I also always carry hand sanitizer in my purse, so after washing hands, we used the sanitizer.
Drew loved the shows. Sydney did too, but it was hysterical to watch Drew. I'm not sure how much he really understood, but he laughed and clapped as the animals performed. Syd was able to understand the shows a little more. People who sat near us were laughing watching Drew enjoy the shows. While there are a lot of changes, some aspects of the shows were the same as they were when I was a kid. And whomever writes the lines really needs to have several lashings with a wet noodle, because the jokes and puns were so corny.
We grabbed a brief lunch. I do not do well in the heat, and it was SO hot that day (ok, the whole week). It was somewhere in the 90's, and extremely humid. I had covered myself in sunblock that morning, but because it was so hot I was sticky with sweat, and didn't want to add another layer of disgusting by adding more sunblock as the day went on. So at lunch I was feeling a little off. I opted for a small bowl of macaroni and cheese, and a bowl of watermelon slices. When I got to the table, Drew saw my tray and said "melon". He LOVES fruit, but especially melon. I gave him one of the wedges of watermelon. He ate it and came back for more. I know how to make friends!
Mom, Laura and Sydney did the pearl diving- well, they didn't dive, but the divers went down, brought up oysters for them to choose, and then they opened the oysters for pearls. Sydney thought this was very spectacular. She got a keepsake box shaped like a dolphin and put her pearl in that to keep it forever. She kept checking on it, and was convinced the pearl got bigger each time. You might ask why I didn't do the pearl thing. Well, my birthday is in June, which means pearl is my birthstone. I love them, but over 36 years, I have accumulated quite a few pieces of pearl jewelry.
Then it was time for the most special part of the day. As part of Sydney's birthday, I gave her the Dolphin Experience. Laura, Sydney, and I went on it together. It's a behind the scenes tour of the dolphins. You start out in the dolphin nursery, and the tour guide tells you about the dolphins in the nursery. It's not all baby dolphins- it is also pregnant dolphins. Because dolphins are social creatures, if one dolphin is pregnant, they bring her whole group to the nursery. Our tour guide described it as 'a giant baby shower for dolphins'. The trainers come out and each trainer works with a certain group of dolphins, feeding them. At the end, they allow you to feed them. Laura and I stayed back to take pictures, but Sydney got right in there and threw fish into the pool for the dolphins.
After another stop to wash our hands, it was off to Dolphin Cove. This is a place where you can watch the dolphins. As part of the tour, however, we had special access. Each family group was paired with a trainer, and then we were given certain dolphins. We were paired with three male dolphins, ages 3-5. The trainer showed us hand signals to use, and the dolphins responded with different actions based on our signals. They came up to the edge of the pool and we could lean in and pet them. We stood there, about a foot away from these majestic creatures, staring into their soft eyes. It was one of those moments in life that I will never forget. A time when you feel so small, so insignificant in the scheme of the world.
Sydney talked about the dolphin experience for the rest of the trip. My sister and I did too. We both came home saying we highly recommend it. If you are going to Sea World, spend the $50 per person and take the Dolphin Encounter. It is amazing!
My second favorite part of the day was the Wild Arctic. I think I enjoyed that because it was COLD! There was an ice wall inside, which was supposed to be like an iceberg. It was so cool and refreshing, even Drew enjoyed it. As you walked through the exhibit, you could see into the pools, so the animals were at the same level as you. There was a walrus which was swimming around. Drew stood by the glass and the walrus came over and kissed him through the glass. You leave the exhibit through the gift shop, of course. There was a huge polar bear 'statue' in the store, it had to be 8 feet tall. Dad picked Drew up so he could see it, and Dad roared, like the bear was roaring at Drew. Drew roared back at the bear. This went on for a couple of minutes. It was hilarious, watching this two year old roar at a huge polar bear.
After Sea World, it was time for dinner. I went to visit my friend, Birgit and her Mom for dinner. I'll blog about our adventures later. Everyone else in my family went to an all you can eat buffet restaurant. My BIL ate 8 lobsters. Yes. Eight. He claims they were small ones. When the family came back to get me, it was after 8pm. The adults were all dog tired. I incorrectly assumed since it was getting late that the munchkins would be asleep in their car seats. They were NOT! I climbed into the car and was met with a chorus of "YAY!!! Aunt Amy's Back!" from the back seat. Aww! I felt so loved. Then Sydney and Drew started arguing about who's Aunt Amy I was. Sydney said "She's my Aunt Amy" and Drew said "My Aunt Amy". They went back and forth, voices getting louder, until finally my sister asked them to stop. Sydney said 'We'll agree that she's both of our Aunt Amy" and Drew said "Ok". They were quiet for a minute, and then Sydney very quietly said "But really, she's MY Aunt Amy!"
The kids did fall asleep in the car on the way back to the condo, and Andy and Dad had to carry them upstairs. The adults were not far behind!
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