Fun around town

We have had so much fun the last week or so. Now that Matthew is a walking boy we have been able to do so much more. It's so fun to get out of the house because Matthew is so curious about how he can interact with his world, and is so excited to learn new things. I'm really glad we have been making the most of our time off this summer. It makes me so grateful everyday that Alex and I both have jobs that give us so much time off together to do fun things with Matthew.

Here is all the fun we have had this week, Matthew,

Last Saturday it was just you and me while daddy was at work. So I decided we would go to the zoo. We went once before back in March and you were for the most part, only mildly impressed. This time was so different. You walked around on your own in the petting zoo and had a great time chasing after the goats and petting them. Then we rode a train for the first time. You waited so patiently for our turn, and once we were on your eyes were so full of life. You looked all around, very calmly, and really took it all in. Then we were hot so you played in the fountains. This was a perfect thing for a hot day and you loved it. Last time we were here you were afraid of sudden changes to the fountains, but this time you couldn't get enough. One little bully boy pushed you over for no reason, and you just took it in stride. We had some lunch I sneaked in with me, and then we were off to see the giraffes, zebras, penguins, primates and monkeys, and kangaroos. We went back on the train one more time, and then one more round of the fountains. You loved it!

Then on Tuesday we met up with a friend of mine from high school who I had not seen in almost 5 years! She has two kids now, a girl, and a boy close to your age. We went to the aquarium, which you are an old pro at. But this was the first time you went as a walker, and again, knew you had what it took to take yourself anywhere you wanted! We just went a few weeks ago, but you seemed to be so much more curious and lively. You pointed to the stingrays, sharks, and turtles, you LOVE the ducks and other birds, tried to touch the large redfish that swim by right at hand height, and became Mad Matt when it was time to leave. You wanted to do the touch tank, and didn't even mind the ice cold water as you touched a starfish and sea anemone. After we had lunch, again sneaked in, we played in the splash pad. Again, you loved the fountains. You had another run-in with a kid, this one not a bully, but was running and clobbered you, tackling you like a pancake to the ground. This upset you, but only for a minute.

We fed our backyard ducks. You definitely know what birds are, and you like ducks. I threw bread, while you held your piece not sure if you wanted to part with it. When you were finally ready to try, you liked it, but I was out of bread. You pretested this, so I got 2 more slices of bread, which you were very excited to throw. The ducks liked you, even though two of the three were full and walked away on their own! They remembered you though because the next morning at breakfast they were waiting for us!

Daddy decided he wanted to go to the beach on his day off this week so we packed a picnic lunch and some toys and were off to Clearwater. We decided to park at a different location than we normally do because we wanted to try the shaded playgrounds at the beach. You had so much fun climbing and sliding and going through tunnels. You played in the sand, watched daddy and I play paddleball while you held your own paddle. We swam and you had fun jumping over the waves. You had a yummy lunch, complete with your favorite food; WATERMELON! We played a little bit more on the playground and then daddy bought an ice cream cone, which of course you were happy to help him with.

Today we went to Chick-Fil-A for lunch. They have a play place and I was curious to see if you would be big enough to enjoy any part of it. The kids in it were pretty big and sure move fast, but I found a few safe places for you to hang out in. You climbed up and down a few times, and some sweet girls were ready to help you all the way to the top. But I kept you pretty close to me and the ground. You did try to climb up the slide backwards, like the big boys. You were so cute. Then we had lunch, you first fast food meal. You ate all your fruit first, then the chicken nuggets. You were so excited to eat big kid food, and when you spotted a balloon on the ceiling, you politely said "please" and pointed so I got a balloon for you to play with.

After a good nap following Chick-Fil-A, we went to the YMCA splash park. Our teacher friends met there last week for Ella's birthday and we found out it is free on Wednesday and Friday evenings. So I called the Duffs and Granna and we all met there after dinner tonight. You loved splashing in the shallow water, like last week, but this time you were so much more brave! You pointed and wanted to climb on the playground, with water shooting all over the place. You climbed the stairs, pulled on levers and such, and even went down the slide. Daddy was too chicken to let you slide last week but this time he wasn't here. The first few times I went with you and somehow squeezed myself into the child-sized slide. Once you knew it was fun and not something to be afraid of you wanted more and more. I sent you down on your own, lying on your back, and Granna caught you at the bottom. We did this 6 or more times probably. You knew it was a big boy thing to do, and you were so proud of yourself!

I am having so much fun with you this summer. We are off for vacation next week, and I am excited that we did so much while we were here at home.

Florida Aquarium

Alex's parents came to town this weekend to see Matthew, to celebrate Adina's birthday, and to take Maggie back to south Florida until our late July travels are over. On Saturday right after they arrived and following Matthew's morning nap we went to downtown to show Alex's parents the Channelside district and the port. We had a quick lunch at a frozen drink slurpee bar (by night). Alex's dad was very disappointed that there was no high chair for Matthew, but we were happy to get a quick bite and head to the aquarium. I've been to the aquarium a number of times, most recently on school field trips, but this was everyone else's first trip there.

We started with the wetlands habitat, which was great because it was a mixture of shallow pools and trees right next to the sidewalk. Matthew has been very curious and excited about birds lately, even learning the sign for bird. He laughed as the fish swim by and splashed us, pointed to turtles and ducks, and motioned at the birds in the trees. He even sat and looked at a barn owl for a bit. This picture makes it look like he was studious than he actually was with the owl.

Then it was on to the beaches and bays exhibit, which had some really nice fish including large sharks and rays. Matthew was really excited to stand on the ledge of the aquariums and point and squawk at them. We got to the touch tank and felt the sea anemones and star fish. Well I touched them. Alex and Adina were mostly too chicken, and Matthew's arms were not long enough to get to the bottom of the 5 inch ledge they sat on.

After finishing up in the coral reefs exhibit we made our way to the lobby where we lost Neno. After looking around and Alex suggesting he was in the bathroom, I asked if they thought he was in the gift shop. Alex and Adina said they looked but when we went again there he was! We got Matthew a bunch of sea creature figurines to play with. He even tried to do the sign for "Fish" so these will be fun things for him to carry around. He got a shark, whale, seal, octopus, orca, walrus, and a few others. He loves them. Then it was on to the splash pad. The first time we tried a splash pad was at the zoo, and Matthew hated it. But I was excited to try this day because we made progress at our pool party playdate just the day before. Matthew was happy to splash in the fountains, climb on some sea creatures, and even tried walking a bit more. We sent him down a water slide. I knew it would be fast, and we wanted him to lay down so he wouldn't fall back and hit his head. Good thing because he zipped down there... quickly! He did that twice, and it was adorable.

The aquarium is really great because you can actually see pretty much everything in a couple hours. We were out of there by 3:00. I can get in to the aquarium for free with a teaching certificate, and after Alex saying how much fun he had at the aquarium I asked if he wanted a pass. So we decided to apply today's admission to a pass, and they even gave us some discounts, so we left there with a year pass for Alex for $26! I think it will be a fun place to go as a family and with friends, especially in the summer when it is hot. Now we have aquarium and zoo passes! Fun is ahead for Matthew!