Palm Springs, Day 5

Today was the big bad mama jama day. Luke wanted to go to Sea World.........so off we went to visit the animals! Cassie and Justin weren't going to be able to go to Sea World with us, because Justin got an overtime shift, and Cassie had to work her regular shift, so we were going to take Jordan with us, and have fun. BUT, Cassie was able to trade her shift, and Justin's overtime got cancelled, so they were able to come with us! HORRAY!

We got everyone loaded up and the car packed with everything. Cassie kept questioning if the wagon would fit in the mini-van, with everything else. I knew it would, but she lacked faith in the magic of the van, so she took that in her car (we'll get back to that later). We got to Sea World, at about 10:30a, and we couldn't walk up to the entrance fast enough. We gave each of the kids a map and asked where they wanted to go. Cassie found out the show schedules (which were back to back it seemed like) and we went from there, scheduling the day. We were off to see the Beluga Whales and Polar Bears first. We were walking past the one roller coaster that they had at Sea World, and Sarah couldn't contain herself, she asked daddy if she could go on it. I didn't want her to, because it looked too big and scary for her, plus, she'd get wet and be cold, but he reminded me that she loved Splash Mountain, so she'd probably love this one. So we parted ways there and went to the Beluga Whales and Polar Bears exhibit while they went on the roller coaster.

Cassie showing Luke the Whales

The whales were playing dead, I think. Weirdo's.

Luke was being silly. He was so excited to see the bears

After the Whale and Polar Bears, We decided to take the kids to the Sesame Street portion of the park. We walked up to that part of the park, and there was a HUGE jungle gym, with climbing nets to climb up to a huge tree house, and a plank that split off to a ship, or another tree house. The kids couldn't climb up fast enough. Sarah and Luke ditched Jordan and Taylor and darted up the nets and we didn't hear from them for about 20 minutes. I was slightly stressed because I assumed, since it's a huge toddler area, there was only one way in, and one way out.......not so. There were about 3 exits and entrances. Not to mention, 2 ways up and down the tree house area, so there was no way for me to completely keep an eye on the kids. Luckily, Allan went up with them, so I wasn't totally annoyed. Jordan got brave and started climbing up, but Cassie went up with him (she's a good mom like that), followed by Taylor. I was worried about Taylor climbing up, because once he's up, he'll never come back down. HA!

This was about as high as Jordan would go. He didn't want to go all the way up.

Taylor, on the other hand, wanted to go everywhere the big kids were going.

That's Cassie shewing him back down. HA!

There is a stage area, where the kids could meet Grover and Elmo! While the kids were playing on the jungle gym, I thought this would be something fun that Taylor could do and would enjoy........NO! Cassie had to go up with him, to meet them, and even then, he was not a happy guy. Elmo did a high five, and instantly, Taylor loved him. It was totally weird. Even though he warmed up a bit, Auntie Cassie was still not allowed to put him down. HA! Poor Cassie, he's a heavy kid.

Taylor giving Grover a high five.

We finally got Sarah, Luke and Taylor out of the tree house, and told them they could meet Grover and Elmo. They couldn't get there fast enough. They LOVED it! They could've played with them for hours, and the characters were totally fun and personable! Jordan was more in love than any of them! When it was time to go, and let the next kid have a turn, Jordan just wanted to keep playing with them. It didn't help that the characters were egging him on. HA! It was hilarious!!

Sarah, Luke and Jordan with Grover and Elmo

Jordan, Sarah and Luke still playing with Elmo. Grover moved on. HA!

Next up, it was time for the Dolpins!! That was what Luke was waiting for this whole time. That's all he wanted to see. Unfortunately, we got there about 20 minutes early, because the stadium was filling up fast! They already had to add show times to all of the shows, because they were filling up and not everyone could get in. It was hot and the kids were crabby and hungry, but for how long we had to wait, they did exceptionally well. Last time Allan and I went to Sea World, alone, Allan was a little overly excited about it, so I was expecting the same from this trip, since the show is different, and the stadium is new and they can do more. 

Justin, Cassie and Jordan, waiting for the show to start!

We all kept making fun of Allan because he couldn't decide on a place to sit. We all sat down, but as the show got closer, the seats below us would clear, so he would move down. He probably did this 3 times, and we just stopped moving. It was silly. I guess 3 rows down is a TON closer, in his mind.

Allan, Sarah and Luke.

The Dolphins Jumping

Cassie and Justin loving each other. Aren't they hot!?

Luke and Jordan. They were little buddies this whole trip. It was so cute!

The dolphin show, I have to say, was a little lame. They tried to make it very Cirque Du Soliel. It would've been much cooler if they just told about the animals, and then showed some tricks. I think the audience would've loved that much more. Our group, and the couple behind us, couldn't help but make commentary all through the show, pretending to say what the characters SHOULD be saying. That was more entertaining.

As we walked out of the dolphin show, we were let out in front of the Sea Lion habitat. Before each show, they have an area for those animals to come out, and the people can feed them. We happened to be let out, just in time for the kids to feed the sea lion fish!! Allan went and bought the kids each a package of sardines, and let them throw them into the sea lions. Sarah and Taylor were TOTALLY into it. Lucas wanted to be in it, however, that would involve him touching a fish. Jordan........no. That's all he said.....No. HA! He saw the other kids picking up the fish, and walked away. HA! He made me laugh. Sarah surprised us. She just rolled up her sleeves and dug into the fish. Taylor was just as fearless. He was a little more hesitant at first, but once he saw big sister doin it, he braved right up. It was a really neat experience for them, to be able to feed the sea lions. It was really fun to watch them get such a kick out of it.

And.......next up............

............the sharks

Cassie couldn't wait to get to the sharks. This is her favorite exhibit. I wasn't sure why. I was thinking it was because you can feed your children to them, when they were throwing a temper tantrum. Much to my disappointment, nope. Dang it. Not even a swing over the tank or anything to threaten them with. Whatever. Anyways........

Cassie trying to convince Jordan that this is going to be fun

Justin being scared.......I think he was scared of Cassie, not the sharks. Just sayin'....

Taylor, Sarah and Lucas watching the sharks as we walked in

The kids totally loved the sharks. They wanted to pet them badly! Scary kids. Luke was afraid of them for a second. However, we reminded them of the sharks at Mandalay Bay, that we always go see, and they got the idea after that. Cassie was super stoked to get them to the tube where the sharks are all around you as you walk through the tunnel. Unfortunately, my kids do that at Mandalay Bay too, and so they weren't as excited as we'd hoped. Wah Waaahhh.......But they sure loved it anyways.

Cassie bein happy in the glass tube......Justin bein a dork

Sarah, Luke and Jordan pretending to be scar sharks.....scary right?

Justin filming me taking pictures of him......we are just proving that everyone made it out alive

The sharks were pretty cool. Sea World's sharks are definitely more impressive than the Mandalay Bay ones.

Next we went to the Sea Lions and Otter show. By far, THE BEST SHOW! The crowd warmer upper guy, he was stinkin hilarious! The kids were never whiney, or bored or anything, waiting for the show to start, because he kept everyone entertained. It was fabulous!

Allan and Sarah watching the show

 The boys, especially Luke, absolutely loved the show. That is the understatement of the century. The show was simple and had a lot of comedy, PERFECT! The other shows were trying to be too dramatic and artsy fartsy. People don't care about that stuff. They want to learn and be entertained at the same time. This show did that perfectly. Taylor even got into it! He loved the little sea otter that came out and wreaked havoc. He would point and yell and laugh every time he came out. It was hilarious!

Taylor saw the Sea Otter again

Sarah is REALLY into the show I guess

Aw! I love my boys! Dang, I love all my kids. They're too dang cute

He really wanted to pet the sea lions and the otters. HA!

After the show, we took a break, back that the Sesame Street area. It was super fun. The kids got to go on rides and play some more.

Sarah and I on the flying Elmo fish.....uh, yea.....

One dramatic thing happened on our Sea World adventure. We lost Luke. My poor Lukie Bookie. I thought he was with Allan, because he ran after Sarah and him, when they were on their way to a ride, but Allan thought he was with me. I was frantic looking for my poor sweet boy. There were so many ways to get out of the Sesame Street area, so I had no idea which direction he would've gone. He's not one of those kids that just runs off. He's usually with either me, Allan or Sarah. I was everywhere around there. Finally, I remembered I saw a little blue shirt, go out of one of the exits, out of the corner of my eye........but that was at least 3 minutes ago (it felt like 30 minutes ago). So I went that direction, turned the corner, and there was my sweety boy, crying as hard as he could, just pacing back and forth. I ran to him and scooped him up and just held him so tightly..........then I got mad at him. HA! And then I apologized and squeezed him more. As we walked back into the Sesame Street area, I kept thinking, "I couldn't handle losing another child" and I was so grateful that I found him, I just wanted to fall to my knees and thank God for helping me find him. However, Luke looked up from my hug, and said, "I want Sarah." It broke my heart for him. He loves her so much, and just wanted to be with her. She takes good care of him. But then I was a little disappointed that he wanted her, not mommy. Finally, I gathered myself, and realized, she's his best friend, and he was looking for her and daddy. He was relieved, like I was, that mommy found him, but he was also worried that she was lost. So, I took him to her, and instantly, upon seeing her, he was happy! Poor sweet Luke.

And now........the huge finale!! SHAMU.................#9....or #11?

Pretty sweet that that huge thing can get out of the water like that. Good for him......or her.....

My little sassy beauty, Sarah, waiting for the show to start

The kids were getting pretty tired, but they really really wanted to see Shamu. We weren't sure we'd be able to, when we got there, because all of the shows were full, but they added one, and TADA! There we were. Crappy enough, they made the show dramatic. Something about having dreams and a necklace, and all that jazz. The kids loved when the whale came out and did stuff, but it was few and far between because of the dang movie. But, owell. That's my hang up. The kids still loved it.

The boys and I watching the Shamu show

No good reason for this picture. I just have great hair int his picture......along with my new, sweet Oakley's. YEA!

 

Luke and I......and Shamu spitting. I hate spitting. Good pic honey!

Yup, it's a whale......maybe the 10th Shamu. Who know's really?

After we were done at Sea World, which was right after the Shamu Show, because the park was closing, Allan informed me that he asked Cassie and Justin if they would babysit for us, so he could take me out to dinner at my favorite place, Spaghetti Factory.....mmmm Spinach Tortellini with Alfredo sauce, with some cheesy bread.........mmmm. We got everyone piled in their car, and we parted ways. As I was loading my kids in the car, I don't know why, but I had to make sure each child knew that I loved them very much and gave them their hugs and kisses. I was so petrified that something would happen to one of them, and they would never have that last kiss. (is that weird?) Finally, we got in our car and made our way to the restaurant. By the way, my car totally fit the wagon, and 2 strollers in the cargo area, and I could've fit a TON more. Just sayin Cassie.

The night was amazing. Yummy food, and my sweet, wonderful husband, sitting next to me. We had a lot of fun and just spent time together, without the kids. We talked mostly about Ellie, and how we had decided, this trip, to try to have another baby. I didn't want 5 kids, but now I do. We decided to wait until we got the blood work results from 2 weeks ago, that my doctor took, to see if I had the same blood clotting disorder that my sister has. That way we can make preparations as necessary. We both felt so good about the decision. We were really nervous, but excited too.

We made our way back to Cassie's house, and crawled into bed. I checked on each of the kids, and they were zonked! We had such a wonderful time and were not looking forward to the drive home. However, we couldn't wait to get home, and start life again. The whole point of the trip was, Allan decided I needed to get out of town, and have some fun, us as a family. That's exactly what we did. We had fun as a family, experiencing all of these wonderful things together. Allan and I agree, we don't plan things on a trip. It takes away the magic of the experience. We just love watching our children experience things for the first time. It is so much stinkin fun. They get a kick out of the things that we never expected them to, and they think the simplest things are the biggest deal.

My family is amazing. My husband is my best friend. I am so grateful to have him, and my children in my life. They make everything so much more exciting......so much more worth it.