Beach and Gardens

We left the house at 8:00 and by 8:30 E was already asleep. She slept for about an hour until we got to the Ferry. We walked up to the front of the ferry and she got her first glimpse of the seagulls. She loved watching them fly and they were only a few feet above our heads. When the ferry started it was pretty windy so the water splashed in her face, she was very surprised and a little upset. We took her upstairs to look out at the water over the view deck and then to the back of the ferry. People were throwing bread at the seagulls in the back. She loved watching the seagulls eating with a look of awe across her face.

Before getting strapped in her carseat, we let her "drive the car." She loved it!

We met up with Aunt L and Uncle J and then went to spend a few hours at the Aquarium at Moody Gardens. E loved the seals the best, she just kept watching jump and play. She got so excited every time they came up out of the water. When the big daddy seal came up against the glass next to her she jumped a little. This happened a few times but she eventually got used to him. She was very well behaved and eager to see all the sea animals. She crawled through the shark cage and pretended she was in jail. She tried to kiss the shark when he swam above her headJ. While watching the fish in the aquarium she stepped over a bar all by herself. Some of the animals we looked at today were seals, penguins, sea horse, sharks, stingrays, octopus, starfish, and lots of fishes, two sea dragons, and
eels.

After Moody Gardens, we went out to eat at Casey’s Seafood Restaurant. She was so tired and hungry that she kept screaming loudly. Daddy gave her a purple onion. She took one bite and made the funniest face, almost as if she had been betrayed. I wish I had caught her reaction on camera. But surprisingly, she continued eating it for a few minutes and it kept her quiet. However, when we tried to give her a second one she would not eat it and only played with it like it was a bracelet. She enjoyed eating Potatoes Au Gratin and French fries.

Despite E’s tiredness we trekked out to the beach after lunch. E loved crawling in the sand. But then Mommy took E out into the ocean for the first time. When the first wave hit her, she made a pouty face and shivered, it was a little too cold for her. When a bigger wave hit a few minutes later she cried. So Mommy brought her back to the shore and played with the sand and incoming tide. E still clung to Mommy for dear life every time the tide rolled in. Mommy enjoyed the sweet cuddles from her baby girl. Daddy, Aunt L and Uncle J came back after a few minute of playing in the waves and E had warmed up to the ocean by then. She crawled up and down the seashore raking the sand with her fingers. Every time the tide rolled in she would sit and wait for it to go back out then start crawling again. Daddy took her back out in the water later and she did much better with the waves. She even started laughing when the waves hit her. Suddenly, a rogue wave caught her by surprise and spoiled the fun by splashing her face and soaking her hat. Daddy took her back to shore and Uncle J and Aunt L followed soon after. Uncle J offered to watch E for a minute while mommy and daddy went to boogie board.

When we came back from boogie boarding, E was fast asleep in J’s arms.