Sea World is Better than Disney World!

Sorry to all of you die hard Disney fans but I'll take Shamu, polar bears, dolphins, walruses, jelly fish, etc. any day over Mickey Mouse and long lines. There is no comparison! Before I get into that, let me back up a little...

Wednesday was the day we were looking forward to - - Gigi was coming! Of course, for days beforehand, I talked to Calleigh about Gigi coming on a plane and each time she would ask about Papa. I told her that Papa had to stay in Boston and work. We miss you Papa! Gigi's flight got a little delayed and she didn't arrive until about 7:30 but it didn't matter. Calleigh was staying up late because we wanted to take her to the airport. Duncan came with us so that he could pick up his parents van which they had left there early this morning when they left for San Diego. As soon as Calleigh saw Gigi, Calleigh had a huge smile on her face and told Gigi that she wanted her to sit next to her in the van. She chattered to Gigi the whole way back. It was quite clear that she was happy Gigi was here! And oh yeah, I'm happy too!

Thursday we headed out to Sea World but first made a stop to drop our van off at a place to get our DVD player installed. We added the DVD as part of the purchase of the van but they had us take it to another place for the installation. Since Ron and Elaine are gone, we used their van to get ourselves to Sea World. And what a great time we had. My mom and I both ended up getting the annual pass - - it's only a little more than the pay-for-a-day come back free through the end of the year. Plus, you get free parking. The park was busy but nothing compared to the chaos of Disney. We did have Calleigh on her leash though. I hate to say that because it makes her sound like a dog but she honestly really loves her puppy backpack and it was a relief not to have to chase her and such. A lady with a bad knee and another one eight months pregnant, aren't exactly the fastest people around to chase a toddler.

As far as the exhibits went, she really enjoyed looking at all of the animals. We took our time going through each thing because she would start looking and wouldn't want to leave. Sometimes she would be scared at first like when she saw the walruses come up out of the surface of the water. They ARE a little scary with their tusks sticking out to be sure. But when we went down to see them underwater, she was completely intrigued and was right up against the glass. We did go to a couple of shows - Shamu and Pets Ahoy. Each time we arrived about 5 minutes beforehand, found seats in the way back and then only stayed for about 15 minutes - -that about how long it took until she got antsy. So I would say it worked out perfectly.

But despite all of the animals and shows and all that, BY FAR, the highlight of her day, and quite possibly her life, was the fountains they had there that kids could play in. We found it at about 11:30 when we came out of the Shamu show. Of course, not having been there in years and not having a kid with me either when I was there last, I didn't know of the existence of the splash playground so we had no bathing suit with us. No matter. We stripped her down to her diaper and little shorts and she was off. She was a little timid at first but in no time at all, she was going bonkers.
She had the biggest smile on her face and was just laughing and laughing. And nothing could have made me happier than seeing her having such a good time. I'm sure she could have played in there all day but we did eventually have to drag her out and go get some lunch which she ate ravenously.


We left the park at about 2:45 and she fell asleep almost instantly upon hitting her car seat. We stopped at the ABC on the way home to get a few things and so that we could let her sleep as long as possible since we knew she would wake up as soon as we got home. She did end up waking up as we left the ABC but despite the busy day and short nap, she was still in very good spirits the rest of the day.

When Duncan got home from work, we ate a quick supper and then he and I left to go pick up the van. The DVD player looks great but there was some bad news. They had broken the overhead console which is right next to the rearview mirror. This is the console that shows the temperature, the MPG, and has buttons to open the doors. They, of course, were going to fix it but had to order the part from the dealer and didn't know when it would come in. As compensation for our inconvienence, they said they would tint our front windows to match the back ones that were already tinted. That sounds great since we wanted to do it anyway and it would cost $70. They said they would call us when the part came in. Well, we didn't think that was too big a deal since we could still drive the van and all but as soon as I had driven about a mile and went to turn the A/C on, I noticed that the blower for the A/C would only work when it was on full blast. There was no other speed. Also, the air bag light on the dashboard wouldn't go off. Very strange. I figured something must have happened with the wiring when they broke the overhead console. When I called them this morning to report this to them, they said they doubted it because they didn't touch anything with the A/C but come on, we're driving the car for a week and it works perfectly fine and then when we pick it up from them, it's suddenly not working? A very LARGE coincidence. Of course, either way we're covered because the car is obviously under warranty. So this afternoon they called to tell me the part wouldn't be in until Tuesday although that doesn't do me any good because I have no one to pick me up on Tuesday - - so it will be Wednesday before the console gets fixed. The stinky thing is that I'm not even going to be driving the van until then because I can't stand the A/C being on full blast the whole time. It gets very annoying very quickly. I guess you could say it's providential that Ron and Elaine are gone right now so I can use their van. Thanks guys! Hope you don't mind...

This morning we made a stop at Ron & Elaine's to look in on the cats and get the mail and then it was off to some yard sales. Sadly, the weather didn't cooperate so we only managed to go to two. But the sun started coming out by late morning and we decided to go to Torcaso Park in Winter Springs which has a splash playground. Now that we know how fun they are, we were anxious to go back! It cost $10 for the year but it's money well spent. We were the only ones there but she still had a great time. She especially likes to put her face in the fountain and try to drink it. I told her that she shouldn't do (since I assume the water is getting recycled and isn't exactly clean). Right after I told her that, I walked away but saw her lean in to try to drink it again. So I said "Calleigh." And she told me "No Mommy. Stay there" as she turned her back to me and leaned in again. Obviously she didn't want me to see what she was doing!

This evening we're just relaxing. It's now 9:20 and Calleigh is still awake in her crib. Gigi has gone up to check on her since she started crying as if something was seriously wrong. Naturally, as soon as Gigi went in there, she stopped crying and is now talking none stop about everything under the sun as if it's the middle of the day. We'll see how Gigi extracates herself from this one.

Tomorrow we will go to church, have Aunt Wanda, David, and Yully over for lunch and then right afterwards, Gigi, Calleigh, and I leave for Sanibel Island for the next two nights. Duncan leaves tomorrow evening for a work conference in Chicago.

Have a Happy Sabbath and perhaps you'll hear from me from Sanibel.