Friday Fun -- An Assignment!

Today's Friday Fun is a little bit different. There will be no quiz today for you to take, instead I have an assignment.

We bought an aquarium membership over Memorial Day Weekend, but we didn't stay long because the place was packed. Packed in like sardines. (heh heh, get it, Aquarium, Cannery Row, Sardines? -- Okay. Lame, I know.) Fast Forward to today. We went to the Monterey Aquarium and Cannery Row today. Today it wasn't busy and we had a great time. Little Monster had fun touching crabs, rays and all different kinds of kelp. The whole place is nice, and extremely child friendly. They have several places that are designated 'play' areas with things to climb on, touch, and learn with. Little Monster loves the place now, but he'll only grow to like it more as he gets older and can actually interact with the 'interactive' displays.

My favorite parts of the day:

• When Little Monster pushed the button that made seal sounds. It was just a little bit loud, and scared him. His eyes got big, and he ran around behind me and hugged my legs. Yeah, I'm sadistic like that.
• Not the Momma's favorite part was when we held him in a concave dome so he could feel like he was 'in' the tank. He got a little freaked out and held Not the Momma so tight that the scratch marks are still showing on his arm. We think he was upset about it because it was the only area where he couldn't touch the glass. So, he was worried we were going to 'drop' him in with the sharks.
• When Little Monster pushed the button that made whale sounds. It wasn't nearly as loud as the seal. But when he heard the whale songs, he started imitating them. And continued for the rest of the trip. He does a mean whale song, that kid.
• The look on Little Monster's face when we walked into the entrance, and he saw the fake whale suspended from the ceiling. His hands went up in the air, and his face had a look of "wow!"
• Watching Little Monster discover how to put a cylinder through the appropriately shaped hole in the baby/toddler area of the "Splash Zone."
• Okay, so really, watching Little Monster discover everything was a real treat. The look on his face for most of the day was one of complete awe. He kept waving and saying "hi" to the fish. He did not whine or complain once, even though we delayed his lunch by about an hour, and he was in his stroller for much of the time.
• Right. Now. Little Monster was so tired from the day, that when I put him down for his nap, there was no argument. He rolled over onto his tummy, stuck his tush up in the air, and fell asleep. What better reward for a busy morning is there?

I do have one gripe. The place wasn't that busy, but there were 'hot spots' of activity. The main ones being the touch tanks. I get that the touch tanks are cool, so I know there are going to be lots of tween-aged kids running around touching things. That's what they're supposed to do. But, parents, you could keep an eye on your kids, and make sure they aren't being too pushy. That isn't my gripe. My gripe is with the ADULT that elbowed my son and I out of the way so that he and his wife could touch a starfish. In the children's area. Where the tanks were set low enough that Little Monster could touch them himself, without having to be held up. Dude, there's an adult sized one downstairs, and this is the kids area. We had to leave before I embarrassed myself and Not the Momma, because it was all I could do not to say something to him about how rude it was to elbow an 18 month old out of the way so that he, a grown man, could touch a starfish. Oh well. We are members. We'll go back next week and touch a starfish. Or, we'll touch one for free. Outside, in the real tide pools. So there.

Back to the whole "fun" part of this, though. Are you ready for your assignment? Either this weekend or next, be a tourist in your own town. Find something you've never done, a museum, or park you haven't visited, (or at least somewhere you haven't been in a while) and go there! Take a lunch, relax and have a good time. Then, tell us what you did. I'd bet there are lots of places, right in your hometown, you've never visited. Places you've been meaning to go but haven't because you were busy, or the weather wasn't good enough. No excuses. You have two weeks. Get to it!