Wordless Wednesday: Hot summer day at the aquarium

We have been members of a local aquarium for three years now. The membership is not expensive - it pays for itself in less than two visits (we have one for just Tim and I, as Elle's admission is free for another year). We also get awesome, nationwide reciprocal benefits, which we've used to check out gardens, museums and zoos for free or at a discount because we're members of the Mote.

It is also an awesome investment for quick trips. If we weren't members, I'd never just show up an hour before closing. It wouldn't be worth the price of admission, I'd tell myself. But it works out perfectly for us to go after Elle's nap, or on a holiday after a big meal (we spent part of Christmas at the Mote this year) - the crowds are scarce, the place is quiet and we can check out as much or as little as we have time to. And it actually makes our investment better to use it more often, so I say all aquarium, all the time!

On Sunday, it was HOT. Ridiculous sticky and gross. But it had rained for four days straight, so Elle and I were going a little stir crazy. I convinced Tim that we should go show Elle the Nemos and Dorys at the aquarium because she's been on a Finding Nemo kick. We went, and it was hot, but there are many indoor and shaded areas at the aquarium, so it wasn't completely awful. We know our way around, and it's a fairly small facility, so it was easy to spend lots of time with some exhibits and completely skip over others (sorry, manatees!).

It was the first time that Elle really *got* some of the exhibits, too. She told a sleeping octopus to "Wake up!" and absolutely loved the seahorses. She played peek-a-boo with a turtle and chased a shark from window to window as it swam in its tank. I love aquariums, and I'm hopeful that she'll be enamored with them, too :)

This is moments before she put her head down on the hot,
black mats, grunted for a few seconds and pooped. Classy lady.