After going to bed at 1:30, the 5:30 alarm came way too early. So early, in fact, that David hit the snooze until 6:00. Nothing like a late start to fuel the adrenaline.
I managed to get a shower, strip all the beds, get the laundry half done, and unload the dishes before we hit the road half an hour late at 7:00. The one thing that ticked me off was that I didn't have time to do my makeup. It put me in a really bad mood, but by the time we were on the road I was better.
Our first stop was at Walmart in Brady. Yup, we know how to vacation! David needed headphones and Emma needed a visor and sunglasses. I'm so glad she is with us for this trip. We have missed her so stinking much!
Darcy found a headband she just had to have. Me, I bought clothespins to keep all the bags of snack food closed (plus the curtains in hotel rooms always seem to have a gap and it's great to be able to pin them closed).
Well, the late start combined with the unexpected trip to Walmart and a missed exit made us get to Sea World later than expected. We had wanted to feed the dolphins at 11:30 but missed that and bought tickets for the 1:30 feeding.
Two things we didn't realize:
1. Sea World closes at 6:00 and there are limited shows, and
2. Our tickets are for two days!!!
The NEW plan is to come back on Thursday and spend a second day here before heading home. We can catch anything we missed and do fun things again.
Darcy has already decided she wants to come back for one of their Halloween events. Guess I will be having more 31 parties!
First stop, after buying tickets to feed the dolphins, was the new Pets Ahoy show. It was fun seeing trained pigs, ducks, and cats. I mean, I know you can train dogs and rats, but cats?!?!
Next up was the shark tank followed by the dolphin touch.
The girls LOVED the dolphin touch. Darcy said the dolphin felt like a boiled egg. The trainer said she had never heard that one before. I'll have much better photos to post when we get home. We were able to buy the photos that Sea World took but they are on a disc.
Everyone really wanted to ride the Steel Eel. Everyone except Darcy. I was really bummed because it was a super short wait, but she refused. I even tried to tell her that I drive faster than the coaster goes, but she wasn't having it. David and Emma rode it while I played babysitter to the chicken.
Next up was the penguin and puffer exhibit. It wasn't as stinky as usual, which was good. I must say we picked an excellent day to come. The weather wasn't too hot and the wait times for rides were only five minutes.
Of course, Sea World has to have the arcade and of course they have to have pillow pets the size of a SUV, so of course we had to play one round of ring toss. No one won the giant pillow pet (they were out of the turtles anyway) but Darcy did get this little elephant.
Immediately after I took this picture, a cute little bee decided to land on me and stung the fire out of my underarm. David and Emma had just gotten off the log ride (another refusal of Darcy) so everyone got to hear me say a naughty word and Darcy tattled on me to my parents just as soon as she could (nothing too horrible, but still).
I meandered over to first aid (I'm not allergic but I wanted a Benadryl just to be on the safe side, plus that thing hurt like a bad mammajamma) while David and the kids got snacks and found a seat for Azul, the beluga whale show. I got back just as the show started - perfect timing.
Our last show of the day was the main event, Shamu! Even though we sat in the splash zone, we were lucky enough not to get splashed.
It is now 8:30 and David is about to take the girls swimming at the rooftop pool on the 22nd floor. I am staying in the room and recharging my batteries for tomorrow. Little sleep, walking all over Sea World twice, a bee sting, and a sunburn have taken their toll on this old lady. I'm not moving until morning!
Love it. Sounds like a blast!! Bad bee.
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