In which Natalie becomes a dolphin

As if we haven't been traveling enough recently, we took another overnight trip to San Diego to visit Sea World for two days (their one-day tickets are good for two days). Thanks so much to cousins Leif and Carla, and Jean and Jewelee for hosting us. We had a wonderful time catching up with them, and it was here that I came to realize that if Natalie weren't human, she could be a dolphin. When Natalie and Konrad used Carla's pool in the afternoon (a large pool that was only 1-2 feet deep, next to the big swimming pool), Natalie spent the entire time diving into the water, coming up for one breath (because she could stand up), diving back down, just like a dolphin. I had to physically stop her to get her to take a break, because she wouldn't stop to catch her breath if I didn't. She much prefers to have her head underwater.

Speaking of dolphins, one of the dolphins at Sea World seemed to talk to Natalie for a long time...must have been 30 seconds (she's in the striped dress in the middle...the dolphin ignored the other kids). Natalie really enjoyed the up-close encounter, but neither she nor Konrad enjoyed the dolphin and Shamu shows...too long in between jumps out of the water and too difficult for them to anticipate the jumps.

But anyplace they could see the animals through the glass or water, they all enjoyed, like the shark encounter, sea lions or the beluga whale exhibit. Of course, the Sesame Street Bay of Play was a major hit, not only because of the characters and rides, but also because of the water play. Lukas loved the climbing area there, and Natalie loved getting soaking wet.

Tom and I enjoyed the Shamu and dolphin shows, but the kids liked the Pets Rule show the best, where dogs and cats run around doing tricks. I think they liked it better because the animals weren't underwater for part of the time and then popping out. The animals still popped out, but they could see them for longer periods of time. And since Lukas finally got his cotton candy at the show, all was perfect.

We are tired. We don't want to go anywhere for a while. We're going to be homebodies for at least a few weeks, so check back this week for more "home activities"...especially an update on Natalie's progress with speaking.