SeaWorld

The prebirthday celebration continued at SeaWorld!  Here is Ashlyn with her free pass.  Thanks for saluting the heroes (and their families too) SeaWorld!  She was one excited little girl!

We had to have a photo of the SeaWorld themed bug.

Ashlyn feeding the dolphins.  Her favorite part of the day!

Ashlyn & her Mama Mia. Ashlyn says, Mama Mia is what you call your Mama when she starts to get old.  Then she told me, "but when you wear your make up and your hair down you don't look so old." 

Pleeeease Moooommmm? Can I keep him? I just barely managed to say no to that irresistible face.

Ashlyn wanted a stuffed Shamu, Shamu wallet and Shamu headband.  Managed to say no to this face too.

First row, front and center for the soak zone at the Shamu show! 

And as you can see they were thoroughly soaked.

Gavin & his spider monkey. Love my boys!

Ashlyn's and her new polar bear friend.  Thanks Daddy!

Landon impatiently waited for his turn to visit with Zoe and the Count. 

Ashlyn's Birthday Vacation/Pre-Celebration

One of Ashlyn's many birthday wishes was to stay at a hotel for birthday.  The kids have a week off school for fall break the week prior to her birthday so we decided to take a quick trip to San Diego.  Ashlyn still talks about how she misses Alabama.  One of the biggest things she misses about it is the beaches.  The first thing we did upon arriving was go to the beach.  The water was too cold for swimming but we still had fun hanging out.  As we drove away Ashlyn declared California beaches inferior to Alabama's beaches. That girl's heart still belongs to Bama!  I thought it best not to point out that it was Florida's beaches she remembered so fondly.

Look Mom!  A seashell!!!

Whitney is never one to miss out on having her picture taken.

Landon loved the beach! He takes such joy in everything he experiences but sand & mud are a lethal combination for him.  He actually got down and started rolling around in the sand like a dog at one point.  Then he discovered the joy/humor of throwing mud at all of us.

After we were done enjoying the beach we headed back to our hotel for pizza and swimming.  Also on Ashlyn's wish list.  She specified many times that our hotel must have a pool.