Wednesday, December 28

 We decided to go back to Sea World today for some more fun! The weather was starting to turn our way and we went with sweatshirts this morning, but by lunch time they were in our backpacks. We started a little later in the morning and got into some heavy traffic around Sea World and the long line to park. As we were in the line Teddy had to go potty so when we finally got parked Thom and Teddy raced to the entrance to go to the bathroom. 

When we first got in we decided to split so Dad, Drew, Thom and I could do a rollercoaster while Mom took the boys to go see Santa. She said it was an awesome experience and it was very personal. The boys got quality time with Santa and we got to do Mako.  It really is a great rollercoaster! 

We headed to another rollercoaster and Dad went to be with Mom and the boys at Sesame Street. The line was taking a bit longer so we decided to leave the Kracken and Thom and Drew headed to Manta while I went to meet Mom, Dad and the boys. When I called they said they were about to head to the Elmo Christmas Show, so I headed there. The show is cute and the boys loved the music and dancing. Grover even came right by us! 

After the show we met up with Thom and Drew for lunch at the Sunfire Grill. The sun was shining and we enjoyed lunch on the patio in the sun. 

The aquarium was next on our list because we wanted to head to the dolphin show. Unfortunately, the dolphin show was completely full by the time we got there so we changed our direction and headed to the sea lion show. We found an area back behind the show where a bunch of sea lions hang out and you can feed them fish. They were screeching and barking. It was a hoot! A lady gave the boys a couple fish to throw so we fed the sea lions. There was one sea lion who did a constant loooong bark. I liked him the most. 

Due to our little sea lion detour we once again missed the show, so we asked the boys what they wanted to do and then headed toward Sesame Street. After a quick stop at the Glacier Bar for a Glacier drink Mom, Dad, the boys and I went to meet Rudolph in their Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer exhibit. Thom and Drew went to do another rollercoaster. Following meeting Rudolph there was a "wild arctic" area where they had beluga whales, walruses and seals. It wasn't very popular there and the boys enjoyed playing on the "ice".

We didn't want to miss our third show of the day so we headed early to the orca show. We enjoyed some popcorn and I enjoyed a sangria while we watched the show. I love the show and it makes me so sad at the same time. 

Teddy wanted to watch "An Elf Show" so we tried to find that next- it was just a little one person show on the side walk, but the gymnast showed great strength and balance.

The last thing Teddy wanted to do was the Lost City of Atlantis ride. There weren't any wait times listed and we ended up waiting over an hour (and then got stuck on the ride), but he was so excited when he got off the ride. He said it was his favorite of the day. That makes the long wait all worth it!

All vacation I had said I wanted to see the Sea World fireworks and lights. The fireworks were at 10:00 so that didn't seem feasible, but the Bay of Lights lit up at 6:00 which we could do. We walked the bridge and saw the beautiful lights that are over 8 miles of garland and 10 miles of lights. 

During lunch Thom, Drew and Dad received a pass for some free drinks so we headed to that area after walking the bay. Mom and I both got "Merry and Bright" drinks with light up glasses. Dad, Drew and Thom stopped at Glacier Bar for a couple drinks. The temperature was absolutely beautiful out. We took a longer walk to head back to the front of the park to get ready to go to try to soak in all the lights and weather.

When we got home we ate leftovers and relaxed before bed.