Ockey Family Adventures: San Francisco Day 4

Monterey is beautiful!

We slept in a little before leaving the Webb's house. Then we ran a few errands and headed south to Monterrey. We didn't arrive until after ten o'clock, but we miraculously found a free parking place not far from the aquarium. Along the path on the way to the aquarium we saw a few seals with pups. A volunteer told us the pups were just a few days old. They were still wrinkly because they hadn't put any blubber on yet.

Look at these sweet little pups!

This one is just a day or two old. Still super wrinkly!

We loved watching this little pup following his mom out of the water!

There was a line at the aquarium, and even though it is Monday, there were thousands of people there. It seemed a little strange to be in such a crowd of strangers since it has been over two years since we've been in close quarters like that.

We loved the aquarium! It is so large, and Mom felt right at home, even though she hadn't visited in about 30 years. The boys all declared the sea otters their favorite exhibit. The also liked the sea otter movie that we watched, and searching for sea otters out in the ocean off the deck of the aquarium. It is safe to say they loved the sea otters. Dad enjoyed the jellyfish because there were so many kinds. We spent the rest of the morning at the aquarium before trekking back to the car for lunch around one o'clock. After sandwiches, we went back to finish the upper floor. It was mostly a hands-on area with a lot of things to do for little kids. The boys enjoyed the touch tanks, but they are getting too big for a lot of the kid stuff. Still, they enjoyed the exhibits.

Seth was in heaven at the aquarium. He loves animals!

Mark loved this exhibit where the birds just walked around.

There was a fun wave display that we laughed at for a few minutes.

The octopus was super active which was so fun to watch!

Watching the sea otters up close was really fun.

Dad loved the jelly fish.

Seth was thrilled to see a hammerhead shark.

Dax flew like a bird pretty well!

Mom was excited to introduce the boys to the aquarium of her youth.

She really loved sharing it with Dad.

Mark loved all the chances to look outside.

We got up close to the penguins.

The eel was also active! Scary!

We spotted the sea otters off the observation deck!

This was our first time seeing sea otters in the wild.

There was a whole raft out there!

After the aquarium we walked down Cannery Row. There are a lot of shops and things going on, but it was much quieter than Fisherman's Wharf in San Francisco. At the center of town was a nice little beach, and we decided to play for a few minutes. Seth spent quite a while digging in the sand. Dax enjoyed chasing the waves in and out, proving that he was mostly faster than they were. Mark and Dad soaked their feet in the ice cold water for a while. Then they joined Mom laughing at the kids getting soaked by the incoming waves.

Mark loved watching the kids get wet.

This beach was rocky, but pretty!

Dax rolled his pants up so he could get in!

Mom and Dad love spending time together.

Seth loves digging in the sand.

Dax kept outrunning the waves.

The best part was watching Dax and Seth giggle at the waves.

They were so cute!

Monterey is our new favorite spot.

Mom put her feet in!

Mark even got in the wave dash action.

It was the perfect beach day!

We weren't really prepared for the beach, so after soaking our clothes, we headed back to the car to change. Then we found our hotel. When checked in and grabbed a quick dinner before going to check out the tide pools. We'd enjoyed tide pooling so much on our Seattle trip, and we weren't disappointed in Monterrey. We found a few large crabs, as well as millions of hermit crabs. We spotted a few shells and crab parts, too. Dax even found a starfish hiding under a rock, and it was quite different than the ones we'd seen in Washington. We were at the tide pools until sunset. Then we headed back to the hotel for a well-deserved rest!