This last weekend we headed down to San Diego for a double dose of adventures. A day at the races at Del Mar Racetrack and a visit to the ginormous San Diego Zoo. We went down with the Prendergast's, which Nick was thrilled about - he loves their girls, Rowan & Riley. We met up in Irvine, had lunch and headed down. We hit some miserable traffic caused by, we think, a major accident, as it had both north and southbound lanes tied up for miles.
But, we made it down eventually and it actually gave Nick a chance to get a decent nap under his belt before the excitement of the races.
Afternoons always involve a snack and this was no exception. Here is Nick VERY happy that he has a whole container of grapes & blueberries all to himself.
Even though the traffic kept us from seeing the first five races, we were able to carve out a little spot against the infield fence.
The all-important task of picking the ponies.
Rowan and Nick at the fence getting ready for the next race. Nick is standing on a cooler - thank goodness for that. Mommy held him up to see the first race and that was going to get old FAST.
They're in the gate!
And they're off!!
Christy and I showing off our hats. I bought the ginormous hat in Puerto Vallarta - I love it.
After all the races were finished, there was a concert at the stage they had in the infield. Weezer played. It was great, kids loved it and it ended early enough that Nick wasn't up too late. He promptly fell asleep in the car on the way to the hotel.
The next day we went over to the San Diego Zoo. Man, that place is huge. And I think we walked ALL OVER it. Phew. Nick & the Girls looking at flamingos. They are pretty, but they stink. The flamingos that is, not the kids. Well, they have their moments too, I guess...
The kids on a polar bear statue.
Rowan & Riley playing seal.
Big polar bears.
It was hot and I was about ready to jump in there with the bear.
Nick was excited to find a life-size helicopter, or as he calls them, "hop-ti-collars"
Checking out the instruments.
Dave and the saber tooth tiger.
It's hard to see, but there is a lion back there behind the chain link fence.
Rowan & Nick checking out the elephant.
The handler enticed her into the water using lettuce. We've tried to get Nick to do things by bribing him with lettuce. Doesn't work.
I was half-hoping the elephant would spray us with water from her trunk, but then realized it would probably be mixed with elephant snot. So probably best that she didn't.
T.J. is not a doctor, he just plays one at the Zoo.
This is a statue of a bird that is extinct. It's lifesize. I think I'm glad it's extinct, I wouldn't want to meet it in a dark alley.
We ran into this polar bear after stopping for a drink. Nick was kind enough to share his raisins with him.
Baby giraffe, born in December 2009.
We stood in line for nearly 20 minutes because Nick wanted to feed the giraffes. Of course when we got in there, he was too scared to do it. So Mommy fed them instead.
Nick face to face with a monkey.
Good thing this isn't a real gorilla. I don't think it would like to have a three year-old's fingers up its nose.
LOVE, LOVE this picture. So cute.
Yep, more statue climbing. A turtle this time.
It's hard to see because of the shadows, but this was in the kids area and the hole was on the smaller side. Nick nearly got stuck!
Nick helping the sheep get "clean". He did remarkably well in the petting area. He is very scared around animals, so seeing him walk up to them without hesitation (after a little warm-up time) was good to see.
Rowan & Nick checking out the meerkats. They're so cute. The meerkats, not the kids. Well, the kids are cute too. Most of the time.
It was a great day at the Zoo and a great trip overall. Nick didn't take a nap at all on Sunday, so we were a little worried how the end of the day would go. But there was so much to see, he had no issues. And, of course, fell asleep almost immediately upon driving away from the Zoo. Can't wait to go to Del Mar again and hope that next time, we won't have such bad traffic!!
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