Moody Gardens on July 3rd

Daddy (aka Richard) had the Friday before July 4th off, so we wanted to do something together since he's been so busy lately. We went to Moody Gardens on Galveston Island which has many children oriented attractions. It was a hot day-high nighties, so we had planned after seeing a couple of the attractions, to spend most of it at "Palm Beach". Unfortunately the beach area was cramped since so many others had the same idea for spending the holiday. In spite of that, it was still a great day trip.

First, we visited the "Dinosaurs Alive!" exhibit. The dinosaurs were static, but they moved their limbs, necks, mouths, and eyes. It was a little eerie to stand next to a life-like T-Rex who was roaring and staring us with its yellowish eyes. T-Rex was overwhelming even for a dinosaur enthusiast like Samuel. You can tell from his face on the pictures. Esther was completely petrified. She would not let go of her daddy and during the few moments she would sit in her stroller, she did not look amused.





After our Jurassic experience we headed for the more low key Paddlewheel Boat ride. The Colonel Paddlewheel Boat is an authentic replica of an 1800-style Paddlewheeler. It was relaxing and cool on the boat. The kids enjoyed some icecream and Richard and I our almond butter and jelly sandwiches we'd brought from home. That might be the first boat ride that Samuel will actually remember. He has grown so much in his understanding, and his memory is sometimes much better than mine and Richard's together. He, of course, asked many many many questions about the boat, and we did our best at answering them with our limited paddlewheel boat knowledge. ( Boy, we really should have read up on that before hand. )



Our last stop was the beach, and we spend three hours going up and down the water slides. Lucky for Esther we were allowed to have her ride on our laps, so she had a blast!! Samuel's goes without saying. He loves anything that is fast, a little dangerous, and envolves water. It was a great day!