We left for Mystic mid-morning on Sunday. My plan was to leave around Micah's morning naptime so he'd sleep in the car and be awake and rested for the aquarium. And it worked beautifully I'm happy to report :). We stopped at Five Guys Burger and Fries before going to the aquarium and Micah was so well behaved in the restaurant. He even made a new friend and of course he got the comment on how big he was for his age.
It was an overcast day, so it was kind of chilly at all the outside exhibits, but we still managed to have a lot of fun. Micah seemed to enjoy all the animals. He'd stare and stare, taking it all in while trying to figure out what was going on.
Watching the sea lions with Daddy.
Couldn't resist this picture...
We were at the Pet the Stingrays exihibit. They had some sharks in the tank, too, but they said not to pet them. Did they really think I was going to stick my hand in the tank after that warning?
Staring at the fast-moving-like-Micah fish. Videos seem better able to explain Micah at this stage, it's just annoying to upload them, etc. But I do have a lot of Micah videos, here's one with him and those fish:
After lunch, he wanted to get out of his stroller and push it himself. He's on this I-don't-want-to-sit-when-I-can-stand kick.
Then there was all the fun the hotel had to offer. We stayed about two mintues away from all the Mystic attractions in a Best Western. I was so impressed with the room and the amenities and the price. We went back to the hotel around 4pm so Micah could have a much-needed nap (after four hours of awakeness, during which he was an angel...said with some surprise). While he slept in his pack and play, D and I relaxed. By the time Micah woke up two hours later, it was time for dinner. I purposely wanted a hotel with room service because I didn't know if Micah would be sleeping when we wanted to eat or if he'd be up to sitting in a restaurant, all those things that we now have to think of as parents. So the restaurant attached to this hotel happened to be The Ground Round, which brought back a lot of childhood memories (we'd always be there for friends' birthday parties where you pay what you weigh. Lots of good times, so it was nice to visit one again since we don't have any up here.) D decided that we should eat at the restaurant instead of ordering in, though, so we went. And again, said with some surprise, Micah was so well-behaved! We had to walk him around twice before our food came, but that was it. Once our food arrived, he sat in the highchair and banged his toys and basically entertained himself. Of course he was flirting with all of the passersby, but at least he was keeping himself busy.
Moving along the bed with Daddy's help.
One cup, hours of entertainment!
After dinner, we hung out in our room until bedtime. Micah woke up twice during the night, probably because his pack and play was too hard for him. Our bed was too soft, so our backs hurt the next day. So the waking up twice was the only not-so-fun part of the day! I'll wrap up our two-day vacation later, it's breakfast time for Micah and he waits for no one!
by Mary , on April 02, 2009 10:35 AM
He looks like he's studying those fish so intently, like, how do they move like that? Why can't I feel them?
I'm glad he was good in the restaurants for you. Matthew did terrible his first time in a restaurant, but once they get older and the world is more fascinating to them, they can handle it much better. We went to Red Robin one time, and Matthew barely looked at us the whole time we were there. He kept turning around trying to see where all the noise was coming from. We'll have to go back there. One, cause the food is so good, and two, cause Matthew likes the place :)
by Moz + Pam , on April 02, 2009 4:31 PM
Oh I remember Ground Round. When our kids were little we used to go with Debbie D. & all her kids & pay by the pound, too! Brings back lots of memories. I remember the first time we took Sara to an Aquarium. She must have been around 2 because she was running from tank to tank & found it all so fascinating! That was up in Canada. Looking forward to Part 2!