SeaWorld and Science Center

 Our last day in San Diego was spent at SeaWorld. The morning got off to a rough start because after we split up (so that the big boys could go on the "tall" rides), Ezra threw a fit and kicked off a shoe. He didn't tell me his shoe was missing until two minutes later while we were using the restroom. Well, I knew right where the tantrum occurred, but no shoe. I was so frustrated to lose his brand new shoe! Well, I went into a gift shop nearby to ask about it. On the counter I see Justin's leather jacket! I hadn't even noticed that an item of greater worth had fallen off the top of the stroller! But still no shoe. So we took every wrong turn while finding the lost 'n found at the entrance and filed a report. Ezra went around with only one shoe for the next two hours until someone called and said that the shoe had turned up. Thank goodness! Needless to say, Ezra and Mommy were a little cranky for a while.
These pictures show a little miniature horse that was so cute, a fun ride (thank goodness Ez was asleep because he wasn't tall enough), Ezra's new shades, just about to enter the tall sky tower, and one of the killer whales during the show.

Justin and Nolan had a really great time with their morning, though. They went on a very wet rollercoaster and had soggy pants for most of the day, but they said it was a fun ride. We enjoyed all of the shows, especially the Blue Dolphin show. Ever since a trainer was dragged to her death by a killer whale two years ago, trainers are no longer allowed to do tricks in the water with them. I can understand why, but the show is a little less exciting then I remember from when I was a kid.
We had a fun time petting the sting rays. There were so many of them and they came right up to let you see them. Very slimy! Sadly, Ez missed out on that while sleeping, too. He was worn out after our frustrating morning, I guess. We liked the shark encounter where you rode a moving sidewalk through a glass tube. Pretty cool!

After SeaWorld we headed to Old Town and had dinner at a yummy Mexican restaurant. Then it was off to an old-fashioned candy store to pick up some treats for tomorrow's long drive.
That night we had hot cocoa at the hotel and then snuggled in the big king bed together. The boys weren't tired so we let them watch the second half of Forrest Gump with us. That movie is good no matter how many times I see it. We were a little sad that our time in San Diego was almost over, but we knew we had several days in St. George to look forward to.

In the morning we found that the van had a dead battery. Luckily a nice young guy stuck around for two minutes and gave us a jump. We couldn't help but smile because last time we were in California at a Hampton Inn we got a dead battery, too. We'll have to keep a closer eye out for lights left on!
In the morning, we decided to make a stop in L.A. to see the space shuttle, Endeavor. There was a fun science museum and all the exhibits were free. The boys successfully built an arch, an impressive bridge (the worker said that she hardly sees anyone build a complete bridge... I guess that's what happens when engineers put their mind to something!), and Ezra loved building his house. The space shuttle was really impressive and much larger than we thought it would be. Although it made for a long day of driving since we didn't get back to St. George until 10:30 p.m., I'm glad we stopped to see it.