This year has been a rough year for our family. Zach has been working out of town a lot and there have been various family stresses going on, so we REALLY needed a break as a family. The kids had a week of spring break, Zach had a break in his work schedule, and Jenn just wanted to get out of the house! We planned a trip to Santa Cruz and Monterey. We were going to stop at the Boardwalk on our way to Monterey and play around, eat at our favorite restaurant on the wharf, and then continue on to our fancy hotel!
We arrived at the Boardwalk and bought lots 'o tickets for the kids to go on rides.
Grandpa Don and Uncle Flip Would Love This Ride!
This boat was called the Little Toot. Too Cute!
They had quite the view from the flying dragon!
We went on this dragon rollercoaster as a family. The kids love these kinds of rides!
It started to rain quite a bit while we were playing on the Boardwalk. Luckily it didn't put a damper on the fun we were having!
We rode on these "gondolas" across the boardwalk. This scares the heck out of me! Zach and Lucy rode together, while Tyler and I hung onto each other for dear life. The highlight of our "flight" was spotting Sponge Bob and Patrick on the beach!
The kids really wanted these birds, so Zach figured out a way to win for sure. There had to be two people playing, so we would wait for everyone to pass by and then Zach would play one of the kids. We were guaranteed to win, so he played twice (and lost to Lucy and Tyler) and made each child a winner. Isn't that sweet?
After riding rides and playing arcade games we walked to the wharf and went to Stagnaro Brothers for a yummy dinner. The weather was chilly, so we ordered hot chocolate and clam chowder to warm up. The warm rolls and butter were SO yummy. We like tradition and this restaurant is a tradition for us!
After a nice night at our hotel (the Embassy Suites) we woke up bright and early to go to the aquarium. We wanted to beat the crowds!
Zach is fascinated with the jellyfish and he took TONS of pictures. They are very good, though, we must admit...
The seahorses were pretty fantastic too!
The penguin thinks Lucy is pretty cute too!
We spent awhile at the penguin exhibit. The kids really enjoyed watching the penguins and the otters play.
Aw, maybe they do like each other...sometimes...
To remember our trip (or to spoil our children) they got stuffed animals. Tyler picked a penguin stuffy and Lucy picked a very soft otter.
After leaving the aquarium we went to the beach to play in the sand. The kids really enjoyed that and we got lucky to have beautiful weather.
After lunch we went to our favorite park in Monterey - The Dennis the Menace Park. They have the coolest toys to play on. There is a train for the kids to climb on, crazy slides, a maze, and a huge bridge to run across. Tons 'o fun!
We also enjoyed the time spent relaxing in our hotel room. The Embassy Suites had a great breakfast in the morning and fun snacks at happy hour. The kids enjoyed our "fancy" room, the indoor (albeit COLD) pool, and the coy pond. Overall...it was a success!
1 comment:
Looks like a lot of fun.
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