Gotcha!

Sharky greeted us at
Underwater Adventures Aquarium

To celebrate Anthony's Gotcha Day we traveled to Mall of America for a big shark adventure. To say he was excited to see some sharks was putting it mildly. He couldn't eat his breakfast because he needed to "swim" with his two sharks in the bathtub; when he got dressed he picked out a shark shirt to wear; and all the way down to MOA he watched Shark Tale and talked about seeing sharks. It really turned out to a perfect way to celebrate this wonderful anniversary for our family.

The aquarium was a huge hit! Anthony loved the collection of fish, but really enjoyed seeing all of the sharks. (Of course!) Another favorite of his were the stingrays that kept swimming right over us. We could see their mouths, gills and watch how they swim without using any fins.

This turtle was another favorite of Anthony's. He stayed right by the glass checking everything out while A tried to "touch" him.

NEMO! MARLIN! DORI! This tank was relatively small, compared to the others, but Anthony enjoyed pointing out the fish from a beloved movie.

Afterwards he spent some time playing on a ship in the kid zone. It's a good thing we decided to get an annual family pass. (While we were waiting in line to pay we realized that it was only 30 dollars more to purchase a pass that we could use throughout the next year.) I have a feeling we'll be making several trips to check out the sharks. I'm already looking forward to spring break and going back for a visit. Hopefully the new jellyfish exhibit will be up and running!

After visiting the aquarium we went out into Nickelodeon Universe to enjoy some rides. Driving the big rigs was definitely a highlight.

The three of us went on Dora and Boots' Ferris wheel that went up super high over the mall. While we were way up there he mapped out what he wanted to go on next --- Sponge Bob's pineapple house to jump, a ride on a horse on the carousel and Back at the Barnyard Hayride, which was a ROLLER COASTER. (I wished I could have taped his giggle while on the roller coaster. He loved the speed and had his hands in the air for most of the ride. Looks like this kid is going to love a trip to Valleyfair when he gets older.)

Giddy up horsey! Clearly Anthony is beyond excited to get his horse to gallop around.

This weekend was wonderful and it was great to celebrate the anniversary of Anthony's arrival into our lives. Happy Gotcha Day, Bubsa Bo!