At last! Some Sharks!

Matthew and Malia are off-track and due to the fact that we never saw any sharks while we were on vacation in July, I felt that a trip to the aquarium was in order. Today was a perfect day to go. Not only are all the kids in school except for the year-round B-trackers, but it is early in the school year and a Monday so there were no field trips happening. The whole place felt nearly deserted which was great because we didn’t have to navigate any crowds to see the exhibits.

We saw the penguins and otters (all of whom were super active), the new Asian clouded leopard, macaws, frogs, and many, many fish. But the highlight of the trip was, of course, the sharks! Malia was thrilled and insisted we sit and watch the “shark show” for a good 20 minutes which is a long time for an energetic five-year-old.

This afternoon she watched “The Little Mermaid” and the beginning of “Finding Nemo.” Then she promptly renamed her stuffed shark (previously known as Sharky) Bruce.

She's Definitely a City Girl

This morning Malia had a field trip to Wheeler Farm. She has been looking forward to it all week so in spite of her having a rough night and a juicy cough, we went anyway. She was super excited to see all the animals. We saw bunnies, cows, chickens, turkeys and pigs. Although petting the animals is not actually a part of this particular farm, she was able to quickly pet one of the sheep who was hanging out right by the fence.

We saw the milking shed and our guide showed us where the cows stand, where they have a snack for the cows to keep them busy, how they keep the cows from running away and even the trench in the floor where all the cow poop goes. And then she asked where the poop goes after that. Malia piped right up, “In the potty!” I totally laughed. And then the guide told them about how manure goes in the gardens to help everything grow.

We also got to go on a wagon ride and as we crossed the bridge that spans Little Cottonwood Creek, Malia told me there were sharks in the water. It took a lot of talking to convince her that there were no sharks in the creek, only little fish. I guess for a three year old who has never seen any water bigger than a swimming pool the creek looked like a big enough place for sharks to live.

Malia has really enjoyed all her field trips and while this was the last one for this year, she will have another full year of trips starting in the fall.

 Watching the blacksmith make a chain

 Looking at the pigs who were lounging in their house

In the tree house