A Public Safety Announcement brought to you by Shamu!

Yesterday, the husband and myself, and our amazing hosts Pat and Brittany went to Sea World. Ever since I was a little kid, my dream was to be a whale or dolphin trainer. I saw Free Willy in the theaters twice and actually own the 3 pack of dvds with Free Willy 1, 2, and 3. (And if you don't think the newest one with Bindi Irwin is currently at the top of my Netflix queue, you would be incorrect.) I dreamed of going to school at Texas A&M's Corpus Christi branch and studying marine biology. I remember getting a "Sponsor a dolphin species" kit for Christmas one year and a Robin Williams dolphin documentary another year. Once, I went on a snorkeling tour with my family in Panama City and actually got to snorkel with wild dolphins, which was an absolute dream come true. Somehow, though I ended up at A&M, my fear of Biology class kept me from pursuing a degree in Marine Biology. However, I still have a deep love and respect for these amazing and beautiful animals. 

Each year, military members and their families get a free day pass into Sea World. It had been years since I'd been, so we all decided to go. It was just as wonderful as I always remembered it. I was like a kid in a candy store. The first thing we did was go to the new Shamu Believe show. I never get tired of seeing orcas, whether they're leaping in the air or just swimming around the tank. Though they're the most dangerous predators in the ocean (Yes, this is true. Sharks don't bother them, and they're even known to attack and kill Great Whites) they are still amazingly graceful and very playful. I could watch them all day long!

We also saw the dolphin and pilot whale show which was a lot of fun as well! Sadly I missed the feeding time where you're able to feed and pet the dolphins, but the show was still great to watch! I had never seen a pilot whale in person before so that was really cool. Though my husband wouldn't let me bring home a dolphin as a pet, after watching the Sea Lion and Otter show (which was hilarious by the way!) he did agree that Bosley would LOVE an otter friend and he would totally be okay with having one of those! 

The shark exhibit had several tanks with smaller sharks and one of the underwater walkways where the larger sharks swam overhead and around you. That was awesome! Some of the sharks were pretty big, something I certainly wouldn't want to run into in the ocean! We saw a pet show that featured adopted dogs, cats, birds, and even pigs. I was amazed at the tricks these animals were able to do. They had dogs running through obstacle courses on their own, cats that climbed up posts and walked across tight ropes, and one cat that crossed a tight rope upside down. If I tried to get Bosley to do any of that, he'd look at me and laugh...and then go take a nap. Finally we went through the Arctic exhibit and saw the Beluga whales, Polar Bears, and walruses. While Brittany and I were excited about the animals, we had a hard time tearing the guys away from the Helicopter that was displayed.

The weather was perfect all day, as is typical here. Slightly chilly and overcast for most of the day, which was perfect. Even though we sat in the "Splash Zone," we managed to avoid getting wet at all which was nice. However, the one thing we didn't count on, was the power of the sun. Everyone ended up with red faces and arms by the end of the day! So here's your tip folks, even if there are clouds out, you can still get sunburned! Anytime you're going to be outside, you should always wear sunscreen! Sorry for all the long entries. I'm going to try to talk my hubby into taking me to LA this week so that I can go stalk a celebrity. I'll let you all know how that goes. Good Night!