{almost} wordless wednesday: please touch

One of Sophia's favorite parts of the zoo and aquarium is being able to touch and interact with the creatures. She LOVED this turtle.

Unbridled Fun

We have been waiting for the seahorse exhibit to open at the aquarium and were able to make a trip to see the seahorses this week.

"Mommy, this is the daddy seahorse. They keep the babies in their pouch."

Thanks to school, octonauts, and some books we have been reading at home, Sophia knows quite a bit about seahorses. She was beyond excited to see the weedy sea dragons, but she loved looking in all of the tanks and insisted that we walk back though the seahorse area before we left the aquarium.

Can't wait to head back!

A Festive Five on Friday

Happy Friday!
Linking up with April, Christina, Darci, & Natasha for another Five on Friday!

 

one

Sophia had so much fun decorating our tree. We have the most random assortment of animal ornaments and she spends time each day talking to the animals and playing with them.

I made Sophia a felt tree and she has had so much fun decorating and redecorating it. A hammer has become a necessary tool to put the ornaments on. Shortly after making it I saw a super cute version at Target if you want to get one for your little one.

Target felt tree

two

We made our second trip of the season to the Festival of Lights at the Cincinnati Zoo. We took advantage of a warm evening when Dave had a night off. It was a bit crowded so we didn't get to ride the train, but Sophia loved looking at the lights from atop Dave's shoulders, riding the carousel, and visiting with the Man in Red.

 I am hoping to make one more trip this year - hopefully while snowing!

three

Sophia is a HUGE fan of Santa this year so we had to make a trip to the aquarium to see Scuba Santa. I wasn't sure what to expect, but Sophia really enjoyed herself. Before Santa arrived, she decided to be the pre-show entertainment.

She did a great job of sitting through the show and loved looking for the reindeer in the tanks.

four

One of my favorite traditions for Christmas is wearing matching pajamas to bed on Christmas Eve. I thought it would be a challenge this year trying to find a matching set, but Sophia picked hers out and made it easy for me to coordinate. Since I am pregnant I will be wearing men's pajamas this year (which are awesome since they have nice deep pockets). I already know which (super cheesy) sets we will be wearing next year when there is another little one to dress.

Let It Snow / Snowflake PJs

five

I will be making my favorite homemade hot chocolate mix this weekend. In a large bowl, combine 3 cups dry milk powder, 2 cups powdered sugar, 1.5 cups unsweetened cocoa powder, 1.5 cups white chocolate chips, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Transfer the mixture to a food processor and pulse until the chocolate is finely ground. To serve, mix 1/3 cup of the mix with one cup hot milk. Store in an airtight container.

via

I usually top my hot chocolate with an obscene amount of marshmallows, but I really want to try this peppermint whipped cream.

via

Mermaids are real!

Earlier this week we made two trips to the Newport Aquarium to see mermaids! You could meet a mermaid and get your picture taken with them. I love the picture below where Sophia is holding hands with a mermaid.

When you made it to the Coral Reef tank you could see the mermaids swimming around. The tank is a long tube and the mermaids would swim right over your head.

The second day we visited there was a very active mermaid who was frequently moving from side to side. They had a scuba diver that followed them to make sure the air tube didn't get tangled. Sophia was just as interested in the scuba diver as she was the mermaid.

Not mermaid related, but a few pictures of turtles at the aquarium. Dave is such a good sport!

Newport Aquarium

We wrapped up our visit with Nanny and Pap Pap by making a trip over to Kentucky to visit the Newport Aquarium. I love walking around the Levee and looking at Ohio across the river.

 Sophia loved touching the starfish, sharks, and turtles.

 The tanks and tunnels are amazing!

Sophia lost interest in looking at the creatures in the tanks after awhile and decided she would run around, which resulted in her having to stop and regroup for a minute. Fortunately, there were lots of places to climb, play, and interact with along the way.

 My favorite part was Turtle Canyon.

Of course we had to stop at Tom + Chee for lunch.