Wet N' Wild

The Lady and I arrived at the beach mid-morning on Monday. We pulled up to the house and were greeted by cousins, kids and more importantly a clear blue sky, essentially the perfect beach day. We dragged all of our stuff out of the car and then down to the beach and played and sunned for most of the day. Finally. The weather was great, there were distractions for each of us and the vacay I had been anticipating for months had finally begun.

Tuesday was more of the same. We started the day out with a big walk with C-Bear and the big guy. I will have to say that it took a bit longer than usual, due to the fact that I can barley haul my body around anymore, but it was really nice to get out.

We lubed up the babies and headed down to the beach. Although some fog moved in the sun shone through and again we got some QT at the beach.

The plan for today was going to be different. We have to pick up our newly engaged Michigan girl at the airport mid-day and we knew that the weather report was iffy, so we decided on an early morning at Mystic Aquarium and then afternoon errands and a trip to the airport. What we were not prepared for was a full on deluge of Biblical proportions.

We strapped the Lady and the big guy in the car and headed to the Aquarium. I promised the Lady some penguins after watching Diego rescue one this morning and we were off. I even commented to C-Bear that the sun looked like it was peeking through and maybe we could take them to the beach this afternoon.

Mystic Aquarium is great. There are enough exhibits indoor and out to keep you occupied. We started off watching the Beluga whales getting fed. The Lady insisted on calling them dolphins. One thing the Aquarium doesn't have is dolphins. C-Bear and I nicknamed one Ron, because he was so large and his underbelly was had so many ridges on it that had it been wearing a brown t-shirt, he could have been Ron from the Biggest Loser's doppelganger.

We moved on to the sea lions and then the thunder started. We moved inside saw the "silver moony" fish and the sharks. Note to all of you who are interested in working at an Aquarium, at the shark tank there was a young girl sitting with a clip board in her hand, who had to wait and mark down when each shark pooped. Out of the seven sharks only one had pooped so far. I guess somebody has to do that type of thing, but dear lord, I am glad it wasn't me.

After that we headed to the sea lion show. I will say both kids were very well behaved. We didn't have strollers and we left our diaper bags in the car, so there was really nothing to distract them except the sea lions themselves and the two of them made it through with little whinging and whining.

The problems started when we left the show. The kids were almost done, the Lady started the whole jelly body thing, where she just melts in your arms. She either wanted me to hold her or let her run free in the Aquarium, oh and outside was a monsoon. The water was just rushing down the outdoor overhangs and pretty much blocking any exit out of the Aquarium without soaking us all.

The Lady of course wants to play in the puddles. There is thunder and lightning and we tried in vain to distract them in the Aquarium store, but there is only so many times you can hand them a plush turtle and then tell them that they aren't leaving with it. So a plan was hatched. Since we drove in my car and C-Bear can't drive stick (well, a stick shift car, we all know she is well versed in pole work.) I was going to make a run for it, pull the car around to the drop-off area, open up the huge golf umbrella we have in the trunk and help escort the kids to a dry zone in the car. Did I mention it was freaking ridiculously raining out, that I am 8 months pregnant and was wearing flip flops? However, the decision was clear, either get soaked or stand inside with two kids, who clearly were not able to deal. In actuality C-Bear might have had the harder job, she had to watch the two of them while I drove around.

So, I took the plunge. I was lucky enough to be able to run (or waddle, like a duck) under an awning to the area where the car was parked. The problem was that it was parked on a lower level and I was going to have to lower myself down over about a 4ft high wall to get to the car. Just picture it, the slow motion run through the rain and puddles, then me, lowering myself over the side of a rock wall. I would like to say that I had the grace and agility of a male Chinese gymnast on the pummel horse, casually throwing his legs over the side, while supporting his weight on his hands. What it looked like in actuality was something quite different and after kneeling down and dangling for a moment, while my back got soaked in the rain, I finally hit the ground and landed in about ankle deep water.

The entire parking lot was flooded in about a foot and a half of water. I had to drive through it in order to get to the drop off point and as an SUV made its way towards me, I got caught it its wake. Waves were crashing over the hood of my car, the defrost was on level five and full blast heat, the wipers were whipping across the windshield and I was totally drenched. I was finally able to pull around, find Bear and the kids, pop the trunk and head over with the umbrella. We got them both in without soaking the two of them anymore then they already were after jumping in puddles and we headed out.

The weather cleared a bit on the drive home and we thought that the worst had passed. However, as I sit here watching the rain fall in a steady stream outside, the cable has gone out and with it the opportunity to finish watching "Make It or Break It "on ABC Family. We still have to drive up to Providence and pick up our cousin in this rain and I am hoping that the Lady will nap. Let's hope the cable comes back for "So You Think You Can Dance" and that the sun comes out tomorrow.