Vacation Part 3

This will be the final vacation recap that I post. After this day we didn't really take any more photos. These photos are from our morning at Zoo Atlanta. We got 50% off admission using our member pass from the Nashville Zoo, and I can say that I think I liked Zoo Atlanta a little better because it had some exhibits that Nashville lacks. Here are the pictures:

The lion and lioness were not very active just sleeping up top a rock.
Ryan really liked seeing the gorillas. This exhibit was awesome. I wish we had this in Nashville.

We asked Ryan to give the gorilla a hug, and this is what we got.
I also really liked the panda bear exhibit.

After the zoo we explored around the city and ate lunch. The next day we went to the Georgia Aquarium. I didn't take any pictures, but it was a lot of fun. There were huge whale sharks and two beautiful beluga whales. I wish I had taken photos, but we were busy with the kids. Then in the afternoon we went to swim at the pool, which was freezing. And that night we had the absolute best dinner ever--room service from Ruth's Chris Steak House. It was an expensive meal, but so delicious and easy to enjoy in the comfort of our own room. So that is our vacation in pictures. It was a great time and lots of great memories. Sure it had challenges, but overall it was well worth it. And I highly recommend a short trip to Atlanta if you are looking to get away with kids.

Vacation Part 2

After the TN Aquarium in Chattanooga, we headed down to Atlanta. Right after we checked into the hotel we headed out to explore the city around us. Our hotel was right on Centennial Olympic Park and was an AMAZING!!! location. I wish I had taken pictures of the area to show you, but instead all I have is pictures of my cute kids. We were in walking distance to almost everything we wanted to see. Ryan loved being on the park and it provided us many afternoons of fun.

Ryan running free.

Sean giving us a giggle.
Again in his stroller.
Ryan loved being near the World of Coke. He liked these recycling bins. He kept saying "my aga"--which is Ryan speak for my soda.
The next day we went to a children's museum called Imagine It!. I personally wouldn't describe it as a museum so much as play exhibits for kids. Ryan was absolutely over the moon with all the fun stuff to play with. I was afraid we'd never get him to leave.
Sean wasn't as impressed as Ryan was, but he still ended up having some fun.
There was a dress up area, and Ryan wanted to be the fire chief.
And I think he was mighty cute.
It made him happy.
Sean couldn't be left out of the fun.
While Ryan and Pat played at the fishing exhibit, Sean and I went to the baby area. There was a water bed for the babies. Sean was happy to stretch out there.
After the children's exhibit museum, we ate lunch and headed to the World of Coke. Ryan was happy to see the polar bear until he got close to it. He almost ran away until Pat held him and made him feel safe. Ryan's favorite part of the World of Coke was sampling the 60+ flavors of soda at the end. We even gave Ryan the Italian soda named Beverly--which is a bitter and gross tasting, but Ryan wasn't phased. Needless to say, that day was a sugar high for Ryan.

Last vacation entry to come sometime later.

Vacation Part 1

We are home from our vacation and have taken a day to recuperate from our trip. I learned a few lessons--like traveling with my two year old will make you want to rip your hair out at times. I knew it was going to be difficult taking a trip with a toddler, and I was right. It wasn't any worse than I had planned on. I learned to accept that there will be great moments of wonderful memories and also tough challenging times all in the same trip.

We spent our first night in Chattanooga, TN. I really like it there. It has a quaint, small town feel with all the amenities of a city. It is beautiful too. I wish we were able to have spent more time there and walked over the Walnut Street Bridge, but maybe next time. We did go to the TN Aquarium though. Here are some pictures from our time there.

The steam in the tropical fish room was messing with my camera so please ignore the blur.

Sean's typical pose.
Touching sting rays.
Ryan liked the penguins.
Another sting ray.
Shark!
Taking a break after the first building.
Sean again in his pose.
Cute photo of turtles cuddling.

I'll post more photos from the trip over the next few days.