Monterey Weekend

I had a conference in Monterey the week of Clarita's birthday so I insisted that she and Dada come join me because I wanted to celebrate her actual birthday with her. They joined me Thursday evening and we let Clara chose what to eat for dinner since it was her birthday.  She, of course, chose pizza (a girl after Dada's heart). Unfortunately the pizza was still a little hot when she took her first bite and made her not want to eat anymore. She took a couple of bites and was done. We stopped and got her a cupcake at Kara's Cupcakes after dinner and she was very excited. She picked it out all by herself (chosen by the bird on top) and even got a balloon! We headed back to the hotel where she was happy to play with all of the gadgets and bounce on the bed.

My conference ended at noon Friday and we headed to the beach to get fish and chips. Clara was very excited about sitting outside at the restaurant where she could see all of the birds and feel the wind. We walked along the pier and she kept telling us that she wanted to touch the birds and swim in the ocean like Dada. We then headed to David and Lizanne's for nap time. David and Dada have been friends for ever and it was great to spend time with him and his family. Dada and I spent a week with them in Florida the year before Clarita was born, but have not been able to see them much since then. Their two kids, Liam and Keira were very excited to play with Clara. They came home while she was sleeping and kept asking me if they could wake her up to play with her. They were very disappointed that she took a three and a half hour nap! As an added bonus, Kim, David's younger sister and a good friend of Tia Laurie, was also spending the weekend there so we got to hang out with her too!

Once Clara finally woke up from her nap she had a great time playing with Liam and Keira. She loved all of their toys and especially their bunk beds! Her favorite thing to do was to climb up to the top bunk and play up there. I was surprised that she never fell down the stairs or off the bed. The first night Clara insisted on eating salmon out of the very middle of the fish. If I tried to give it to her from any other location she cried. Since she has refused to eat salmon for the past few months I was just excited that she wanted some! Kim was very sweet and made cupcakes so Clarita's birthday celebration could continue. Needless to say, Clara was very excited about this and sang happy birthday to herself!

On Saturday we headed to the Monterey Bay Aquarium. Clara had a good time, but I thought she would like it more than she did. She was pretty excited about the penguins and now knows that they swim and makes hers swim around. She also liked the touch pools and the play areas. We watched a feeding in the Open Sea exhibit and were amazed that Clara managed to sit semi still for the half an hour we had to wait prior to the feeding. She got excited when the fish went crazy trying to get food and was then over it. By noon the place was absolutely packed and Clarita was a little overwhelmed. We called it a day and headed to lunch on the wharf. We got lucky and got a table at the window which Clara loved because she could watch the birds as she ate. Birds are her new favorite thing and we should apparently have gone to a bird sanctuary instead of an aquarium!

Saturday afternoon we spent lounging with the adults while the kids slept/played. We went to the park when Clara woke up and she broke her almost week long streak of pooping only in the potty because she was too busy playing to care. Kim had bought letters for the kids to paint and Clara thought that was awesome and surprisingly did not get any paint on her (I put her pajamas on just in case). Kim even bought a letter for Baby Emmett that I got to paint! At dinner that night Clara surprised us all by eating mainly pork. She is generally not a big meat eater, but gobbled it up! The kids had more fun playing and Liam and Keira were absolutely amazing with Clara. They are eight and six but did so well with her. I think I need to get me some older kids to occupy Clara so I can get things done!

Sunday we took Clarita to a huge park in the morning and she absolutely loved it. The little daredevil immediately climbed up to the tallest slide and slid right down. She also attempted to climb up ladders and other non-age appropriate toys. She's not afraid of anything which concerns me sometimes! After lunch we had to say goodbye and head home. The little Puff fell asleep as soon as we drove off and slept for two hours of the three and a half hour trip. She was then pretty content to play and eat until we got home. It was a great weekend and way to celebrate Clarita's birthday!