We started out by visiting my new favorite lunch place in Corpus Christi, Hester's at the Art Museum of South Texas. The view is nothing short of spectacular and the food is outstanding. The windows look out over the ship channel. You can see the Texas State Aquarium and the USS Lexington Museum on the Bay.
After lunch we headed across the Harbor Bridge (known by our Princesses as the Rainbow Bridge) to North Beach and the Texas State Aquarium.
The aquarium was extremely crowded. It was the kickoff of Shark Week and it was Stingray Day at Stingray Lagoon. We first looked at all the interior tanks. The girls especially enjoyed the touch tanks where Mom and Dad helped them get an up close look at anemones and hermit crabs. The also really liked the seahorse tank that allowed them to get underneath in a bubble for an up-close look. The shark hat that Princess E is wearing was part of the Shark Week promotion.
After our trip through the aquarium, we headed outside to Dolphin Bay. It was an extremely hot day with temperatures in the upper 90s. The wait for a seat in the theater was more than half an hour. Even then, most of us ended up standing at the back of the bleachers. But both of the girls enjoyed the show.
Next up was the bird show at the Hawn Wild Flight Theater. The show features hawks, owls, falcons and parrots with a very strong message about conservation. The Texas State Aquarium is very involved in rehabilitating and releasing injured animals and the show at this theater features a variety of animals. It's a very small venue and even though you are not allowed to interact directly with the animals, they are very close and you can get a really good look at them. The wait for this show was only about 15 minutes. It was just enough time for the girls to enjoy a sherbet push up pop.
As soon as that show was over, we headed over to the HEB Splash Park. It is definitely the girls favorite part of a visit to the aquarium. We always have to save it for last because, once the girls get to the splash park, they are not interested in anything else.
One part of the waterpark is a big bucket that is suspended right over the middle of the park. It slowly fills with water, then when it's full, it dumps the entire bucket on whoever is standing right underneath it. Our Littlest Princess got caught right on the edge of it pretty early during their play time. After that she steered clear of that part of the splash park. But, Princess E started working up her courage a little at a time and eventually went and stood in the splash zone to get soaked several times. I was very proud of her. You can see in this little cell phone video how excited she was. That's her in the pink swimsuit. You will notice that it's mostly the older kids who play in this area.
We stayed until the aquarium closed, then went directly to the nearest Whataburger for dinner. The girls were so tired they were falling asleep as soon as they got in the car. We put them directly to bed.
It was awesome to get a bonus day for Grams Camp. I'll be back in a few days with one more Grams Camp post. I want to highlight some of the things I learned in my second year of Grams Camp. Not only will I be sharing some tips for planning a visit from your grands, it will help me remember what I need to remember for next year.
