Barack Lobster
Thanks to a military special and a separate coupon for free kid's admission, it was only $7 for the four of us to head up to DC to tour the bizarrely named National Aquarium. Yes, nation, these are your fish. The Congressional Kelp. The President's Pufferfish. Star-spangled sturgeons. Etc.
I had no idea we had an aquarium in downtown DC, since when I think 'aquarium' I think 'flooded coliseum', a multi-story, winding, escalatored building with waterfalls and tunnels where you walk through tanks from floor-to-thirty-foot ceiling, orcas sharing time with scuba gear-laden oceanographers learning what makes seahorse poop so sparkly, and I just couldn't think where something that monolithic would be among the other monolithic entities like the FBI building or Tower Records.
Instead, we were in the basement of some building (the Dept of Commerce, maybe), with tanks as big as...tanks, but mostly smaller, fiat-sized ones or even itty bitty ones you'd find in a dorm room, only with some rare blue-skinned frog in it as opposed to a beta fish your suite mates decided to feed beer to. One floor, maybe thirty exhibits, nary a shark feeding. I think we spent more time in the gift shop afterwards.
Still. You couldn't beat the price, the size was just about perfect for the kids, and we would have had some adorable pictures of Ryan in his turtle shirt nose-to-whatever the amphibial nose equivalent is with a swimming sea turtle if our camera's battery hadn't died taking cute pictures of Erin in her sunglasses during the Metro ride up. They also had a couple mini-alligators, a lobster the size of a medicine ball, a bunch of fish Ryan recognized from "Nemo", and some cool other stuff you don't see at PetSmart every day (eels, an octopus, piranhas).
A froot smoothie and walk down Constitution Avenue later on a gorgeous 70-degree day, we were back home for quick naps and then more outdoor time since every kid and his bicycle was out on Pocomoke Court. Ryan rassled over a big ball with Jonathan in the neighbor's yard (barely missing Tully poop) while I blew bubbles for Erin and thirteen of her new closest friends who inadvertently insulted her by saying she looked like me. Ryan then wanted to ride his tricycle, so now that Erin has gotten too big to pump on the handlebars, I put her in my bike trailer and pushed her up the street, using the bicycle attachment bar doohickey thing to push the back of Ryan's cycle when needed all the way up...then all the way down Pocomoke Court.
It's going to be an awesome summer.
I had no idea we had an aquarium in downtown DC, since when I think 'aquarium' I think 'flooded coliseum', a multi-story, winding, escalatored building with waterfalls and tunnels where you walk through tanks from floor-to-thirty-foot ceiling, orcas sharing time with scuba gear-laden oceanographers learning what makes seahorse poop so sparkly, and I just couldn't think where something that monolithic would be among the other monolithic entities like the FBI building or Tower Records.
Instead, we were in the basement of some building (the Dept of Commerce, maybe), with tanks as big as...tanks, but mostly smaller, fiat-sized ones or even itty bitty ones you'd find in a dorm room, only with some rare blue-skinned frog in it as opposed to a beta fish your suite mates decided to feed beer to. One floor, maybe thirty exhibits, nary a shark feeding. I think we spent more time in the gift shop afterwards.
Still. You couldn't beat the price, the size was just about perfect for the kids, and we would have had some adorable pictures of Ryan in his turtle shirt nose-to-whatever the amphibial nose equivalent is with a swimming sea turtle if our camera's battery hadn't died taking cute pictures of Erin in her sunglasses during the Metro ride up. They also had a couple mini-alligators, a lobster the size of a medicine ball, a bunch of fish Ryan recognized from "Nemo", and some cool other stuff you don't see at PetSmart every day (eels, an octopus, piranhas).
A froot smoothie and walk down Constitution Avenue later on a gorgeous 70-degree day, we were back home for quick naps and then more outdoor time since every kid and his bicycle was out on Pocomoke Court. Ryan rassled over a big ball with Jonathan in the neighbor's yard (barely missing Tully poop) while I blew bubbles for Erin and thirteen of her new closest friends who inadvertently insulted her by saying she looked like me. Ryan then wanted to ride his tricycle, so now that Erin has gotten too big to pump on the handlebars, I put her in my bike trailer and pushed her up the street, using the bicycle attachment bar doohickey thing to push the back of Ryan's cycle when needed all the way up...then all the way down Pocomoke Court.
It's going to be an awesome summer.
posted by Dan at 9:21 PM
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