Update Part 2: The beach and the zoo

"Embrace the sand." That is what one of our new friends told me one day at the beach. I like that motto. You really do have to embrace it, because you will find it in your wallet, your camera, your cell phone, your eyebrows, and in any other strange place you can imagine. It also eventually just goes away somehow. So we just embrace/ignore it. And got a little dust-buster for the car.

The ocean is so beautiful and breathtakingly large. When viewed from afar on cloudy days, it is as gray as the sky and the two run together, only distinguishable by the texture of the water. Sometimes it looks like those sea-foam green crayons, and other times it is just blue. Kimball likes to play with the air pockets on the kelp--we call them bubbles. He and I dig a little "swimming pool", and he finds bubbles to throw inside.

Sometimes I feel like I take Kimball to the beach just as much for me as for him. I just need my beach fix! I need to walk in that ocean, just for a few minutes. I'm addicted. It helps that we're only 10 minutes away. I don't bring the camera much (because the sand clogs up the sliding lens cover. It's not like I set it down on the ground or anything. That sand has magical magnetic powers or something.).

But here are a few pictures of Kimball playing on the beach.

Almost certainly a jellyfish (probably dead) washed up on shore!

Another of our favorite places is the San Diego Zoo. We've been taking it in small doses, since we live close--about 15-20 minutes if traffic is good. Kimball likes the monkeys, the flamingos, and the goats at the petting zoo. He went right up to the goats, said "hi!", and patted them on their backs.

This is a great sign:

Giant ground sloths: my favorite extinct megafauna!

See? We found one on our honeymoon in London too:

Racing through a polar bear den.

We rode the "skyfari", a tram that takes you from one side of the zoo to the other. As members, we get to ride for free. Ski-lifty type things are NOT my favorite kind of experience. Too slow, too much suspenseful what-if-we-drop kind of feelings. Kimball was a little nervous too. As we took off he shook his head no, no, no! But at least he didn't cry. He sat on the floor, and that's why he's not in the picture.

The orangutan and gorilla exhibits are great.

A snake-necked turtle. 

An elephant-shaped topiary at the entrance.

This took way too long to write! The next update will be about some of the friends and family we've been able meet and visit with. Have a great weekend!