An Afternoon at SeaWorld, San Diego!

This post is in partnership with SeaWorld San Diego. All opinions are mine alone. 

I had been talking about taking a trip back home for a bit because I wanted one last fun trip with both grandparents for Oaklyn before she becomes a big sister. 

When Hunter finally agreed to the idea and said he would try to get work off, I got so excited and started planning fun things to do!

We decided to take one of the days we were there to visit SeaWorld San Diego.

Growing up in San Diego, I never really took advantage of all it had to offer.

I went to SeaWorld on a field trip when I was a lot younger and again with family when I was still pretty young.

So, while this trip was definitely for Oaklyn... I was just as excited to go to SeaWorld for myself ;)

Most amusement parks are kind of out of the question for us right now because I'm in my third trimester of pregnancy and Oaklyn is just a few inches shy of riding most rides. 

From what I had remembered, SeaWorld seemed like the perfect place for our family at this stage of life.

Boy was I right!

Me, Hunter, Oaklyn, and Hunter's mom all went and that is a very wide range of ages... yet we all had lots of fun!

There was something entertaining and fun for all of us and Oaklyn got to see animals she had never seen before.

When we entered the park we honestly had no idea where to go, haha.

We had a map but just kind of decided to aimlessly explore and stop at the attractions that appealed to us.

The first thing we found was the Dolphin Encounter.

Other than Oaklyn's major meltdown (ohhh toddlers) I thought it was so cool!

You can see the dolphins above water doing all their fun tricks and below water by the glass!

I think dolphins just look so friendly and fun.

They always appear to be smiling and I just love that.

There was also someone over the loudspeaker explaining facts and details about dolphins I didn't know.

I loved that it was fun and educational for all ages. 

After that we tried to map out where we went based off show times.

The first show we saw was Sea Lions Live and it was the cutest thing ever!

I was so impressed with how well they were trained for the show and how clever the script was.

Oaklyn was fascinated by these animals she had never seen before and us adults were cracking up at the hilarious jokes.

That was by far my favorite show and my top recommendation for anyone who visits Seaworld.

We had planned on doing two other shows but ended up just going to the dolphin show and it was awesome!

One thing we all loved is how they personally introduced each dolphin and said how many children they had haha.

I also loved the fun and playful interactions between the trainers and dolphins.

I loved the upbeat and positive vibe of the show.

The dolphins did so many cool tricks and Oaklyn sat pretty still through the whole thing which I would say is a win!

Hunter said he now wants to be a dolphin trainer haha ;)

Okay, let's talk about the other things you can see while at SeaWorld...

There are so many different areas dedicated to specific animals. 

We loved seeing the penguins, sting rays, dolphins, and there are so many others!

This is a perfect teaching moment with little ones to help make the trip a little educational too.

There are always plaques with info on all the animals so I was learning quite a bit as well.

I love how happy all the animals look and how playful they all were!

Now let's talk rides...

Hunter loves rides and I may even love them more than him haha.

Clearly I wasn't able to go on any rides but Hunter had a blast on the two he went on!

He rode Manta and Journey to Atlantis and absolutely loved both!

He rode Journey to Atlantis twice because the line was super short and he thought it was so much fun.

It is a coaster and a water ride combined together. 

You get a little wet going down a big drop and then do the roller coaster part. 

Manta is a roller coaster that soars dives and twists just as a sting ray would.

Oaklyn discovered a new found love for rides this trip to San Diego and kept asking to go on them at SeaWorld.

They have two places for your littles to ride some rides...

The first place is Sesame Street Bay of Play with so many fun things for your toddler to do.

They also just opened a new area called Ocean Explorer and we spent a good chunk of time there letting oaks go on the rides.

She LOVED them!

They were the perfect size and speed for her and it was so fun watching her smile through each ride.

We had such a great afternoon at SeaWorld San Diego and can't wait to go back again!

I can't believe we'll have a second kid the next time we go!

Overall, SeaWorld gets two thumbs up from our family because we loved that there was something for everyone!

What is your favorite thing to do there?

All my love,

Aleigh Joy

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Take Me Out to the Ballgame

One of the best parts about growing up in a vacation spot is all the exploring we get to do when we go home!

If you follow me on snapchat (aleighjoy) you probably saw we took a little vacation to San Diego a week and a half ago!

Hunter and I are high school sweethearts and my parents just moved, so our parents now live literally 3 minutes away.

It is so perfect because we get to see both families in just one trip!

Even though we grew up in San Diego, it is even more fun going back to visit because we get to act like tourists and explore places we didn't all the time while living there.

Before moving to Utah, I had a full time job which hardly left any time to explore like I would have wanted to.

We have made it more of a goal to do fun things while there now and one of the super fun activities we did this time around was go to a Padres game!

Hunter loves baseball and the whole atmosphere so he was super excited to go.

We knew it would be a little difficult with our busy body toddler so we brought grandma and grandpa along too ;)

I had forgotten how beautiful the ballpark is!

It is literally right in the heart of San Diego.

It is right downtown and you can see the San Diego Bay, all the sky scrapers downtown, the Coronado Bridge, and Coronado island.

Is that not the coolest location?

The park also has a grass field where you can sit and have your kids run around.

There is also "the beach" where there is sand to play in. So cool!

You will also find mini fields for children to play on during the game!

Petco Park is both family friendly and adult friendly, I just love that there is something for everyone. 

Now let's talk about food!

I couldn't believe all the different food options!

When I think of a baseball game I think of hotdogs, popcorn, peanuts, and you know... cracker jack ;)

However, there was literally something for every single tastebud.

I still stuck with my (yummy) hot dog but the street tacos, ice cream sandwiches, and philly cheesesteaks were all super tempting!

Oaklyn stuck with popcorn and water and seemed to really enjoy it ;)

It was so fun to be there as a family and to meet up with one of Hunter's best friends while there!

Oaklyn and I did a whole lot of walking around the park and I loved exploring all of it... as did she ;)

Hunter and his dad were also super excited to see a home run from the Padres!

Baseball games are such a fun family activity, we will definitely be headed back another time!

Thank you San Diego Padres for an awesome afternoon!

All my love,

Aleigh Joy

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December Trips

Wait how is January almost over?

I swear I was just home for Christmas...

December/January FLEW by for us. 

We were traveling so much of the time that it went by in a blink.

We went coast to coast, back to Utah, then to San Diego, back to Utah, back to San Diego, and now we're in Utah once again!

My doctor was not happy...

BYU football was invited to the Miami Beach Bowl this year!

What an amazing experience!

Seriously SO fun!

The boys went up a few days earlier than the wives so it must have been a pretty fun sight seeing about 30 BYU football wives all flying on a redeye together ha.

The hotel was AMAZING.

Like right on the beach amazing. 

The boys also had lots of free time so we were able to make it a "babymoon" of some sorts filled with yummy food, lots of laying on the beach, and being with good friends.

It was so relaxing having the entire trip paid for with so much to do.

Most meals were in the hotel and if we got hungry throughout the day the hospitality room was almost always open.

Think a huge room with a ton of flat screens for video games, ping pong, corn hole, board games, a huge screen playing current bowl games, a popcorn machine, a nacho bar, a smoothie bar, pretzels, churros, favorites from the creamery including ice cream, huge drink fridges, and a whole lot more snacks. 

SO FUN!

The game was at Marlins Park.

I'm sad to say we lost in double overtime but it was still a really great game and I had so much fun!

Thank you BYU for that incredible experience!

We then flew home for the holidays and had so much fun spending time with family.

There were so many fun things to do every day and it sure made it hard to leave.

We both also agree that the west coast, is most definitely the best coast ;)

All my love,

Aleigh Joy

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A Much Needed Trip Back Home

Last night I got maybe an hour of sleep.

I was so frustrated that I got up and paced the kitchen... thinking maybe that would make me tired? 

I don't know. It sounded like a good plan at 3 a.m.

I was just starting to doze off when I heard Hunter's alarm go off.

you have got to be kidding me.

Somehow, I still got into work today right on time.

I had to use all my might not to show up in basketball shorts, slippers, and a t-shirt.

I still wore a not-so-t-shirt-ish t-shirt and sweats.

It took at least 15 minutes for two kids to show up.

It took at least and hour for only two more to show up.

And it then only took an hour more for my boss to tell me I could go home!

Hallelujah.

I figured this would be a good opportunity to catch up on our trip back home!

I must say, I love that we both have the same hometown.

I truly do not despise Utah. 

In fact, I kinda like it.

Because of that, Hunter and I decided we might actually be able to end up somewhere other than San Diego when we're older and have figured out where we want life to take us.

I mean, if we can have fun and make friends here, we could do that in say, South Carolina... right? (No we are not really thinking about living there, it just kinda came to my mind ha)

Welllll... then we drove into good 'ol San Marcos.

And, my heart felt full.

I could smell the ocean air, palm trees were right out my window, and of course... Jack in the Box!

San Diego is home.

It always will be, even if we do end up somewhere else for unknown reasons at this time. 

But for now, we are enjoying Utah and we are trying to make the most of our adventure in this home away from home :)

Here's some snaps from our visit with family.

All my love,

Aleigh Joy

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