Vacation, Day 1

We didn't go far, but we're having a blast! This will be our last vacation before my little scholar starts pre-school (!) so I am soaking up every minute!

We left early on Day 1 and got to Gilroy Gardens an hour after opening. I highly recommend this place if you're close enough and have kids age 5 or 6 and under. Its fun for grown-ups, too. The gardens are really nice and the park itself just has a great feel to it. It was pleasantly surprising to constantly smell flowers blooming all around even when you weren't walking through one of the many beautiful gardens! Its also very clean and well-kept and pleasant all around.

Z had a blast riding the kiddie rides, as usual. I can see a roller coaster buddy in my future! The set-up of the park is great, so we were able to hit various areas of rides, games, shops, food, shows, and other attractions without having to run all around the place.

I had so much fun watching Z's excitement as he discovered new rides or ran through the spray park pretending to try not to get wet. He says his favorite part of the day was riding the rides and eating ice cream. :) He didn't so much like that they announced a butterfly release in the monarch garden, but after waiting for half an hour in the humidity we never saw a single butterfly. The garden was beautiful, but sadly butterfly-free at the moment.

We left at park closing, both of us exhausted but happy after a really fun day. Unfortunately one of us had drive... luckily I took the wheel because little man was out for the count before we made our way to the highway. We got to our hotel in Santa Cruz and checked in, but got back in the car immediately to find dinner. With hungry bellies and tired heads I didn't want to head downtown to try and find somewhere kid-friendly that also wouldn't mind our, ahem, casual appearance after a long day at an amusement park and a total of 4 hours in the car. So, we settled on our fail-safe, Whole Foods.... Z managed to make a few friends while we were there but I was anxious to get home, shower off the day and test out the beds!

I left the memory card at home so had to rely on my camera phone for Day 1 photos... will update this posting with pictures soon!