Pacific Islander Festival at the Aquarium of the Pacific Plus #Giveaway

It's No Secret We LOVE the Aquarium of the Pacific!

 

Summer is Here and so is the Pacific Islander Festival at the Aquarium of the Pacific!

 

 



PC Aquarium of the Pacific



 

Some of the best summer fun is made with family. One of our most favorite places to visit is the Aquarium of the Pacific. There is so much to see, do, touch and learn... you can spend hours and leave wanting to come back for more.

Aquarium of the Pacific Hosts International Save the Vaquita Day July 9th Be Wise to What You CAN Do to Help

THE AQUARIUM OF THE PACIFIC WILL PARTICIPATE IN INTERNATIONAL SAVE THE VAQUITA DAY JULY 9

On International Save the Vaquita Day the Aquarium of the Pacific will be holding an event to bring light to the plight of Vaquita.

WHAT: You can help the Aquarium of the Pacific protect a critically endangered species and spread the message of conservation on International Save the Vaquita Day and beyond. Found only in the northern part of the Gulf of California, Mexico, the vaquita porpoise is the world’s most endangered marine mammal. Only about sixty vaquitas remain, according to a report by the International Committee for the Recovery of the Vaquita (CIRVA).

The Aquarium will host activities and education booths to build public awareness of the vaquita and the threats that have brought it to the brink of extinction. The Aquarium of the Pacific and a team of aquariums and zoos across the country are asking the public to get involved in a campaign to help this animal, the smallest cetacean (whale, dolphin, or porpoise) on the planet. The current vaquita population represents a decline of more than 92 percent since 1997. Unless Mexico extends the gillnet ban enacted in 2015 and enforces regulations to stop illegal fishing, the vaquita will be driven to extinction within five years, according to CIRVA.

Aquarium of the Pacific Welcomes Baby Penguins Live Web Cam

Baby Penguins are born at the Aquarium of the Pacific!

Oh My Cuteness - It's Baby Penguins 

Okay Seriously who wants to see the cutest thing ever?! Oh perfect, since I am stalking the web cam daily of these cute baby penguins that were just recently born at the Aquarium of the Pacific!

Here is the scoop and of course the link to the web cam so you too can watch in smiles all day long!

PC Aquarium of Pacific Robin Riggs

PENGUIN CHICKS HATCH AT THE AQUARIUM OF THE PACIFIC

The penguin chicks were hatched to parents Kate and Avery and Patsy and Robbie, residents of the Aquarium’s June Keyes Penguin Habitat.

Horses Dragons Vanishing Animals Coming to Aquarium of the Pacific

Horses, Dragons and Vanishing Animals, Oh My! 

There is a new exhibit coming to the +Aquarium of the Pacific .

So excited to head to the Aquarium of the Pacific this Thursday for a sneak peek into the amazing new wonders of the new exhibit. 

The new exhibit will feature a dozen species of Sea Dragons, Seahorses and some of their relatives. 

We can not wait to bring you all the details about the new exhibit and all the changing sealife that we are privileged to have at the Aquarium of the Pacific. 

There is so much to see at the Aquarium and it's so local to us in So Cal. It takes us about 35mins to hit the parking lot from South County, but it brings us so much closer to our local sealife and beyond!

Get all the details about the Aquarium of the Pacific on their website and come back soon to get all the deets on the new exhibit here!

Mother's Day Appreciation - Aquarium of the Pacific #Giveaway

April Showers Bring May Flowers...

 That is sometimes true and sometimes not in good old California!

One thing I know is a "for sure" each Spring... Our family traditions for Mother's day. 

We have always been big on getting together on Mother's Day in our family.

Before I got married we would celebrate it with my mom, usually at El Torito eating their awesome brunch buffet and cut out some time for my Yiayia (grandma in Greek). 

As I got older one thing that never stopped was the getting together. Our family grew and we added wives and husbands, eventually grandchildren. 

My mom was so big on traditions and doing so many things with us as a family that were both educational and fun... I have to carry that tradition itself on with my own family. 

I lost my mom when I was pregnant with my first kiddo. It was harsh. I hated it... I even asked myself... How could I do this? Bring a kiddo into this world, love her, have her love me and then one day know she would HURT so much and so deep knowing she would never be able to hug me physically again... BUT then I realized, there in that moment, 6.5 months pregnant, that I wanted to be just like MY MOM!

I wanted to show my kids everything she showed me, I wanted to be as selfless as her in her love for our family, I wanted to do all the things that my mom did with us.. with my own kids. 

I wanted to show my baby in my belly that one day it would be sad but that the memories of the laughs, love and traditions that will carry on forever outweigh the moments of the expected sadness when a parent passes. 

But... that is legacy.. all part of who we are, why we are us and who we want to teach our kids to be like. 

So... with that said... CHEERS/YASU and HERE is to helping your family continue, start or just re-spark some time together that maybe will become tradition for you all too!

Festival Of Whales Coming to Dana Point March 2016

Ahoy! The Dana Point Festival of Whales will be here for two weekends in March!

Thar she blows!!!! Just look for the water spray - that is how to spot a whale out at sea while whale watching. 

On March 5th and 6th and then again on March 12th and 13th Dana Point will host the 45th annual Dan Point Festival of Whales. 

This is so nostalgic for me. As a kid into my teens we would go with my parents to Dana Point to catch as many of the seasonal festivities they put on. This one was not to be missed. 

I can not wait to keep this tradition alive again this year with my own family. 

We love that there is always art, music, entertainment, food and much more to enjoy with our family and friends. You can see all the details of the entertainment line up and more here.

There are even special contests you can enter... ready to make and race your own Dingy... enter here!

Be sure to book your 2 hour Whale Watching tour and you can do that pre event on line here. There is a $15 8am trip special for all 8am trips out! That is a whale of a deal..hehe!

Follow along with the Dana Point Festival of Whales on their social media - Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

Our Top 5 things not to miss at the Dana Point Festival Of Whales:

* Whale Watching - anytime is awesome but I have always heard earlier the better in the day. 

* Arts and Culture - so many vendors to see that have brought home made and personalized art to Dana Point for years. Each piece of art has a story of Dana Point Whale Festival history and depth. 

* Classic Car Displays - Who doesn't love a classic car?! We sure do. My dad always loved to take us to see and smell the original leather of a classic. He has a Packard so for us this is a sight seeing must do.   

* Music and Food - this goes hand in hand for us, much like the Ships festival and the Blues festival the music and food just pair well together. Take a moment to enjoy the sounds while you fill your belly with seafood and more. 

* Sand Sculpting and Parade - we usually check out one before the other and work up our appetite for the music and food. 

Two things we want to check out and maybe try out this year:

* Stand up and Paddle boat clinics. I have always wanted to try both. This may just be my opportunity to get a foot out on the water on the stand up paddle board! Exciting!!

* Movie in the Park - March 5th the Dana Point Festival of Whales will show Free Willy - Escape from Pirates Cove. We can not wait to see the movie under the stars with free popcorn too. Details here.

Doheny State Beach has campground and much more all year round to accommodate the festival fun for weekends long. Get more details on the fun you can have all year here and get all the details on the Whale Walk too. The Whale Walk is where a new painting will go up among those already on display. You can help paint it on March 6th from 9am to 2pm. 

What are you most excited about? We can not wait to attend, we just can't decide what weekend to get out there so it may just be all 4 days for us!

The best part about the event... there will be a FREE SHUTTLE to get you from one fun spot to the other, so don't worry about if and how, it will be easy to navigate to everything! 

Follow along on social media for more details as we get closer to the event.

Tag #FestivalOfWhales on social media to show your support and the fun you will have!

Harbor Breeze Cruises and Aquarium of the Pacific Advise Conservation While Whale Watching!

First Time Whale Watching a Success!

Thank you to the Aquarium of the Pacific for the invite to board the Ocean Breeze Cruise boat Triumph for whale watching yesterday.

I have always wanted to go whale watching but have never had the opportunity to go and yesterday I was able to take my kids as well.

Usually on outings like this I like that my husband comes along but because he was not able to go I decided that it would be worth it because this is a once in a lifetime opportunity to not only see Gray Whales but possibly catch an Orca too!

We were scheduled to leave about 11 and return at 1. I myself could stay out at sea for a half day if not more but I thought this was perfect for family time or even a date.