Travel Day 2

Whew!!
What an exhausting day!!!
A great day, don't get me wrong, but, exhausting all the same!!
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Anyway...we got up late...9am (almost nine hours of sleep...how insane is that!?!?!!)
Got ourselves ready for the day, and headed out to the Minneapolis Science Museum. This is the same museum that I once got to go and do a lock-in when I was about 13, so it was somewhat nostalgic for me!
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They have a triceratops that is the most complete real bone trike in the world, and it is HUGE...their heads really do impress me. DD was truly amazing...it was really something to see her try to grab everything there. She was fascinated by almost everything...talking to it, grabbing it, wiggling at it, etc. She is SUCH a different baby than I remember! And again, we were just SO proud of her all day today...she was so well behaved. When she got tired, she fussed for just a few minutes, and then slept. She's just SO good!!!








Next on the agenda, was St. Paul Cathedral. Talk about awesome and breathtaking. This is another thing that I remember from childhood...and this one still took my breath away just as much as when I was younger. The architecture, the size, the beauty, and the religious aspects of it are just incredible. This is one place that I think modern protestant religion miss the point of 'temples' much of the time. Biblically, a church is 'any place where two or more are gathered in My name.'
And that's true, and wonderful, and the most important thing. However, the bible also frequently speaks of the incredible temples that God finds pleasing. They are built to glorify God. And yes, they are expensive, but you can't tell me that the ones in the bible that God ordered be made for Him were cheap.....
But, I digress!!
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After the cathedral, we drove around and took in the sites a little bit...so beautiful! But, I'll detail that after we go a little further North, and see the beauty up North.

Then, back to the MOA (Mall of America) and the aquarium in the basement there. That was certainly my favorite part of the trip thus far!
They have a HUGE aquatic tunnel that just goes on and on and on, and it is on a slow moving automatic platform that you can ride through. There are south american cichlids, stuff native to the area, sharks, reef areas, etc. etc. etc. Just beautiful. And we got to see a couple of impressively large sea turtles up close and personal! I was even able to shoot a little bit of video of one that was only a few feet away through the glass. Brings to memory the one I got to touch while scuba diving in Mexico. Talk about a moment that brings you a little closer to God...really. As always, it is increasingly obvious to me that He hardwired me to really appreciate the beauty of his living creations here on the earth.
DD was ENTHRALLED all the way through the tunnel. She loved the fish, the other people, the bubbles, the railing, the lit up information boxes, the whole thing! I think this was her favorite even of the trip so far, too.










Finally, we finished a quick cruise of the mall--we'll come back and go through a little better in the future. We walked through the park, as well, and saw some nifty looking rides--just have to figure out how that one will work. We'll either have to ride alone, or not at all.
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At about 9:30, pretty much completely exhausted, we headed over to a really neat grocery store called Byerly's and picked up some sandwiches for dinner. They were really awesome.

And then, back to the hotel, where I played Pokemon for awhile, and then bed!!!
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And, that was our day!!

Bethany