South Bay Botanical Gardens

Today we bought a family membership pass to South Bay Botanical Gardens. We were able to meet a friend there as well, which was just one added bonus.
In the beginning of our trip I wasn't sure I was going to make it. Kaeley was her usual arguing self. Nathan cried, because Alynna was sitting in the umbrella stroller, and he was convinced it was his seat. Alynna was crying, because she was hungry and tired. The kids wouldn't stop asking me for food. Whew. It was a rough beginning.
The picture on the far right shows Nathan and Kaeley digging in the Bug Bin. I thought there were worms in it all the time, but we never saw any. The box was there to show the kids how the bugs and worms turn the soil over and fertilize it for planting. Well, Kaeley wanted to a find a worm, but didn't want to dig for one. I think she was concerned with the unknown. I was nursing Alynna nearby, so she enlisted Nathan for help. That didn't work though, because Nathan would only take handfuls of dirt out and dump it on the floor. When I had both hands available I dug in the dirt for her. Yes, I love my kids. I never did find any worms, but I found a grub. It was hard, about the size of your thumb, ribbed, and gross! I tried not to give Kaeley any biases, so I just backed away slowly saying, "Wow! That's some bug!" She didn't need any helping though, because she got the hibbey-jeebies without me. She would play in the tub any more.
I followed them for the most part. They spent a lot of time close to the ground in search for ladybugs and roly polies.
We later walked down to the lake. We had brought a whole bag of bread crusts to feed the ducks and squirrels. The squirrels there are incredibly people-"friendly". I mean they're really bold! While the children were feeding ducks facing the lake, a squirrel came up to them from behind. Nathan had taken a bite of the stable bread. I say, "No, Nathan! Don't eat our bread! Feed it to the squirrel!" Nathan looked at the squirrel, which he always calls "mouse", and took the bread out of his mouth, and tried to feed the squirrel.
Later Nathan found a chunk of bread floating on the water. He snatched it up and popped it in his mouth before I could do anything about it.
We had a good time exploring more of the park. For some reason I noticed a lot more blossoms this visit. There was all different shades of pink, bright yellow, and white. It was so beautiful and the air smelled beautiful!