57. Go whale watching.

While we were in Redondo Beach, we went on a whale watch. This time of year, blue whales migrate past southern California, so we were excited to go see them.

First off, we saw a Mola Mola, which is the largest bony fish in the ocean.


Next, we saw 2 minke whales, likely a mother and calf.


And finally, blue whales! We saw 4. They were lunge feeding, which was very cool. They would shoot up from below with their mouths open to capture plankton, lunge up into the air, then roll onto their sides back into the water. The photos are not that impressive, but here are a pair of blue whales lunging out of the water:


2 whales spouts:

I'm so glad we were able to do this. I have a special fondness for marine mammals!

68. Go to at least 5 concerts (3/5).

While we were in Vegas, I saw Celine perform at Caesar's Palace. I've seen her in concert a few times before (like 10-15 years ago) and while she's not currently in my iPod I am a long time fan, so I was looking forward to the chance to see her in Vegas. The show was good, although in the middle she got a little too show tunes-y for my taste, instead of performing her own songs. But overall I really enjoyed it.

24. Take a vacation without Liam.

Bill and I took a 5 day trip to Vegas and CA for Chrissy and Paul's wedding. We very much enjoyed the getaway time, and Liam was spoiled rotten by grandparents.




Chrissy and Paul's awesome Elvis wedding!

After 3 nights in Vegas, we headed to Redondo Beach for 2 nights.

July 2011 Progress

Completed in July: 3/101
Current Total: 49/101

19. Complete 30 new arts & crafts projects with Liam (14/30).

2 more crafts with Liam this month. First, we made some pipe cleaner animals one morning when it was too hot to go outside to play. A dino, a spider and a duck:


We also had a playdate at a pottery painting place, and Liam made some tiles. The first small tile he made was for us. I made the mistake of letting him mix his 4 chosen colors (blue, green, red and purple) all together to make a barf worthy brown. After that I split his colors for the 2 larger tiles we were making for the grandmas.


Red and purple:


Blue and green: