Just about every where Holly and I go, we like to have some sort of interaction with animals… its just kind of our thing. When we got to Sandestin a couple weeks ago I started trying to think of something we could do with our nieces so they could experience animals like we have; enter the Gulfarium. The Gulfarium is a small aquarium in Fort Walton Beach, FL built around the idea of getting up close and personal with various sea animals… very cool place. We managed to get the girls in the sea lion encounter (plan ahead and schedule your encounters online as many sell out days in advance); and judging by the smiles plastered on their faces for the rest of the day, I would say they enjoyed it thoroughly.
In this particular picture Maria is giving the command for the sea lion to wave. The interaction in and of itself is awesome, but what I really love about this picture is the look on Sophia’s face (yellow skirt beside the photographer). So much fun!
–Dan Thompson