A Trip to the Aquarium for Her 3rd Birthday 🎂

It was our youngest daughter's 3rd birthday today, and in order to celebrate, we did not buy gifts and toys... Instead, we took her on the experience of a lifetime: visiting Ripley's Aquarium in Toronto! 😀🎉

The first stop on our trip was the train station; in order to travel to Toronto, we took a train from our hometown. It was about an hour ride -- not too bad at all! 👍

(Saying goodbye to our city! 👋)

Here is the birthday girl~ 😊 She was sitting very dapper on the train and looked so cute in her dress 🥹 The girls were a little bit bored, but thankfully they managed to tide themselves over, looking out the window...

Arriving in Toronto! 🇨🇦 When the train drops passengers off, it does so right out front of the CN Tower -- it's a very thrilling arrival 🤪 And what was very fortunate for us, is the fact that the aquarium is right beside the Tower.

We had to wait for their big sister, Emily, to arrive. Emily is over 20 years their senior and has a son of her own -- her son is actually the girls' nephew! 😂 Despite being the same age, the girls are already aunts LOL.

This is their little nephew, Oliver. He and the girls love seeing each other; he is obsessed with them 😄

We finally arrived at the aquarium 🙏 To say that the place was packed would be an understatement -- there wasn't an inch of free space! 😵‍💫 We thought that a Wednesday would have been less busy, but unfortunately schools are taking their End-Of-School-Trips. Anyway, here is a picture of White Plumed Anemones to start off our trip 😁

This is a Lingcod. They are predatory fish with HUGE mouths, and apparently they make great filets 😋

A HUGE Starfish on the glass of its enclosure. Like jellyfish, starfish are not actually fish, but a weird variety of invertebrates.

Two giant Seaturtles that were swimming above us. This part of the aquarium was incredible; it was a tunnel that one walked into, and the marine life swam in the enclosure above us.

This is a Sand Tiger Shark. Despite their terrifying appearance, they are renowned for their docile nature. Perhaps this is why these sharks are able to swim without eating the other fish 😂

A curious specimen -- this is a Sawfish! 😱 Although they look very intimidating, people may be surprised to know that these are Rays (like Stingrays), not sharks like is typically assumed. They are also endangered.

The birthday girl, with her big sister, Emily 💗 Emily is an absolute joy to know. She is my daughter-in-law, and watching the way that she cares for her baby sisters is very comforting.

This GIANT fish was hiding off in the back; this is a Giant Grouper. I was astonished to learn that these fish can grow up to 3 metres long and weigh up to 900lbs!

We caught this seaturtle, sleeping at the bottom of the sea! 🐢 I did not know that they could just sleep underwater like this 😄

I saw this fish -- a Camel Cowfish -- just off to the side by itself. I thought it looked very silly; he was my favorite fish on the trip 🥹

There was a tunnel that the children could crawl through that allowed them to "swim" with the fish. Our girls were a bit scared, but they both went through! 🙏

This fish is a Lionfish. I have seen videos on this species before; I have watched Coyote Peterson get stung by them! 😱 Yes, these fish can poke you with sharp spikes and release a poison into your system!

The famous Moray Eel. I find eels to be quite fascinating. I also enjoy eating them in sushi! 🍣

These are Reef Seadragons. Seahorses are masters of camouflaged, and this species is simply another testament to that fact!

The kids were able to enjoy this beautiful fish wall. Endless types of fish were swimming around (there was even a little Pufferfish!), and the kids loved being able to be up close with them.

The famous Cuttlefish! Another one of my favorites. I remember watching a documentary on this species years ago, and watching their hypnotizing dance of vibrating colors has always put me in a trance...

This was a new one for me: Flowerhorn Cichlid. Of course, the bubble adorned upon its head is very unique, and its patterns are stunning! These fish are very aggressive though, and these two were trying to catch sight of each other, just rearing to fight! 😂

This is a Discus fish. The tank they were in had an assortment of colored discus. This one here is a blue peppered one.

This is a Scorpion Fish. Very intimidating to witness, and for good reason: this is another poisonous type of fish. Their features are very beautiful, and are meant to portray those of the coral reefs.

I managed to catch a photo of one of the Pufferfish swimming around! 🙏 I love pufferfish; they always seem as though they have a perpetual smile on their face 🥹

Yes, there were even some Piranhas in one of the tanks 😱 I don't think this species needs any explanation -- this face alone could give you nightmares...

A cuddly pile of Stingrays. I have mixed feelings for stingrays (because of Steve Irwin 😭), but seeing them in a pile like this was very cute. The spotted cow one had me howling!

There was even a display of Axolotols! These creatures are such cutie pies 🥹 Similar to the pufferfish, they always appear like they have a little grin on their face.

These are Japanese Spider Crabs -- not hard to see where the name came from! 🥶 They were very creepy to observe, as they slowly inched around with each thinly pointed leg. I wonder if they are tasty...

The final exhibit offered a glimpse at one of the ocean's wonders: Jellyfish. The top picture is of a Lion's Mane Jellyfish, and the bottom are Pacific Sea Nettles. Of course, both are venomous, and even the thinnest thread-like tentacle can hurt someone.