Lions, and Tigers, and Bears...

Oh yes...we took our first trip to the zoo. We went on Ethan's birthday, my mom, the kids and I, and they really did just love everything about it. Kendall has been saying for close to a year now that she was taking E to the zoo on his birthday, thank goodness the weather cooperated.

Kendall was apprehensive about going, she said she didn't want to see bears or lions. Upon further inquisitions I found that in her little head, she thought that these animals were just roaming around freely and we were going to go and walk in there with them. I don't think I would want to go either! So after explaining to her that the animals were behind fences, or glass, and could not get to us, she was a bit more willing to go.I just hoped there wasn't some freak occurrence you hear about where a rhino gets out and charges all over the zoo. We could basically forget about animals forever. Ethan, all I had to say was, 'we are going to see animals,' and he was on board, he didn't care if we swam with the polar bears, he was going to see animals.

So we did and saw everything the zoo had to offer. I had forgotten that peacocks just roam freely throughout the zoo. I thought that the kids would be really surprised by this, but when I pointed one out, they just said,'hi peacock,' like this was an everyday occurrence. A peacock at a vending machine, completely normal to them, oh to live in their heads.

The only thing that was a bit of a set back was their intense excitement. At the start we would look at an animal for maybe 10 seconds, and they would yell, 'more animals!' At this rate the zoo would have been over in an hour.

Once we got into the primate house though, it all started to click. We sat and watched lemurs swing and play and then we saw the orangutans. One of them was pressed right up on the glass and would glance at us every so often. Then the other had a sheet that he was playing with. Kendall and Ethan thought this was so funny, and then it started playing peek-a-boo with them. It would cover up his face, and then wait a few seconds, and pull it down looking at Kendall and E waiting for a reaction from them, and then do it over again. I think I may have found them a new playmate.

Many of the animals were basking in the sunshine of the day, but fortunately, many of them were cozied close to the viewing glass, so that the kids were able to see them close up.


We were at this zoo for 5 hours, let me tell you, we know how to do a museum or something of that nature. You go with us to something like this, plan on being there, all.day.long.

So synopsis:
Ethan's favorite: "MOOONKEEEYS!'

Kendall's: Giraffes

So Happy 2nd Birthday Ethan...I hope you had as much fun as I did.