Trip to the Zoo II

We decided to take all the kids to the zoo. I had purchased a season pass last week and I am determined not to let it go to waste. We went last weekend when we bought the pass with just Jamie and M. This time my husband and I took my two little sister-in-laws, Dynisha and Brianna, my niece M, and Jamie. After a hectic and stressful weekend, I needed a fun day out with my family.

The zoo was really awesome. Last time we didn't get to visit everything like we wanted to because we only had a couple of hours. This time we pretty much had the whole day. The animal exhibits are so much closer than they were when I was a little girl. If it wasn't for glass you could actually touch the animals. I'm not going to tell about every animal we saw, but I will tell about some of them.

The animals were out and about and in rare form. First off we got to see the big grizzly bears. One was out pacing on a log and very visible. Jamie got a big kick out of him and ask what he was doing. I told he was just out enjoying the sun. Then there was a little cave you go in to view the bear enclosure and there at the glass was another bear just taking a nap. His back was pressed against the glass and he was lying on his side. You could see his face really well. There's no other place or time you would ever want to be so close to a big old grizzly bear. He was twitching his mouth as a fly was irritating him and you could see his large teeth.

The red panda enclosure hardly was enclosed at all. If those pandas wanted to they could walk right into your arms. Waist high glass was all that separated you from them. There were two of them and one walked up so close on a branch that it was tempting to reach out and pet him.

When we went to see the gorillas there was one sitting by the glass with his back to us and he was eating. He kept turning his head and looking at us. We thought that was pretty exciting, but then another gorilla came in and grabbed a big plastic barrel and raised it up over his head. We thought he was mad and was going to throw it at the glass. He came up to the glass and slammed the barrel down on the ground between two ropes and pulled himself up onto the barrel. There he stood, looking quite amused at our reactions. There was another family standing there with us when it happened. We were all laughing, clapping, and cheering. The kids were so excited, but I think the adults were just as excited. I swear that gorilla was grinning at the commotion he caused!

All the lions were out and easy to view. They're not as close as the other animals, but close enough that you can get a good look. One of the ladies that worked at the zoo was standing outside the enclosure with a preserved lions paw. The kids all got to pet it and see what it would be like to feel lion fur. She explained how the pads protected their feet since they don't wear shoes. After we walked away, Dynisha asked if they killed a lion to get the paw. I told her that I didn't believe they would kill a lion and it probably died on it's own. The lady with the paw was passing us at this point and so I stopped her so Dynisha could ask for herself. The lady told her that the lion had been at the zoo and had died of natural causes. She stayed there and talked to us for awhile explaining that the males were the cubs of the females we were currently viewing and that they had been rejected from the pride. She said they would be going to another zoo eventually. She told us all their names and ages. She said it was an excellent time to view them because we could really see the difference between the young lions and the full grown lions.

Seeing the otters was really exciting. They put on quite a show for the kids. They were swimming back and forth in front of the glass. The kids enjoyed them so much that we stayed there for 20 or more minutes. Jamie didn't want to leave even after all the other kids had finally grown bored.

When we went to the butterfly gardens all the kids ended up with butterflies on their fingers or at least touching them. Jamie liked the koi pond, or rather the fish that resided in that pond, the best. They were jumping and predominantly orange, which is one of Jamie's favorite colors.

We went and saw the camels and I bought the kids some of the feed and the camels ate from their hands. Their little hands were all covered in camel slobber, but they all wanted to do it again. Unfortunately, I didn't have any more Quarters.

We ended our day at the zoo at the kids section. They all got to go into the petting zoo and brush the goats, sheep, llama, and cow. It's amazing how soft sheep are because their coats look so thick and dirty. They really are incredibly soft. I've always loved the petting zoo myself.

They have a big sandbox and the kids played in that for awhile, then they were ready to cool off and so was I. They had a little man made pond with frog statues spraying water to play in. We didn't really prepare for the kids to get wet, so initially we didn't want them to immerse themselves in the water. Finally we decided, what the heck, and let them do what they wanted. I even took my shoes off and waded in. I picked a frog and let it mist me. I was hot. It felt good. None of the other parents was in the water and I felt a little awkward about it at first, but I was hot enough not to care too much. After I got in another mother got the nerve to wade about a bit, too. The kids thought that my getting in there was the greatest thing ever.

We stayed and played until someone finally ran us off after closing time. What a lovely day!