Spring Break

Last week Cora was on spring break from preschool. We didn’t want to not do anything fun with her being on break so we planned a day at the zoo! Our zoo gives a free day on Mondays for those from the county and we just happen to live in the same county as the zoo so we took advantage of a free trip! We got there soon after the zoo opened, which was good because it filled up fast! When we pulled into the zoo and were in the parking lot Cora says, “I didn’t know the zoo would be so awesome!” The weather was BEAUTIFUL, the kids were great and well, it was just such a nice time. We saw animals, although not all of them were out and active. I guess some of the animals are still in winter mode. When we finally made it to the tiger and saw he was sleeping in his “cave” (and only saw his hind FEET and end of tail) Cora says, “He’s not very exciting either, Daddy.” No, no he’s not. 🙂 We stayed for a couple hours, then went and got lunch and made it home for naps. We then finished the day with ice cream for supper! It was a great day!

Cora was very intent on the map. So much so we had to tell her to put it down so she would actually SEE the animals!

This whole ensemble, hat to overalls, was Cora’s. It would seem Bekah is just as adorable in it!

Ben really liked the primates!

Cora is such a great big sister! She did a good job pushing Bekah around.

The 2 men in our lives. I love them so much.

How big is your hand compared to a gorilla’s?

Ben thought this was pretty hilarious!

Bekah seemed to have fun sitting in the stroller taking it all in.

Me and my munchkins!

Hey, it’s hard work being pushed around looking at animals!

Fun at the Zoo

My mom has been wanting to take us to the zoo all summer, then that lead to fall, and it’s almost winter, and we finally went! You know, life just happens sometimes and things you want to happen don’t. In any case, we all went to the zoo yesterday! It’s a good zoo, on a smaller scale and perfect for small kids. We almost didn’t go because “they” were calling for rain, but we took a gamble and went. I’m so glad we did! The weather was warm (especially for October!), it was cloudy, which I actually think was good. The animals were out and active, and the kids were good and had a lot of fun! Plus, it was great to spend some time with my mom! We had a great time, and it was fun making more memories with and for the kids!

Our very own penguins!

What is your wingspan? This was at the condor exhibit.

The carousal ride was OK. Cora loved it, I got dizzy and Ben cried unless I was holding him! 🙂

I love how my mom loves her grandkids!

This was the coolest thing! There was a clear tube slide that went under the otter exhibit. You could see the otters playing as you slid down! It was so fun!!!

Hiding out in a tee-pee!

Just give a boy a shovel and some pebbles.

Our cutie!

I love this girl so much!

Mimi and Cora feeding the very aggressive goats!

We thought this red bush was so pretty! The kids semi cooperated to get a photo with Mimi…

The cooperation evaporated when it was time to get a photo with me! 🙂

The girls on a giant caterpillar! Ben was being uncooperative…

Celebrating at the Zoo

Ben turned one last week, as you know, and we didn’t want to have the day pass without doing anything. So, we decided to go to the zoo as a family! It was HOT, which means the animals weren’t really interested in being seen, but we still managed to see some elephants, flamingoes (which Cora informed us she doesn’t like), the head of a lion (he was so tucked into the shade we only saw the top of his mane!), some monkeys, giraffes, rhinos (and I learned these are my husband’s favorite! Who knew?), as well as various birds. We also went to the rainforest at the zoo and saw all sorts of other things! We had a good time, sweated a ton, drank a bunch of water, were slathered in sun screen and came home hot and sticky! Ah, memories! I had 2 cupcakes left from Ben’s party so I stuck a candle in one for him and gave the other to Cora, and they had a mini party. I hope he feels well-celebrated–as though he really has a clue, right? He had his one-year appointment last week on Friday. He continues to grow and is now 30 in long and 24 lbs., 11 oz! Can’t believe we now have a 3 yr old and a 1 yr old!

Thankful for our wagon with shade!

David bravely touching the snake! He hates snakes, but how could he refuse when I said, “Hey Cora! You want Daddy to pet the snake?” (insert evil laugh!)

For some reason this photo cracks me up!

I love this one! They look so much alike!

“Mom! We don’t have time for photos! There are elephants behind us!”

My babies, whom I love so much!

She thought it great fun that she’s no where near as tall as a newborn giraffe!

The rhino! It was the most active animal we saw!

So, there was this statue of this orangutang outside of the rainforest. I thought it would be a GREAT photo op for the kids. Cora flat refused to even get out of the wagon, and as you can see, Ben was not too impressed either. Again, the things we do to our children for the sake of a photo!

To the Zoo! In the Winter?

Yep! We went to the zoo while visiting Sherry and family. We were able to see all the “inside” animals–fish, reptiles, monkeys, lions, birds and various other such creatures. It obviously wasn’t a long trip, but it got us all out of the house, gave the kids an opportunity to run around (it appeared we were the only ones there) and allowed for the older kids to be excellent tour guides to Cora, Ben and I! Here are some of my favorite photos of both kids and animals!

Isabel, our very good and thorough tour guide!

Simeon checking out one of the displays

We were only separated by the glass and the lions were right up at it. So. Cool!

Ben taking it all in from the stroller

I love these parrots. So vibrant!

All the kids, somehow in descending age order! Ben is in the stroller, but I couldn't get him in the photo...they were all moving too fast!

Ever Feel this Way?

To the ZOO!!

We have had a new family coming to our church since May-ish. They have 3 little girls and another baby due in October. The girls are Cora’s age, the twins (R and A) being 3 and their sister (G) is 2. We have enjoyed having them in the church and our kids get along really well, which is great! Anyway, Lynde, the girl’s mom, wanted to go to the zoo before it got too cold and before her baby came so on Monday we loaded up all 5 kids and went to the zoo. Monday is a free entrance day for those of us who live in the same county as the zoo, so that was helpful! This summer our zoo was lucky to have an elephant exhibit. I know the girls had fun, not sure if they really noticed the animals, but we were sure to show them the African favorites–lions, elephants and giraffes! We got there right when the zoo opened, walked around to see a fraction of the animals, took a train ride through “Australia,” and then ate lunch. We left after lunch as all 5 kids were getting tired and, quite frankly, so were we! 🙂 Ben rode around in the stroller and I also brought our wagon for Cora and G. However, none of the girls wanted to ride in the wagon and it became a source of arguing and fighting over who would get to pull it around. Oh well. If I hadn’t taken it they would have complained about being too tired to walk! 🙂 Kids, gotta love ’em! 🙂

There were a bunch of painted elephants all over to promote the elephant exhibit. We would have been remiss not to use this as a photo op!

Me and my kiddos

Lynde and her kiddos

Takin' a tour of "Australia!" The girls LOVED the train!

"Choo-choo!"

Ben hangin' out

This is how the girls figured out they could see the animals better.

My beautiful girl