So, today started off a little weak. Everyone was still a little sleepy and grumpy and lazy. We got breakfast and watched a movie with the kids that I got them the night before and then I tried to get everyone going. I wanted to take the kids to the zoo because even though it was supposed to be rainy I thought that the Jungle exhibit would be open for the first time today (got the date wrong), and when I thought about what I wanted to do for Mother's day weekend going out and having fun with the whole family was on my list. Unfortunately when I first started to try to get the kids moving they were still lazy from the movie and irritable with each other. Suddenly everyone got their rears in gear and started helping make things happen. Lunch got made, the lawn got mowed, some cleaning up happened (!!!) including laundry and dishes, snacks and diaper bags were packed and we were out the door and in good spirits!
The flamingos are one of Aaron's favorites but unfortunately they were not out due to the avian influenza in the area. Aaron posed with the statue instead!
Sarah was all about pointing today! She did more walking and engaging with the animals and reptiles today than I have ever seen her do on a zoo trip and it was a lot of fun watching her take interest in them rather than just riding around in the stroller all day.
Penguins!!!
Luke was racing the penguins!
We got some really great pics of all three kids, this is one of my favorites of Luke!
Luke's favorite has always been the reptile house! I admit that I also love the reptile house, lots of stuff to see in a small space, you don't have to walk far to see the next animal, and they look sooo cool and they can't bite me!
Luke thought this family of turtles was pretty cool!
I love the eyes on this Sonoran Desert Toad.
This was one of the areas that Sarah really loved as well, plenty of things that she could look at and point at and everything was moving today!
Sarah also took a lot of interest in the geese!
Maybe a little too much interest!
Right after I took the pic above she got just a little to close and the goose got scared and started to hiss at her. She stood still and just looked at the goose, I mean it had been walking towards her as well so she was confused about why it suddenly wasn't acting so friendly. The goose seemed to think that because it could stretch it's neck so that it was taller than Sarah that she should be the one to move. They looked like they were having a stand off and I started to go in to scare the goose away but Aaron came to the rescue before I could even get there and rushed in to scare the goose away from his sister! It was so sweet! He said something like, "I saved the day!" I was really surprised that he wasn't afraid of the goose!
I think Greg was the only one who didn't eat lunch before we left so he got a slice of pizza for himself and one for the rest of us to share as part of our snack, even Sarah got some!
The tigers is where we usually stop for snack but because we went through North America by the time we got there the rain clouds were closing in and we didn't spend as much time as normal there. It was fun though. The boys ate a few more snacks while Sarah and I interacted with this tiger that was right up by the glass!
Here is a short video I took...
https://youtu.be/YNkEOABYOic
Proof that I was there!
Sarah was patting Aaron's head and they were both gigling and squealing as we made a dash for the exit!
The raindrops started to fall just as we got to our van...
and by the time we got on the road it was pouring down!
It wasn't a long trip, just about the right length, and the temperature was perfect, not to cold or to hot! What a nice way to spend Mother's Day weekend!
