A Trip to the Zoo

It was finally warm enough today to go to the zoo, so we headed out after lunch to go visit the animals.  I think that we have a pretty nice zoo for the size of our city, and they have a ton for little kids to do, including a large indoor play area and an outdoor play area, in addition to all the animal exhibits.  We can easily spend hours here just playing, and most of the time that's really all we do.  So I was pleasantly surprised to see the boys were more interested in seeing the animals than they have been in the past.  We had a couple of exciting encounters, but mostly it was just a really fun time spent with them.  Winter makes playdates a little tough, so we were thankful for the opportunity to get out and play.  Here are some pictures from the day...

**A little side note--we just got a new camera for Christmas and I have absolutely NO idea how to use it.  So if the pictures look fuzzy or blue, just pretend they don't, okay?  It's a learning process.**

One of Owen's favorite zoo activities...scooping up fake
 animal poo (he's supposed to be working on the farm). 
He actually asks, "Mommy can we go to the zoo and sweep the poop?" 
We are so proud!

Puppet Show

 Sweet boy loves his trucks.

This is how they are.  All. the. time.

I caught him mid-lick.

I don't actually know what this is, but they were cute. 

I loved the difference in color of these two...
I'm not sure I've ever seen a black giraffe.

More of these guys...

The big safari truck that is almost always covered with kids,
unless you go in the dead of winter like we did. 
The boys love this thing. 

Jack's new favorite face to make at the camera.

Jack is imparting his safari truck driving knowledge to his baby brother.

Ohmygoodness!  The highlight of the day.  This adorable little guy ran
over to visit when we stopped by.  He stayed by the window the whole time.
 It could have been the snack bags of food that attracted him,
but either way, it was so fun!

Having a chat.

Jack loves to stop and read all about chimps,
but those little buttons under each picture are off-limits.
 He is absolutely terrified of the sounds chimps make
 (which is what happens when the buttons are pushed).

Me playing artsy photographer.

Elephants really are funny looking, particularly from this angle.

Another one of me pretending to be a photographer.

And one more.  Pretty berries.