We went to the Zoo.
We frequently went to the Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle (you know, like weekly, sometimes more than once a week - we had a pass and it was right up the street so why not?) The Zoo in Seattle is one of the best in the country (also one of the most expensive!) It's like a gigantic, beautiful park, really - with tons of animals. Even an indoor play area (we loooved the Zoomazium on rainy days with it's music time, story times, creature features, etc. not to mention rocks to climb on and places to run around etc.) We loved the Zoo. That said, I had been warned that the Zoo in Austin wasn't quite up to par. I was told to lower my expectations, and to see it for what it is - more of a refuge and sanitary - and then I wouldn't be too disappointed. I wasn't worried about the kids being disappointed, they're always happy simply to be outside and if animals around, well - bonus :) So, Saturday as we drove the 5 minutes to the Zoo from our apartment, we lowered out expectations...a lot. And guess what?
We loved it!
There was something very cozy about the Zoo. We went on a Saturday, which is probably their busiest day - but it didn't feel overcrowded. And because it is smaller - everything is just closer to see. A lot of the animals are older, and more slow-moving, because they take animals that other Zoos won't take - but do the kids care? NO! It made it that much easier to see them! Also, in Seattle, I don't think a lot of the animals like the rainy weather - so they hide out. But we didn't have trouble seeing ANY of the animals here! And the kids got up-close-and-personal with a lot of the little critters.
Mmmm - eat those fingers, Hazey!
Mr. Turtle says hello! He's even waving and flashing you a smile!
And the next animal...
Hello Kitty? Yep. Mm Hmm.
Aspen's kinda obsessed with the little kitty. She has been telling me for months she is going to have a Hello Kitty Birthday. To her utter surprise and joy, I busted out a Hello Kitty lunchbox all for her - to take on our picnic to the Zoo. I was originally saving it for her birthday, but we only have one insulated lunch box and with a family of 5 and warm temps, I thought it would be a good idea to bring another one. Not to mention, the kids were fighting over who would get to carry the "owl lunchbox". So I told Sawyer the owl is officially his and Hello Kitty is Aspens. Problem solved and two happy campers :)
Picture overload here of Aspen. Sawyer was so busy running here and there - but she was in her own little quiet world. I love catching her there. The girl LOVES rocks. LOVES them. So, while everyone else was admiring the jaguars - she was sitting their plunking rocks over the little fence. At first I was calling her to move on along with us, but then I just stopped and watched her. What does she think about when she carefully selects her little rocks, feels them in her fingers, and tosses them over her shoulder? I don't know...but I sure love watching her.
My favorite of the day - the Bengal Tiger! So majestic! And he came walking right up close to me! We hardly ever got to see the Tiger in Seattle - only saw him napping or heard him roaring - kind of a hard spot to see in the distance. But here, the Tiger was RIGHT THERE in front of us. We watched him for quite some time.
And how cute is this little spotted deer?
Daddy and Sawyer were ready to head to the train...but Aspen got caught up in her little world again. Rocks. Rocks. Rocks. I stayed back with her while she built a little mountain out of her rocks. Also, gotta love her dirt-covered face at the end of the day!
We were at the Zoo a good 5 or so hours. And we pretty much saw it all. It was perfect. We really had a wonderful time. Our outing ended perfect with a 20 minute ride on the Zoo train! Who doesn't love riding a train?
This girl had such a great time, she was asleep after half a second once we got in the car :) I think the train ride kind of lulled her into sleepy mode. (It did to her Daddy, too - just don't tell!)
So, there you have the Austin Zoo. We had a wonderful time. I know I say it whenever I write about a family outing - but it's only because it's true: I love my little family and being with them is the best thing in the world to me. There was craziness at the beginning and end of the day when Jacob and I had chores to do and work to get done (aka his day job comes home a lot) but the time in between - we just enjoyed, together. After the Zoo, we went for an afternoon swim with the kids, sat in the hot tub, and then went to Torchy's Tacos (one of our favorite places!) to end it right. Perfect, really. Our lives aren't perfect, we aren't perfect, but the time we have together: is perfect.
I loved this outing because it showed me, again, that things ARE different, places ARE different. But not in necessarily a bad, or a good, or a better, or a worse, kind of way. Just different. And that's okay.
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