Today was a wonderful day to spend at the zoo! Especially compared to
the last time we went, the temperature was pretty close to perfect. We got to see a lot more animals than on recent visits because of the more mild temps, which was really fun. We spent a good 5 hours there, which was a record for us.
I didn't get pictures of all of the animals we saw today, but here are some of the highlights...
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| The lion paced back and forth right on the other side of the viewing glass. He looked hungry, and we were certainly thankful for the strong shield in between him and us! |
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| Momma lion, much more relaxed. |
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| Sloth Bear. |
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| We happened to get to the seals/sea lions exhibit just in time for their snack! |
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| They were so cute! |
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| The kids loved seeing them flop themselves on to the dry land. |
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| Petting the stingrays. Well, trying to pet them anyway. |
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| Lemurs. |
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| Love their tails! |
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| Polar bear... |
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| ...Daddy's favorite. |
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| Giraffes... |
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| ...Mommy's favorite. | |
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| Zebra...still Auntie Kir's favorite? |
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| Sleepy rhino. |
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| Bald eagle. |
We didn't go into the monkey house today, but here are my growing monkeys!
While the kids love to see animals, they really love to explore. Brookfield is the perfect place for this.
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| We discovered the "Bug Walk" today. The kids loved playing here. |
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| Posing for Momma. |
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| Exploring the tunnel. |
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| Bumblebee. |
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| Spider. |
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| Green bug? |
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| Pure fun! |
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| Run! |
We also discovered this play area, which included a large sand pit and a "fort" that the kids could "build".
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| This fort was a pre-made structure that the kids could build on. There were large sheets, logs, and sticks that the kids could add to the fort. Then take down and add again. This was seriously fun for my kids. |
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| Planning their next move. Caleb is making friends as always! |
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| Pulling her own weight. |
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| Teamwork. |
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| Evaluating their work. |
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| Don't let her size fool you. |
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| While his brother and sissy built the fort, Shane continued his own work in the sand pit. |
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| I finally managed to coax him out. He could have stayed in there all day.
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At another spot in today's trip, the kids found some friends (and more large sticks) and just played for a while in the woods.
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| Seriously, he doesn't need toys. Sticks. Just sticks. |
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| Yesterday, Caleb made some binoculars (TP rolls + masking tape + ribbon), and he enjoyed using them today. |
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| Trying so so hard to pick up this large large log. |
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| CHEESE! |
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| Little Miss Explorer. |
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| He was playing a pretty sweet game of "peek-a-boo" with me. |
Love these 3.
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| Shane loved running around through the trees. |
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| Silly girl! |
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| Caleb found a "cave". |
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| Typical. =) |
