Picnic at the Zoo

i have many a blog posts of our visits to the henry villas zoo. it's one of our favorite places to go, mostly because it's free. ;) anyway, i've been wanting to take the kids on a special outing since my time will be caught up in all the excitement and caring of the new baby coming our way. 

isaiah had early out today. the weather was perfect. everything had fallen into place for a picnic at the zoo. 

we took a peak at the monkey house (isaiah's classroom is fund-raising for the orangutan's in his class), then immediately made our way to the lion's "den" to see the baby cub. he's not a baby anymore. he's actually quite huge now.

the baby giraffe has also grown up since this past winter. mimzy loves the giraffes.

she was rather fascinated by it all. she's been several times before to the zoo, but i think she's old enough now to really appreciate and observe the animals. 

more giraffe watching.

we also visited the rhinos. they were quite sad looking. i like taking the kids to the zoo, but zoo confinement always makes me a little sad.

isaiah wondered aloud why they were sad. one had a cut on his side and he figured, that was why. 

mimzy thinks she can wander off on her own...

camels.

this is one board we've never taken a photo with. there wasn't enough face holes for mims to join in, but she did anyhow. ;)

slap!

this is probably the biggest reason why we love coming to the zoo. this is our favorite playground. pretty awesome.

it reminds us of the lion king. isaiah was the best big brother ever and made sure mimzy was watched and taken care of. he helped her up the stairs and down the slides and through the tunnels. he's amazing.

while isaiah and makayah were still playing at the playground, mimzy and i watched the nearby red panda. she LOVED it. he was so fluffy and cute, and she giggled every time he walked past.

hello meerkats. 

we took a quick bathroom break and climbed on the turtle for a photo op. i have so many shots of this turtle with the kids climbing upon it, i'm going to have to gather them all up and see the different ages. ;)

i love these kids. i love making them happy. they are the best, ever.

my handsome boy.

i think, second to the playground, the kids love going to the amphibian house. it's not my favorite place...i really hate snakes and creepy crawly things, but mama has to take one for the team.

mimzy entertained by the turtles.

the snapping alligators. i've never seen them so animated before, it was actually quite creepy. 

thanks HV zoo for a wonderful afternoon.