Today we took a whole day and visited the Columbus Zoo with a lot of other friends. Because it was autumn time, a lot of the shows and exhibits were closed, but we still had a blast-and-a-half! The fountain at the entrance provided a fun time. The kids scooped up the coins at the bottom and threw them back in.
That was almost the best exhibit of all ... but not quite :)
The older children shared their coins with the younger ones so everyone got a turn.
We didn't get to see everything today -- the Columbus Zoo is HUGE -- but we did make it to the aquarium, matinee house, Heart of Africa, Australian & Islands Exibit, and the Polar Frontier, with a hour break for lunch. That was enough to fill the entire day.
This little brother of mine was a trouper. He pushed these two little ones around all day.
I think he enjoyed it.
Again, we tried to get as many pictures we could with the statues around the zoo. We didn't get as many as we did the last time we went to the zoo. Last time we got six photos and this time we just got three. Above are the statues of the matinees and below is a statue of a Triceratops
All of the children were able to fit on this statue.
Four young girls and the polar bear family
We briefly walked through the new dinosaur exhibit and stopped at the gift shop to take pictures. My sister is on a mission (you can read about her adventures on her mission blog) and we miss her a ton -- she always made trips like these double the fun.
We took a lot of fun pictures to send to her ... the one above is one of them.
Of course you can't pass up the carrousel.
Some of the older boys got so in-character on those horses that the woman in charge had to ask them (over the loud speaker) to not bounce up and down on the horses. Mom bought a ticket too, but when the woman in charge told her that she couldn't ride side-saddle, she just sat on one of the benches next to a friend.
The Vervet Monkey was the most fun to watch. Most of the children decided that that was their favorite part of the whole trip. He was just swinging and having a good time in his tree. Above is a picture of us watching him.
We too a break for lunch. And What A Lunch! Every family packed and then shared what they had. It was a regular feast. We found an empty canopy outside the zoo, just at the entrance, pulled over a couple other benches and tables and had ourselves a comfortable picnic in the shade.
And speaking of lunch ... one of the neatest things we got to do today was feel the giraffes. We all got a piece of lettuce and laughed while the giraffe licked it right out of our hands. I've never been so close to a giraffe in my life.
We also got to see the cheetah run after a lure which was fun to see
And of course, you can't do a post about a zoo viset without just a few pictures of just the animals
(although I did manage it last time)
Above: Momma Vervet Monkey and her 7-week-year-old
Below: Cheetah sunbathing in the heat of the afternoon
This polar bear is one of the two polar bear sisters that live there at the zoo.
Well, we decided to top the day off with a ride on the shuttle -- it took us all the way from the polar frontier to the entrance. The boys in front had a blast --- we all did.
We couldn't make it past the fountain without paying one last visit.
What a great day!
Going to the zoo is fun, but going with a crowd of friends is the best -- Hands Down!
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