A trip to the Zoo!

I have been trying to get my husband to go to the zoo for YEARS! We were finally able to take the kids to the zoo on Friday. What a wonderful day! Luckily, we even had perfect weather!  We had a bit of a rough start. The parking lots were full by the time we arrived so we drove around for 30 minutes trying to find parking on the street. Finally, after feeding a 2 hour meter several blocks away, we were off! By the time we reached the zoo, the parking lots had opened back up! Ha! So Jeff (what a great guy) ran all the way back to the car and moved it to the perfect spot in one of the zoo lots. Good thing too! We had very tired children by the end of the day (and tired parents too!).

We started off with a picnic. Maddy and Ethan were very happy to eat, but especially to be out of the car! :)    They were so well behaved.  <3

Then we headed off to see the elephants! My favorite!!! They are still working on the elephant house, but the outside enclosure has come a long way since my last visit to the zoo. They have a lot more room to roam... which is always a good thing to see! I just love elephants!  Definitely would be a dream job to work with these guys! 

Aren't they just beautiful? 

Unfortunately, the pandas were not outside during our visit so we had to fight the crowds to see them inside. Maddy loved this guy!

One more of the elephants!! 

I wasn't able to take very many pictures of the orangutangs or gorillas. I was able to capture this guy though. He was hiding under a box and picking through the straw. His counterparts were right up at the glass and seemed to be thriving from all of the attention they were receiving. 

Tortoise for Maddy! :)

These ladies were majestic!  I believe there were at least 5 of them just relaxing on the hill.

 Jeff pushing the stroller and hauling Ethan in our awesome Kidpack, while I was taking pictures of course! :)  Maddy was tired of walking by the time we reached the big cat exhibit. Jeff had taken her into the small mammal exhibit and she came out talking about the porcupine! haha!

Beautiful tiger

Male cubs. There were at least 4-5 of them hanging out up there.

I just loved his face! So sweet... or maybe he was just salivating over the people watching him??

Such a beautiful guy!

Madelyn loved the Zebras!! 

Beautiful cheetah!

Ethan and I on our way out of the Zoo.

We were not able to see all of the animals on this visit, but I'm sure we will be back soon. 

Maddy was ready for a nap!

Little man enjoying some time to stretch his legs.

 

What a cutie!! Just love this little guy!

Since the children were soooooo good during our 2+ hour car ride home, we decided to finish our day off with a little ice cream treat for Maddy. :)

I think she was pleased! :) 

Such a silly girl! She says this is her "big" smile. 

And she had no problem at all finishing almost all of it!




What a GREAT day!! We are fortunate to live close enough to visit the Zoo and all of the other amazing sites that DC has to offer.  I love that I can pack the family up, pack a lunch and take a trip to the Zoo for free (minus parking of course). I have no problem paying the Zoo for parking. Its the least I can do to help financially care for those beautiful animals!
When was the last time you visited the zoo?? 
http://nationalzoo.si.edu/
Happy Spring!