A Trip to the Zoo

Yesterday we drove to Omaha and visited the Henry Doorly Zoo. We spent approximately 4.5 hours there and the girls walked; no stroller or wagon! We had a beautiful day for it too. The day started off "iffy" (cloudy and 40's) but the sun came out in all its glory just in the nick of time and light jackets sufficed. :) I'll show a few of the pictures Steven took yesterday. If you think there is a lot, keep in mind that he actually took 195! He loves photography! Enjoy!

The following pictures are of the girls petting a penguin:

Audrey admiring a gorilla:

Steven captured a picture of this Tiger roaring:

This is the last animal picture I will bore you with. However, the King of the Jungle happens to be my favorite animal; how majestic!

This picture of Audrey and Steven was taken down in the depths of the "Kingdom of the Night". It is a part of the Dessert Dome; a big attraction of the Omaha Zoo. Lurking down in the depths are crocodiles, bats, snakes, beavers, and more. My mom and I don't particulary like it down there, but Madeleine asked to go see the crocodiles so we were brave for her. Mom, dad, Steven, Madeleine, and I myself made the trip down into the dark Kingdom of the Night, but next thing I know it is just Dad, Steven, Audrey, and I. Being the spastic mother I am I tried calling my mom but I didn't get a good signal down there. Finally, after walking around I found a spot where I got a signal. Mom told me that Madeleine panicked and wanted out immediately. Once they ascended from the depths of the dark Kingdom of the Night she dramatically told my mom that she never wants to go to the zoo again. Grace and Natalie did not make the trek down to the Kingdom of the Night. Instead, when Steven, Dad, Audrey, and I were done this is how we found them:

Papa and Audrey taking a break:

Natalie loves me oh so much!

The Buddy System:

Other than the crocodiles, the only other animal Madeleine wanted to see were the Hippos. We waited until the end because they were on the opposite of the zoo from us (so I thought). I swore up and down that they were on display with the Elephants and Rhinos (it makes sense). So, we took the looooooooong walk only to find out there were no hippos. As it turned out, the hippos she wanted to see were the Pygmy Hippos located in the Lied Jungle; all the way at the front of the zoo!! When we entertained the thought of skipping the hippos, Madeleine cried big crocodile tears so while the rest of us went to our vehicles, Steven took Madeleine to the Lied Jungle to see the hippos. Would you believe after all of that they were not out?? Oh well, she enjoyed the time with her daddy none the less.

The following pictures were taken in the van on the ride home. It is hard to tell, however in the first picture that is Madeleine:

After 4.5 hours at the zoo we worked up quite the appetite so we chowed down on burgers at Red Robin. It was a great day! :)