Spring Break at the Zoo!

The week after Easter was Spring Break for Hayden and Eliza. No school for either one of them. We had made plans to go to the Natural Science Museum with Jason on Wednesday in Raleigh but it was closed to get ready for it's grand reopening. (we have great timing for things like that.) So we brainstormed other fun activities, and came up with THE ZOO! We hadn't been yet since we've been back in NC, and figured why not?! Jason took the whole day of work and we headed to the zoo.

FYI: Blogger seems to have updated to a new format, so if things look wonky, I'm still figuring it out. 

Things started off a tad rough, since Molly had a rough night with lots of wakeups. We ended up getting out the door a bit later than anticipated, but we were well packed with lunch and snacks and other necessary supplies. We picked the Africa section to focus on (still makes me laugh to hear Hayden say we went to Africa) and headed on in. First thing we saw - giraffes!

Eliza had the best seat for giraffe viewing!

Now for those of you unfamiliar with the NC Zoo, it is a 'natural habitat' zoo.  This means they try to have the animals in large spaces similar to their original habitats. (not sure how that works with polar bears in NC, but whatever.) Now this is good for animals, but means a LOT of walking for zoo visitors. I saw signs that said 8 minutes between main exhibits. Eight minutes is a long time when you are less than 5 years old so early in the trip, we had some meltdowns about stuff as we started our explorations. (also keep in mind that we have only a single stroller. So Molly rode on me, and only Hayden or Eliza could ride. Taking turns was sometimes tough.)

Eliza was not happy about leaving the chimpanzee area. (or not getting to ride in the stroller, I can't remember which).

They got benched. Time for a little talking-to about good attitudes at the zoo. It went something like, "we're at the zoo! be happy!

Luckily my little pep talk (used to get both them and me calmed down) worked pretty well and we managed a family photo by the lion statues.

We got to see a lot of animals, though I didn't take pictures of every one. we saw. In the first part of our trip, we saw giraffes, chimpanzees, lions, lemurs, warthogs, and gorillas.

 

 

 

 

 

 

this little guy was on the window of the gorilla enclosure

a gorilla for Aunt Katie!

After a wander through the African Pavilion (still not sure the point of it was, or why it was so hard to get to the bathrooms), we headed to the aviary. Outside the aviary, we saw Hayden's favorite animal. Flamingos!

standing like a flamingo!

Once inside, Hayden quickly discovered the best feature of the aviary - the air vents! I remember specifically trying to wear a skirt on zoo field trip day just so I could have a billowy skirt. She loved it too! We also had fun spotting and attempting to identify the various tropical birds.

the bird identifying board - I think we saw at least 7 different kinds

 

 

After the aviary, it was time for some lunch. We headed back to the car to grab our lunch, and picnicked on some benches outside the main gates.  It was a bit chilly that day, especially in the shade but it was a fun picnic. (Jason did a great job packing lunch for us!)

munching lunch - notice the blanket and jackets!

self-timed family photo!

After lunch, we threw caution to the wind and headed back into the zoo (rather than get in the car to do a regular naptime on the drive home).  We took some silly pictures at the entrance to the zoo and then sunbathed on hippo beach.

Elephants were last on our "must-see" list and they were great! The kids loved the safari tent by one of the viewing spots, along with the helicopter and other items. And while I nursed Molly, Jason and the girls went up to the second elephant viewing spot and saw three elephants RIGHT THERE.

resting in the tent

driving the helicopter

 

elephants up close and personal!

 We did manage to see some giraffes and zebras on the way out. (Never did find ostriches in that enclosure.) And then we got a final family shot thanks to a kind passerby on the way out of the zoo. It was a great trip and a perfect little spring break escape!

last picture of the day, and we are STILL smiling. though E looks a little dazed.

Extra Easter

So I missed posting a few pictures from our Easter adventures, including the whole egg dyeing experience! Here they are for your viewing pleasure.

Eliza grinning broadly before we begin.
(notice the giant cardboard house in the background that has been invading
our breakfast nook for the last month or so.)

Inspector Hayden

Hayden with yellow egg - after I pulled her hair back. Doesn't she look different?!

the finished products! (the red striped one in the bottom corner is what rubber bands plus local brown egg look like with Easter egg dye.)

And since we had plenty of dye left after doing 16 eggs, and the girls wanted to do more, we played the color mixing game. as in What do you get when you mix red and yellow?..... The only problem was figuring out what color was in each cup before scooping out for the mixing!


Then I found a couple pictures from our practice Easter egg hunts. Practice hunts (and real hunts) let you practice hiding and finding skills, patience (waiting for eggs to be hid), and counting. And tolerance, as in not getting mad when every time Hayden gets a turn to hide the eggs, we lose one!

Even Molly got to find an egg or two!

Molly really like her Easter card!

And finally a few more pictures from Easter morning. You wanted to see more, right?

Finding the umbrella in the Easter basket.

Hayden with a really nice smile

The two more cooperative sisters on the steps

For the last picture, a decent one of all three in their Easter finery!

Easter

We had a lovely Easter last weekend. Nothing too crazy about it, but I'll walk you through our day. We got up a bit early in order to head to church for the 8:30 service in the garden. Easter baskets were discovered when we made it downstairs; they might have had a Peep for breakfast.

The girls loved being able to dress up, even if we did have to bundle a bit because the weather had cooled down just a little. We did manage to get a few nice pictures in Easter dresses after we came home from church when it had warmed up a little.

two lovely ladies

a (failed) attempt at 3 lovely ladies;
apparently Eliza had an itchy leg that needed scratching - right then!

this was the closest we got to 4 lovely ladies

Molly (can you see her cute dress?!) and Popop have some quiet time before the hunt

We enjoyed breakfast at church afterwards, and then came home for a big egg hunt. We hid 60 plastic eggs and 12 hardboiled ones. Somehow we managed to find all of them!

hard at work finding eggs!

action shot! she was quick at finding the eggs!

Molly may not have been able to participate this year,
but she was taking notes for next year.

Cutie pie!

Starting to count the eggs!

Who needs eggs when Grandma is wearing a cool necklace to play with?!

Sometime in the afternoon, we had to check out the cool new umbrellas that the Easter bunny brought. Now we are already for spring showers!

Then in the evening we went over to Grandma and Poppop's for Easter dinner. Hayden and Grandma had made a special cake that was a huge hit all the way around. A great Easter day!

Happy Easter!