Trip to the Zoo

Ever since we moved here, I have wanted to go to the zoo in Omaha. I have heard great things about it, it's open all year, and most of the exhibits are in buildings, so not a lot of time needs to be spent outside. This works well when it's winter and really cold, or summer and really humid. Well, Shane was able to take a day off during the kids' 2 day spring break, and we got to go to the zoo. It was a blast. Shane and I really enjoyed it, and the kids did, too. We brought the wagon, so little boys would only have to walk if they wanted to. This meant Mom and Dad didn't have to carry anyone, either. It worked out very well. We brought a picnic lunch and made it a day.

The zoo had a ton of exhibits, and the first one we went to scared Luke and Tanner almost to the point of having to leave early. It was called Kindgoms of the Night, and was almost in total darkness. They had a swamp with alligators, and a wooden bridge that took you between "pens." We kept hearing this funny noise and tried to figure out what it was. Turns out it was a beaver snacking on the bridge. Luke was so scared that he started freaking out that they bridge was going to collapse and the alligators would get us. We had to calm him down quite a bit before he'd keep going with us. Tanner just didn't like the dark, even though they had quite a few bugs, snakes, lizards, and the swamp things. Needless to say, our journey though that exhibit was cut a little short. Here is a picture of us in the swamp, and the nefarious beaver who was trying to make us alligator meat.

One of the exhibits that I like best was the aquarium. They had a glass tunnel, not very big, but still impressive, that you could walk through and watch the sharks, stingrays, and other fish swim around and through. Parker really liked it, too. They saw octupuses and starfish, which we had to convince at least one of the kids were real.



Then there was the kids favorite place, the gorilla and orangutan exhibits. There was a huge gorilla, well, several huge gorillas, that kept banging on the glass bubbles where people were looking at them and pounding their chests in an impressive show of dominance.

The other fun exhibit was the orangutans. There was a HUGE old beast, swinging from the vines. He has great big folds of skin on his face and belly, which you can see in the picture. The kids' favorite one was the orangutan who kept licking the windows. Turns out that he likes the taste of the window cleaner the workers use, and licks it all the time.


One of my other favorites was the giraffe exhibit. They had them in an enclosed building for the winter, and it was neat to be able to see them up close. Boy, could they stretch their necks! It was fun to see.



We had a really fun time at the zoo, but by 3:00, the kids were beat and just wanting to swim in the pool we promised they would have at the hotel. We went to the hotel, went swimming, ate dinner, and put some tired kids to bed. Their parents were a little tired, too, after walking around and encouraging kids all day. So it was to our great dismay that we were woken up at midnight with booming thunder so close that car alarms were going off in the parking lot of our hotel. It went off and on, 4-5 thunders at a time, for one and a half hours. Fortunately the kids slept through it all, but Shane and I heard every thunder, saw every lightening, heard Tanner and Parker cry out in their sleep, and heard Kaitlin talk in her sleep at least twice, all night long. It was a long night. But overall, we had a wonderful time and would love to go see the zoo again. So, if any of you would like to come and visit us, and want something fun to see, we'll take you to the zoo. It won't disappoint.