and it was everything he hoped and dreamed it would be

The zoo trip was just about as awesome as Garrett had hoped it would be. I think he saw every animal on his must-see list and then some: turtles, elephants, zebras, bears, roosters, fish, monkeys, and, of course, seals (which, in this case, are more correctly known as sea lions, but to Garrett there was no difference). If we'd have let him, he would have stayed glued to the sea lion exhibit the entire day, barking and clapping his hands right along with them.




The Children's Zoo was a highlight. It had by far the most interactive exhibits. Both boys went a little crazy in the petting zoo -- Garrett feeding and tickling the animals, and Caleb watching them (and his brother) in awed fascination. He wasn't too keen on touching them or otherwise getting too close, though.



We rode the bug carousel and the "tour of Asia" monorail, burrowed through the prairie dog tunnels, strutted alongside free roaming peafowl, saw lots and lots of newborn zoo babies (peachicks, several varieties of Asian deer, rhino, sea lion, squirrel monkeys, among others), stamped our "Zoofari" passports after visiting various exhibits, visited several "zoo poppies" (did you know that Garrett has been dry, day AND night for THREE straight days? He has, and we are all so proud), and by the time we left the zoo in the late afternoon we were exhausted, but happy and fulfilled.

But the fun wasn't over yet. Back at home we ordered in pizza, rented Madagascar, and put our tired feet up as we continued to enjoy ourselves. It was a first-run showing of the movie for all of us; Garrett laughed his way through because of the slapstick, Caleb laughed periodically because Garrett was laughing, and Blake and I got a kick out of the subtle New York City zoo humor.

So, a successful day all around. Garrett's already talking about his next trip to the zoo, in between listing off all of the animals he saw yesterday. Maybe, while the magic is still alive, we'll make a trip to the Prospect Park Zoo. Any Brooklyn friends want to come? I can get one guest in for free, if that is at all enticing....