The Winter Zoo

I kept thinking it might be fun to go to the zoo in the winter...after all, our pass is good year round. And they do have several inside buildings that are heated. In the summer time I never want to stay in the buildings too long cause that's where the AC is so everyone is there. Then, I talked to our friend, Jill, who said she loves taking her kids to the zoo in the winter...and it was settled! So we grabbed Alyssa (who sadly/happily is once again employed and very soon will not be able to play anymore), bundled up Connor, and headed off to the indoor "Islands" exhibit and Herpaquarium at the zoo. It turned out to be a really great idea. As we were walking in, a class of elementary schoolers was leaving, and besides them I think we saw three other families the whole time we were in the buildings. Usually Connor is quiet around lots of other people, but with just us there he talked and talked, and we got as much time as we wanted to look at whatever he liked.

By far the best part was the orangutans. Connor's favorite at the zoo is always the monkeys, and they are what he calls the "big monkeys"...and luckily they're inside. So we parked ourselves on a bench in front of the big window into their area to watch them play. After a minute or two, one of the zoo docents came into the room on her way some place else, and stopped to chat with us. One of the orangutans, who we learned was named Amber, obviously recognized the lady and came right up to the window to see her. It is one thing to see them from a few feet away, and another thing to actually interact with them.

She told us that Amber loves you to pull shiny things out of your pockets, so we pulled out wallets and cell phones, and everything we could think of, and Amber would put her finger up to the window and point at it if she liked it. It was an amazing experience and we will definitely be back.