It is sad that I am just now getting around to blogging this when we actually went to the zoo in mid-July? That was only two months ago. At this point…why bother? But we had such a FANTASTIC time that I can’t just pass it over. (And I happen to be in Chicago on business with a lot of free time at night.)
We picked the perfect weekend to go. It was the coolest weekend in July that I can remember. By cool, I mean it was in the 80s. Chad got off early that Saturday (by early, I mean 5pm…on Saturday…welcome to the farm). We left around 7pm and had to pull over twice before we made it the first mile. We arrived at hotel in Asheboro a little after 11pm. We stayed at the Holiday Inn Express and it was fine. The kids got an animal balloon and animal crackers so they thought it was the bomb.
The zoo opens at 9am on Sundays. We got up early and were there a few minutes before they opened. In retrospect, this was crucial. By getting in there early, we missed the hottest part of the day and the largest crowds.
We started in North America and just went to it. The girls loved it! I loved it! Chad loved it!
My little “catographer” took this one. It looks like we are the ones that need to be in a cage! Don’t tell Chad about that one.
The seals (or manatees or whatever…I’m not a marine biologist people) were really cute. They were racing each other around and around the exhibit.
The zoo was a good mix of stuff (aka animals) to look at and things for the kids to play on. They also have a couple of playgrounds.
And a carosel…
And a 3d Dora the Explorer simulation which was a big hit with the Jones’ girls.
In case you are thinking about going (and you should), we got the combo passes which included admission and 3 bonus tickets that you can use to ride the carosel, go on the Dora ride and feed the giraffes.
My favorite part of the entire day was feeding the giraffes. I was down with the girls holding the leaves and the giraffe’s tongue kept coming and coming. All I could think was “How long can it possibly be?” Both of them hit the road when it got close. This was a baby giraffe by the way. You could also see the zebras and ostrich from the observation deck.
McKenna’s favorite was seeing the elephants. The baby elephant was eating close to the fence.
McKenna informed me that the elephants were Avery’s favorite as well.
We carried the double stroller which was also crucial. They have strollers that you can rent but they have a limited supply. McKenna was happy to nagivate our map from the stroller between exhibits. 
Notice the bling she brought with her. It also provided a good napping spot for Avery.
The zoo is pretty spread out so it is a lot of walking. A lot. And the terrain is not flat. I will admit that it took Chad and I both to push the stroller uphill at the end of the day. We were pretty tired.
Thanks Daddy for taking us on a great trip!
p.s. I’m linking up to Home Stories A to Z favorite post of the year party!