The Zoo Crew

Yep, that's right, I'm still playing catch up from 2013 & I'm okay with that : ) Maybe I'm trying to drag it out as long as possible since we had such a wonderful time....we will go with that.  At this point I cannot remember what day we went to the zoo. I just know it was between Christmas & New Years & I know that it was quite chilly. 

This was our third trip to the Houston Zoo with Charlotte & Eloise & the very first zoo trip ever for Owen & Anson. We love this place! With beautiful cool weather & a lively bunch to walk around with we were set for a great day. That was until I went to take a picture & realized my photo card was in my laptop...at my parents house grrr! I didn't even flinch when I forked over a bit too much for a photo card at the zoo gift shop since I had already decided it didn't matter because I really wanted pictures of our time there. It was a good purchase because we captured some special moments at the Zoo : ) 

Super Dad & three of the Fab Four approaching the giraffes.

First order of business: Feed the giraffes some $5 lettuce. Seriously, I should have brought my own head of romaine! Eloise was really excited & listened carefully as we explained the rules. She did a great job & of course wanted to do it again.

Charlotte is a giraffe feeding pro thanks to multiple visits here & a few places in Florida. That is kind of funny that I had never fed a giraffe until Char did it for the first time & now she has done it at least 5 times!

While we were waiting in line to walk up to feed the giraffes, I happened to glance at the name badge of the guy standing at the entrance. It said "Miguel" & my brain started working. I know that sounds funny but it is worth mentioning when I feel like my brain works well ; ) Anyway, we met Miguel & his now wife Amanda at our Life Group back when I was pregnant with the twins. They were friends of another couple in our group & came once or twice just before Miguel left for an interview at the Houston Zoo. As I said "Miguel, did you used to live in Orlando?" I caught Robby looking at me like I was crazy. It all clicked though & we realized we all met once or twice. It was fun to chat & really fun to get hooked up with a free ride on the carousel for kids #1,2,3 &4!

While we fed the giraffes, the boys chewed away. They could not have had a more appropriate toy than "Sophie." Or, is that inappropriate?

Owen & Anson

Uncle Kyle joined us even though he was on the downward spiral of not feeling well. We were glad he was up for the challenge.  Uncle Scott had already hit rock bottom & headed back to his house to recover. We missed him. I love this picture of these two & see a slight similarity...

We rented a wagon to pull whoever wanted a ride. I kind of wanted to ride at one point & I'm sure Kyle did too since he wasn't feeling fabulous. I love Elo's little feet sticking up as she was loungin' while riding around the zoo.

 It is always SO nice to go places when there are more adults than children!

The chimpanzee was right up against the window & was just "so coot" as Eloise said.  Both girls got a good look at him & he got a pretty good look at them too. 

Here's me & my dad. Too bad we didn't get a picture of our actual faces ha!

I had to take a picture of this sign. We laughed when we were standing there reading it thinking how that definitely has the potential to ruin your trip to the zoo! We maintained our distance without much consideration.

The lionesses (is that what they are called?) were lounging & it reminded me of how Bennett & Bella used to lay when they were wee little pups. The king of the lions was also lounging nearby...on his back...exposing himself so much so that my brother & Rob were giving me a hard time for taking a photo. I am refraining from posting the inappropriateness ; )

We can tell the boys apart very easily but when they fall asleep with hoodies on it makes it a bit more difficult! They look SO similar. Anson is on the left & Owen is on the right. I was even more confused as I examined this picture because I always give Owen the orange blanket or clothing but anyhow, I'm certain I swapped the blankets this time.

It is funny that I always end up with more pictures of our kids than animals at the zoo but when it comes down to it, I like them better than the animals anyway ; )  Charlotte decided to hitch a ride partway around the zoo & I just couldn't get over how old she is looking these days!

Eloise hitched a ride on her favorite shoulders & enjoyed the view of the tigers from up high.

We ended our trip to the Houston Zoo with one more ride on the Carousel which happened to be the first Carousel ride for the buckaroos! I had completely forgotten but Charlotte & Eloise's first ride on a Carousel was at the same place....so special!

The boys loved it & seemed to know just what to do. It was like Eloise, the professional carousel rider had given them some tips. They were precious! Uncle Kyle was buddied up with Anson & Rob stood next to Owen as we went round & round.

Any guesses on who stood next to Eloise? Yes, yes, you are right! GAGA, Eloise's best friend : ) Eloise picked a Golden Retriever which is a little random for a Zoo carousel but she enjoyed her ride & her riding pal.

I will end with a bit more about carousels.  We traveled to Dearborn, Michigan to visit Robby's Grandma Virginia in August 2012. We spent a day at Greenfield Village & rode the Carousel multiple times. The animals were three across & as Robby & I stood next to our little girls with sweet smiles across their faces I said while looking at the lone animal next to us, "What do you think about having just one more baby & being done?"  I thought the same thing while looking into the backseat while we were driving home with one space between the girls. Upon our arrival home we saw that positive result on a pregnancy test and a short time later we were told there were TWO babes growing in my womb. Haha! Fast forward to our trip to the Houston Zoo & I couldn't have been happier taking up MORE than one row on the carousel seeing the smiling faces of my four little Valentines. It kind of made me want to have one more, but then I would want to have two since I like even numbers ; ) 

What a lovely day it was, chilly weather & all! We headed home with some worn out children (and adults), & settled in for a quiet evening at home.