It's a zoo out there! Trina11:54 PM 1 comments

At the beginning of the summer, I heard a rumor that we could possibly get into the zoo for FREE through our local library.  As it turns out, the rumor is totally true!  All we had to do was check out a special "Zoo Atlanta" dvd and return it to the same branch.  We'd then have a week from that date to trek through the zoo at no charge.

Of course, it took a month before we were able to nab the dvd as each branch only had one copy...and then it was at a branch that was 30-40 minutes away...but still.  Regular admission for our family would run nearly $60, which makes the trip worth the spent gas.

While I realize that a voyage through the zoo in Georgia in the middle of July doesn't fall into many individuals' books of "Fun Things to Do," it was free, and it was better than pulling weeds in the hopeless yard.  The zoo, at least, had mist fans and several areas of shade.  We arrived at the zoo not long after they opened, and managed to stay just a few steps ahead of the several field trips they were hosting.

Our first stop was at the petting zoo.  Admittedly, I was a little disappointed that the petting zoo only had goats.  Not only was there absolutely no variety in animals there...you weren't allowed to feed them.  In the department of "petting zoos," this one gets marked as unimpressive.  That said, it was a nice way to start out, since the goats knew they weren't getting fed by us, they just lounged around lazily and allowed our timid little child to pet them without badgering her for treats. 

Fallon, ready to dart away should the goat decide to move or flinch or something.



We're all very happy here.


Once we arrived at the panda exhibit, we were lucky enough to see Po and his mommy sleeping.  I'll admit, it was cute.  It also reminded me that I really want to see the Kung Fu Panda sequel.  Is that even in theaters anymore?  Now that we've had to cancel our Netflix due to their new ridiculous pricing structure, I'm not sure when we'll get to see the movie.  People seem to beat us to the Redbox for the new releases every stinking time.



Fallon was highly amused by the pandas' sleeping arrangements

Anyway, after we spent enough time watching the pandas sleep the day away, we headed over to check out the elephants.  We happened to get there just in time to watch the baby elephant eat a little snack, too.  I was disappointed to see that not a single peanut was a part of the meal, but rather apples and bananas.  And now I'm disappointed that I didn't think to sing the apples and bananas song during the feeding.  Major fail on my part, now we'll have to go back.  We will not be watching the movie Dumbo because that stupid movie makes me cry.

Feeding the baby

Fallon really wanted to see the tigers and bears, so we did.  Unfortunately, this is the best picture we have of the tiger exhibit.  The extra little girl was the cutest little thing though. As I was helping Fallon (and apparently the little girl) locate the tiger, the little girl kept looking up at me like I was giving her the tiger and that it was the best gift she could ever receive.  I was tempted to take her home with me if it weren't for laws against kidnapping.   

The other little girl has a heck of a tricep.  I bet she could knock out a serious number of push ups.

We have a slightly better picture of the bear, who was also dozing the day away.  These animals sure are sleepy. 

We must have arrived at nap time.

We also identified some footprints as *not* Fallon's feet.

Darn bear made a mess of the sidewalk!

From there, we checked out a few reptiles per Mr. Almeda's request.  I'm just thankful that the baby King snake I found in the laundry room the other day was not any of these snakes.

Don't remember what kinda snake this is, but it's poisonous and I don't like it.

Rattlesnakes.  A freaking nest of rattlesnakes.

And just for some consideration...this is what a real gecko looks like.




Real gecko                                                Geico lies



   

It's almost as shocking as the first time I saw a real pelican.



Picture of pelican from the                                                      The lie

  internet (there were no

     pelicans at the zoo)

  

Then it was time for some monkey action.  Fallon excitedly proclaimed that the orangutans were her favorite, probably because they were one of the few animals who weren't sleeping at the time.

Watching the monkeys

We did manage to see a gorilla, but he refused to turn around and look at us.  So instead, we hung out with the gorilla statues.

I'm hanging out with gorillas!!

Us.

Mr. Almeda couldn't understand why Fallon was so intimidated by this statue.  Perhaps it's because despite her friendly wave greeting, he insisted on continuing to issue her a menacing stare.  Clearly, this gorilla statue does not like children.

Stop looking at me.

We did get to see lots of different birds at the zoo.  We even got to pretend to be birds.

Cranes

Flamingos

Vulture

Wow.

A couple of birds

We also got to pretend to be lions.

She fits right in

And meerkats.

Crazy faces

Of course, we did get to see an actual lion, who Fallon immediately familiarized herself with proclaiming "he has crazy hair!"  Fallon is quite proud of her own "crazy hair."

There's a lion over there!  (Don't follow her finger, the lion is to the right of the rock)

Our last stop on our animal tour was to see the giraffes.  I asked Fallon what kind of pet she would have in her house (which by the way, is or will be pink), and she decidedly proclaimed that she would have giraffes.  Better than something carnivorous, I suppose.

Trying to get a better view

It's tough when you're little

Afterwards, we spent some time in the gift shop as I wanted to get my souvenir magnet (getting magnets keeps me from spending ridiculous amount on other things I want to memorialize our trips by, yet still allows me a souvenir).  Mr. Almeda and the little one apparently entertained themselves while I was shopping around.

A tiger hat to match the tiger shirt

War of the lizards

On our way home, I noticed this little tidbit of information and decided something needed to be done about it.

Crazy-hot.

So, we went and got a milkshake to cap off the adventures.

Butterfinger