Miller Park Zoo

It was another warm day, but we braved the zoo one morning.  The animals were not very active, but Emma enjoyed our adventure.  Lauren was more interested in snacks, but that goes with the toddler territory.

Animals Galore

During the first week of "squatting" with my parents, we all ventured to the zoo. I thought that getting an early start would be good to avoid the heat and crowds. But it turned out to be an 80+ degree morning, and the zoo was hosting a free admission day. We made the best of it and saw many animals: flamingos, monkeys, turtles, zebras, camels, emus, alligators, meerkats, prairie dogs, and much more. We took Emma on a train ride and the carousel. She had so much fun, and didn't want to get off when the carousel's white tiger came to a stop.

The Zoo with Grandparents

Papa Ross, Grandma Connie, and Scott took Emma to the local zoo one day while I was educating America's youth and leading an after-school workshop for teachers. Papa Ross may have had the most fun seeing all of the animals! The river otters were favored by everyone!

Miller Park Zoo

We ventured to Miller Park Zoo in Bloomington on Emma's birthday. She loved the wallabies, lemurs, leopard, tiger, sun bears, river otters, gibbons, birds, two-toed sloth, alpacas, goats, meerkats, tortoises, and much more. A zookeeper let her touch a small snake! Emma wanted to squeeze it, but Scott was right there to intervene. She enjoyed it all, but was briefly unsettled when a sea lion sprang from the water, landed on a rock, and barked loudly several times. Scott tried to explain to her that the sea lion was singing, "Happy birthday!" On a side note, we are quickly realizing that taking photos with a more mobile little one is a challenge. Half of the pictures we took show Emma squirming to get out of our arms. She's growing up and becoming more independent!