To the Zoo...

We waited and waited for the weather to turn cool enough to go back to the zoo (11.28.16). Cameron Park Zoo is a wonderful zoo but the most appealing characteristic, its lush flora, also makes it unbearable on a humid day. So, we waited. 

Since we had a longer summer than usual, the end of November... perfect zoo weather. I was so excited to take Autumn this time since she is plenty old enough to point things out and notice animals and perhaps even get excited about a few things herself.

The first stop is always the Gibbon Monkey Family by the front entrance. They have a beautiful enclosure and are usually quite entertaining. Autumn was holding her Monkey as she watched the real monkeys. I think she could make out that they were hairy, strange and interesting animals... and that might have been the extent of it, for now. 

On our way back out we stopped in again because they were making lots of noise and playing around...

Ever since "Madagascar," they have a thing for lemurs.

Still my favorite. It makes me sad that he's all by himself though.

He hung out here until I saw him and took his picture.

Same setup.

Though he doesn't care about getting his picture taken, he's similarly goofy and worth documenting :) Complete with coffee.

Me and my baby cakes.

This one's horn was fascinating us. Kind of weird and gross, but yet you can't stop looking.

While we were in the salt water aquarium room, with padded floors and minimal traffic, Autumn did a little walking. This was only the second or third time she has taken that many steps, so it was a exciting! The second half of this video was her riding on a springy shark in the playground area. She seemed to know exactly what to do and was getting into it... 

Autumn was pretty excited about the salt water fish tanks. They are colorful, move around, and seem to respond to her banging on the glass (I know, I know, don't bang on the glass - but we were one of those families today). If only they made audible noise, she'd be endlessly captivated... 

It is a tedious process, walking with a newly-walking toddler. Especially for Alan at his size. Autumn was having a blast though.

This duck was a little more extroverted than the others. He was interested in giving us the full experience, nips included.

On the playground, while the boys ran around, Autumn tried the springy shark (from eh video above). She seemed to know exactly where to hold and how to make it sway back and forth. She was surprisingly steady as well.

The next day the boys went on a hike at Lake Georgetown. Here's a few photos of their outing...

They had some practice with their backpacks and carrying their own water and snacks.