Sunday, March 27, 2011

Let's go to the zoo!

The arrow's second birthday is almost upon us and now that he's a bit older, I'm looking forward to seeing how he's changed by doing some repeat adventures. I have such fond memories of taking him to the Louisville Zoo and the Indianapolis Zoo for the first time last year. While the zoo itself might not be that different, I bet the arrow's enjoyment and interaction will be.

Case in point: the Indianapolis Zoo has a spectacular dolphin show that we saw last summer. My mom and I were completely mesmerized by it, but the arrow was totally disinterested and squirmy the entire time. I think he had trouble understanding what he was supposed to be looking at and overwhelmed by the other people there. This year, I have a feeling he'll connect much better with the dolphins as they flip, leap, splash and squeal.

Mom, why does everyone think this dolphin show is so great?
Another big change since our list visits to a zoo? It's kind of a big one: he can WALK. He was just starting to toddle around on our most recent trip to the Indianapolis Zoo in the fall. He ventured out of the stroller a few times, but for the most part, he was just a passenger. I bet I'll do a lot more chasing this spring!

Old enough to wave to the rhinos, but not quite walking!
Another reason to make a return trip to the Indianapolis Zoo? Three new exhibits just opened up, which I wrote about for Visit Indiana. I'd also like to get to the Cincinnati Zoo this year. I've heard lots of great things about it from friends, and it's less than two hours away. In fact, we want to plan an entire Cincinnati getaway weekend. It's a city I've only experienced in bits and pieces, despite being so close.

I'm not the only blogger with zoos on the brain lately:
Want to see less pictures of the arrow and more pictures of actual zoo animals? Check back on Friday, when I'll be posting a few of my favorite up-close-and-personal encounters from our visits to the Indianapolis Zoo last summer!

What's your favorite zoo?

This post is a part of Mondays are for Dreaming at the Mother of All Trips.
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3 comments:

  1. Eternal LizdomMarch 28, 2011 at 8:40 AM

    There is an awesome train thing in Ohio- north of Cincinnati. Entertrainment Junction http://www.entertrainmentjunction.com/ My parents took my kids there about a year ago and they had a BLAST.

    Personally, I say skip the aquarium in northern KY. I think our Ocean exhibit here in the Indy Zoo is better- about the only thing the aquarium has is tubes where you walk under the water. But out dog sharks are better and our penguins are better.

    We went to the Indy Zoo recently, too! We're members and it's one of our fave spots to visit. We also love going next door to the White River Gardens- went to the orchid display a couple weeks ago- amazing.

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  2. DominiqueMarch 28, 2011 at 9:52 AM

    Think the arrow will warm up to the warthogs at your zoo this year? The stranger and uglier the animals, the more fascinated some kids seem to be :lol:
    And thanks for the shout out!
    We do love our Detroit Zoo. One of my favorite areas has to be the underwater tunnel at the arctic exhibit. We managed to get there one day when the polar bears were pretty active and spent an hour sitting there taking pictures of them swimming overhead and playing with each other (I did a Photo Friday on that long a while back).
    The wildlife photo show is a don't-miss. It's the only U.S. stop on an international tour, and the images are beautiful.

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  3. Amy @ The Q FamilyMarch 28, 2011 at 3:57 PM

    My favorite zoo so far is the San Diego zoo. For some reason, the animals were all active and playful during our visit. :)

    It's true that re-visit the same attractions/places is fun and interesting to see as kids are older.

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