Earlier this summer we were blessed to take Mia to the zoo...again. This time, however, she was older, wiser, and ready to explore all the fun offered by Colorado Springs' famous zoo. We went with my family at a special rate thanks to Emily's business function happening there that evening.
Mia has totally been enthralled with animals thanks to Baby Einsteins Old McDonald movie and the various books that point out all sorts of God's amazing creatures. So, needless to say, the adventure to the zoo was both breathtaking and beautiful as we watched her take it all in with amazement.
The first place we visited was the bird house where you get to stand amidst all the birds buzzing around with excitement. With eyes wide as saucers, Mia's mouth was held in a constant "o" formation as the words "oh wow" eagerly escaped her lips with but a whisper. She was totally enthralled with all the buzzing and hype, and I'm sure a little frustrated that daddy was only going to hold her during this time.
As always, you get to see the peacocks walking around and as they flaunted their beautiful feathers and eagerly called in their native language, Mia mimicked with an elegant "SKWACK...SKWACK!!!"
We saw lions and tigers and bears...OH MY! Mia's favorite, by far though, was the petting zoo for little ones. She was up close and personal with the goats, and as she giggled and reached out to touch them, they would run away, keeping the moment oh so exciting. Located right next door was a pot-belly pig who snorted with enthusiasm at Mia's pointed finger in its direction.
Following the petting zoo, we headed toward the giraffes. We found their special food and as we kept close watch on Mia, making sure she didn't think it was her snack, we allowed her to feed the funny looking creatures. As their long, sloppy tongues swooped over the gate, Mia got distracted between actually feeding them or trying to grab them. It was so entertaining and we had to practically give her a bath in the hand sink after we were finished.
At the end of the evening, Casey took Mia on the merry-go-round, a first time adventure for our blooming toddler. At first, her precious little face had a grin stretched wide as she sat high atop her pretty horse. But as the ride started to go around...and around...her expression turned very serious as if this was a job needing full concentration. I thought for sure that she would be done with Merry-Go-Rounds as I watched this serious look creep across her face, but as Casey forced her little legs to loosen their grip on the horses back, Mia eagerly pointed at the ride shouting "More! More!"
The zoo was so much fun with our little girl, mostly because of her expressions and remarks that made the magic of the place come alive.
