Beautiful Day

This past week, the weather has been FANTASTIC. Cool enough to open the windows, but warm enough to still wear short sleeves. Sunny, light winds, blue skies. The whole nine yards. We have been to the park, on bike rides, and playing outside as much as we can...before winter hits! Today, with Emily having no school today (or Monday), we were further able to take advantage of the great outdoors with a trip to the zoo with Grandma Karen.

The trip was especially fun for a few reasons. The first being that we got to ride the train! Emily and Christian really enjoyed it--Kari wasn't incredibly impressed, but, the loud whistle didn't phase her so that was a plus. We were able to make it over to a couple areas of the zoo that we don't usually get to b/c they're a bit further out there.

Another special treat was the ice cream! I don't know why, but it tasted extra yummy today. Maybe it was b/c it was so fun watching Kari try a little. Or maybe it was b/c Christian totally devoured his HUGE twist cone...and went through about a dozen napkins in the process!

Finally, the zoo was great this time b/c this was the first time that Kari was really aware of everything around her...and she LOVED it! It was like a whole new world was opened up to her! We first noticed this phenomenon at the petting zoo. Kari got very excited about the goats, the ducks, and the peacocks. She was very brave and pet a goat--he liked that she had "puffs" residue on her fingers. Kari then really got a kick out of the aquarium--the wonder that was in her face was just precious. Finally, she enjoyed looking at the turtles in the Wild Kingdom pavillion.

(Kari has some mild eczema and has some medicine on her face--hence, the messy-face look. But, she's 9 months old today! Isn't she a happy baby?!)

I think that's why the zoo stays fresh for me--b/c I get such a kick out of watching my kiddos enjoying themselves. (And, watching the penguins never gets old!)