We Came, We Zoo'd, We Conquered.

In my v-log earlier this week, I hinted at hoping against all hope that The Husband would be able to take a half day at work on Thursday so that we could take Carter on his maiden trip to the Maryland Zoo. 

You know, because after all he only has 13-ish more weeks to revel in Being An Only Child and I'm this.close to buying him a pony for it. 

If you happen to follow me on Twitter or Facebook then you know that's exactly where we spent a few hours together yesterday as a happy little family of 3.5. In the eighty-degree March weather. 

I don't need to tell you that it was one of the best days of our 2012 yet. I'll let a few pictures do the talking, yes?

First up, the rhinos, zebra and ostriches. Sadly, C was not nearly as excited as both The Husband and I were- he was too busy trying to catch the attention of the The Toddler Girl running amok up and down the walkways of Africa. 

For those of you who are curious, C's shortall comes from the fabulous folks at Just Ducky. You may remember the post I wrote about them here. His sandals are from Walmart (a whopping $10 thankyouverymuch) and his hat was a recent gift from Gammie and Poppy upon their return from Puerto Rico.  

Next we moseyed on over to the gazelles where C's interest was also barely peaked. It's here where I need to admit shock and defeat at just how awesome C behaved outside of his stroller. His hand-holding capabilities just blew my mind. Had you asked me to bet his college savings on whether or not we could "let him loose" in the zoo, I'd have gladly bet the $85 on him requiring duct tape and strict confinement to the stroller. Silly, Mommy.

We then decided to check out the chimps and other monkeys nearby and Carter was absolutely enamored with the fishies we found inside one of the habitat houses. 


Needless to say I have a feeling we'll be making plenty a trip to the local pet store so that he can ooh and aah over a much less expensive (read: FREE) aquarium.  

Who knows, with my luck and utter inability to say no, he may even end up with a guppy-friend of his own!
Can you guess Carter's favorite zoo exhibit? I'll give you a hint. It wasn't the giraffes, the elephants or the lions. It wasn't the cheetahs, the gorillas or the prairie dogs. Thankfully it wasn't the public restroom or the overpriced concession stand. 
Carter loved, loved, loved the penguins. As soon as he saw them waddling around in their tuxedos and dipping themselves in and out of the pool, he started talking and shouting at them a mile a minute. The kid went downright nuts for them. 

As if it's any surprise, the penguins also happen to be his Poppy's favorite too. 
Adding to the list of "firsts," C also took his first zoo tram ride and is none the better (or worse, for that matter) for it. Good thing that sucker was free too. 
On our way out of the park, it was obviously mandatory that we pose with the rather large and slightly scary iron lion at the entrance to the zoo. Please note C's blatant enthusiasm. 

I'm pretty sure I read somewhere in The Handbook that it's part of my responsibility as Mother to document these things, no? 
It goes without saying that The Husband is already planning our next zoo trip- this time to the National Zoo in D.C. 
So, do you believe me when I say it was one of our best days of 2012 yet?
Have a great weekend, Loyals!