Adventure at the Zoo

I enjoy living in the Midwest. The temperatures are perfect, except summer when I'm miserable and hot. :)  The only big downside to living up here is that it puts me 1,000 miles away from my immediate family who all still live in Florida (I moved back up here over 3 years ago when I married my DH).  I'm lucky that I have mobile parents who do come up to visit us fairly regularly. We try to make a trip down to Florida every 9-12 months or so. So, basically, we only see my sister, her husband, and my niece and nephew only once a year. :(  A real bummer.

However, this year is an exception.  My sister and her family flew up from Florida so she could attend her 20th high school reunion in St. Charles, Missouri. On Sunday, my family and I drove down to St. Louis to meet up with her.  We were excited at having this additional opportunity to visit with my sister and her family.

The day started off great and almost destined to be good. As soon as we got off the exit to go to Imo's Pizza (awesome St. Louis-style pizza), I realized my sister was behind us at the light. What timing!!  We had an enjoyable lunch at Imo's. My niece, Kendall (6), and nephew, Carson (5), were as energetic as usual. Kendall and Carson were thrilled to see Ginny again. They hadn't seen her since early June and were astounded at how much bigger she was.  Kendall and Carson call Ginny "Baby Ginny."  Their mom wonders how old Ginny will be when they drop that name for her. Otherwise, we caught up on their trip so far and how my sister's reunion went.

Ginny and I at the zoo entrance waiting on Kendall & Carson.

After lunch, we headed over to the St. Louis Zoo!  I honestly adore this zoo.  The location is beautiful, being in Forest Park. It is one of the best zoos out there, I think.  Part of the reason I love it is because it is free to enter. Parking, on the other hand, can be free if you are lucky enough to find a parallel parking spot. However, finding one of those after lunch on a Sunday is nearly impossible so we didn't even try and paid for parking.

When we first walked into the zoo, DH went to change Ginny's diaper. I had planned on changing it at Imo's but there was no place to change a diaper there. Sigh. While Ginny's diaper was being changed, Kendall and Carson got their faces painted for the day.  They looked lovely!  From there we enjoyed looking at all the animals and spending time together as a family.

Ginny with her cousins Carson (in blue) and Kendall (in white)
looking at the Red River Hog.

Kendall and Carson are really good cousins (Ginny has lucked out in the cousin department on both sides of her family).  They spent time talking to Ginny and playing with her. Carson was especially attentive to Ginny. He would even walk beside her when she was in her stroller to help keep her company. Ginny didn't seem to notice the bigger animals, but seemed to enjoy the small ones, especially the monkeys and prairie dogs.

Ginny toddling with her Aunt Amy and cousin Kendall.

Carson making sure that Ginny had company

We did let Ginny get out of her stroller on occasion to toddle around. She was thrilled and often tried to "run" more than walk.  It gave her a thrill to be out, about, and free. However, as any parent to a toddler knows, a toddler is not a pro at walking and tends to fall.  Ginny was going down a bit of a hill and fell forward a bit, catching herself with her hands. Unfortunately, she rubbed her head along the pavement and scratched her head up a bit...ending up with a bruise as well. :(  She was not upset, and this seemed to upset Carson too.  He kept saying, "It's my fault."  He had been walking with her and blamed himself.  I reassured him that it wasn't his fault and accidents happen, especially with toddlers.  Ginny didn't let the bump and bruise get her down for long and enjoyed the rest of the day.

We left the zoo after being there for about 4 hours and headed to Soulard to meet up with my Aunt Carol and Uncle Keith for dinner at McGurk's.  Again, our timing was perfect. We all got to the restaurant, after parking in various locations, at the same time. Wild.  We ate outside in the garden and had a lovely time. It was becoming quite clear, though, that Ginny was tired and done for the day.  Ginny has a great disposition and is usually all smiles, but she was getting frustrated quicker than normal. My Aunt Carol kept her entertained so Ginny made it through just fine (Thanks, Aunt Carol!).

Once dinner ended, we all said our goodbyes. Chris, Ginny, and I needed to head home.  When we got to the car, Chris changed Ginny's diaper and put her in her PJs.  We made one stop for gas (after all, it is 20 cents cheaper in St. Louis than where we live in Illinois), then hit the road.  Ginny fell asleep in minutes.

Ginny with her bruised & scratched forehead, clearly
a bit cranky. 

Today has been a day of recovery.  Being 8 1/2 months pregnant, walking around a zoo for 4 hours is quite tiring. My plan has been to take it easy all day.  Ginny, on the other hand, has been cranky most of the day.  She is still tired from yesterday. Not only did she have a lot of activity, but she didn't get her usual 3-hour nap in for the day either.  But, I would say, despite all that, the day was well worth it.  I'm so glad that we got to spend time with my sister and her family. I wouldn't change that for the world.