Vacation 2014 Part 3: The Zoo

We went to the Tulsa Zoo! And I got to play with my nifty new zoom lens!

They loved the carousel. They would have ridden it fifteen times if we'd let them.

Note to self: this lens captures all the glow of a sweaty hot day in a way that might not be completely attractive for portraits.

Rori rode a giraffe.

I was actually really far away from this bear.

The kids were asking if they could go over the fence and pet the bears. I told them NO.

I was really far away from this flamingo too.

Sea lion!

Playground!

Pretend choo choo train!

DINOSAURS! COMING TO GET YOU!

I feel that the juxtaposition of rhinoceros and Coca-Cola machine is really some sort of postmodern critique of life, or maybe of the spectatorship of nature.

This is an albino alligator? crocodile? I never can remember the difference and it really doesn't matter, since they would both be equally unpleasant to meet in a swamp.

And this is a desert cat which, if it were found in a living room, would be completely indistinguishable from a regular cat.

I don't know what kind of bird this is.

Or this one.

Or these.

But they're really pretty.

Heidi and the bear had fun making the same face.

And Ion wanted to be friends.

I was far away from this butterfly.

And I was really far away from these chimps. Don't worry, I'll stop telling you how amazing my new lens is soon.

Heidi is a lot smaller than a chimpanzee.

Elephant!

Is YOUR zoo cool enough to have Ganesha in it? I DIDN'T THINK SO.

Don't worry, he got away.

There's a statue of an owl if you look where the statue of the man is pointing.

Heidi wanted to climb to the top of the big rock.

We had adventures in the rainforest.

Photo credit: Ryan

And we played in the petting zoo.

Ion wants to be in FFA.

Feeding animals is the BEST.

There is a baby monkey in this picture!

And we saw Hedwig.

I officially wish we lived close enough to the Tulsa Zoo to become members and go every weekend. Ah, well, I guess we'll keep crossing our fingers for a farm and let the kids grow up with livestock that way.

Vacation 2014 Part 2: At the Park

We vacationed at Sequoyah State Park, an amazing state park 30 minutes away from Tahlequah. It's close enough to be convenient (read: we didn't freak out about whether we'd forgotten anything), but far enough away that with a room at the resort we felt like we were away from it all.

We went on the Watermelon Hay Ride, in which we got all itchy from hay while we trundled behind a tractor, and then ate Farmer's Market watermelon until we were all ready to burst.

We went on hikes. Lots and lots of hikes.

And more hikes. And in between hiking we did nature prints on tshirts. 

We went on tram rides around the park. The kids thought we were on a choo choo train.  

Or, as Ion says, a too too wain.

And as Heidi says, chugga chugga choo choo comin' fwoo.

We flew airplanes.

And we played in the dirt.

And we went on more, more hikes. And picked up rocks. And did some more hiking. 

And we rode horses and swam and played on the splash pad and ate ice cream and made necklaces and did so many things that I was frankly too tired to take pictures of. And we slept soundly every night. Except the first night. 20 limbs in 2 double beds is quite crowded, but I'm pretty sure we could have all been on the floor and still slept soundly. Having fun all day with toddlers is a way more effective sleep medicine than Ambien, let me tell you.

Tomorrow: we went to the zoo a few times too.