Birthday Zoo Trip

In lieu of having a friend's birthday party this year, we decided to take Trevor, Evan, Ava and two friends to the zoo to celebrate Trevor's birthday.  We had so much fun!  Both the boys were over the moon to have friends along.  Turns out it was also ZooBoo so it was rather crowded...but we talked about our buddy system before we went in, and we all managed to stay together.  

Our first stop was at the Aquarium.  Pittsburgh has such a nice aquarium.  Our two favorite exhibits are the walk through shark tunnel and the polar bear exhibit.  The shark tunnel puts you up close to the sharks; so much so that, you can count their teeth!

 

Ava watching the sharks!

The polar bear decided to put on a show while we were there.  He was playing with a pumpkin!  The boys were all able to get up close to the glass and watch him!  This was my favorite part of the day. At one point the polar bear was under water, and looking right at the boys!

Jeremy captured this awesome pic on his Iphone!  The polar bear was shaking water off his head!

How cool is it that the bear decided to look at the camera too!  He's even smiling!

The boys playing in the polar bear trap

After wandering through the aquarium, getting some free treats and drinks, and hitting up the gift shop, we headed outside to see some of the other exhibits.  1st stop was the monkey house.

Then on to see the giraffes and elephants.  But first the boys wanted to try out the elephant trap!

I also love watching the elephants.  They are such magnificent creatures.  Have you ever watched one walk up close?  They move so smoothly and gracefully for such a large animal.  Their feet don't thud or tromp.  This elephant also caught my eye because it has such amazing eye lashes!

Daddy and Ava at the Elephant and Giraffe overlook

We made it back up to the front of the zoo after seeing lions, red panda, gazelles and rhinos.  The kids really wanted to play in the slide area near the walrus exhibit.  They had so much fun zipping down these super fast slides!

By 4 pm, we were pretty tuckered out and getting hungry.  We decided it was time to hit the road. The boys were thrilled to see these Minions on our way out!  So glad we got pictures with them!

One last picture of the boys and their new animals!

Heading out with their buddies!  Love the sweetness and innocence they still have!