I am heading out for some mid-week oral surgery and I will be too cranky to post for several hours. Talk amongst yourselves. The topic is – “visiting the zoo”. How old were your children on their first visit? When did they decide they were too old to visit it? Do you go there without children? What’s your favorite animal? Do you bring food from home or buy the zoo food?
Oral surgery? Good luck!
As for the zoo, we love it. It is at least an hour’s drive to the closest zoo and it isn’t a very good one, but the kids still love it. The oldest one at home is 15 and she still likes to go.
Any animal that you can watch underwater through glass is an instant favorite!
Polar bears!
I could stand there all day and watch them.
My kids still love to go even now that they are teenagers.
We took the 2 year old last year and she enjoyed it.
We eat before and after.
Our kids were 1-2 when we took them for the first time. 9 & 4 now and both still enjoy it, of course. My parents bought us a pass, so we’re trying to go at least once a month. My favorite is probably the gorillas. There’s almost always one sitting right at the viewing glass. The otters are also great. We don’t eat at the zoo, because it’s too damn expensive. I mean, a small Slushie for $2? I don’t think so.
I’ve talked with my hubby about going to the Feast with the Beasts this year. Booze and animals, what could be better?
What a good topic for me since we went to the zoo this weekend. We started bringing our daughter to the local zoo at about 6 months old. Was she too young to enjoy it then? Of course, but it was good for a day out stroll rather than just walking the neighborhood with the stroller. Around 4 years old is when we started making the journey into NYC for the Bronx Zoo, as at that age she was able to appreciate it enough to make the longer journey (and greater expense). But every so often we do allow ourselves to “splurge” just for the sake of convenience.
Too old? I am 40, and still enjoy going to the zoo. Perhaps now more than when I was a kid, as I can enjoy different aspects of things (the rain forest, effects people have on animals) than I did when I was younger (ohhh… look at the pretty animal).
I can’t say that I have a favorite, nor does my daughter seem particularly attracted to one specific animal, although she does enjoy the butterfly garden a great deal and it is a MUST on EVERY trip to the zoo.
As for lunch, most of the time we do bag a lunch, one because of the expense which can get to be a bit much, but more for the health factor, as the choice of greasy junk just doesn’t sit well with us as things we want our daughter to eat. (Plus she is a picky eater to boot).