Houston Zoobilee!

 This year was our first year to attend the Houston Zoobilee! The event is a members only event held in the evening. We opted to go on a Friday and were so excited that Gammy and Granddaddy could join us in the fun! Even Daddy was able to make it over in all the traffic just in the nick of time!

 Our first stop was taking a few pictures by the entrance while we waited for Daddy to show up. Sadie loved riding on top of the giraffe and the rhinoceros . She might have sat up there a good thirty minutes if there were not other children in line waiting to have their turn.

 We then headed to the sea lions, one of Sadie's favorite animals at the zoo. They were so fun to watch playing with with water and being so silly. Sadie loved watching them and squealed with delight as they swam about. Even while typing this blog at this very moment, Sadie is watching the computer screen, saying "lions" and cracking up and pointing the blog pictures as she is still entertained by these little creatures.

 We then stopped for a quick snack break while we figured out where we were supposed to go for the big kick-off. Sadie dined on raisins and water and a few peanuts too.

 On our way over to the welcome area, we saw a bunny sitting by the lions! He was so cute and Sadie enjoyed watching him, until the sight and sounds from his admirers frightened him away.

 Alas, he wasn't the only bunny in the zoo! in the welcome area, Sadie got to pet a giant bunny! She thought he was so sweet that Sadie even tried to give him a kiss on the lips! The zoo-keeper was amazed at her friendliness (and probably a little nervous too). The other cool animal Sadie saw was a giant turtle! She immediately linked the turtle to Granddaddy, since we all know he loves turtles, and screamed, "Granddaddy! Come look! A TURTLE! Touch it, Granddaddy!" The turtle was a youngster, only 45 years old!

 Sadie also enjoyed picking flowers while we waited. Before leaving, she was given a little passport for the evening where she could have each section stamped at various animal locations. She loved standing in line and getting the stamp all on her very own!

 They gave us free pretzels and water and while we wisely decided the dinosaur exhibit was waaaaaay too long a wait for a toddler (or an adult for that matter), Sadie enjoyed her pretzels and enjoyed all the other cool animals!

 One of the cool events of the evening was that every member was allowed to ride the carousel for free! Granddaddy was out photographer, capturing not only great pictures of us riding, but even one of himself while the carousel was moving! Good shot, Granddaddy!

 In the African exhibit area, we saw tons of cool giraffes. They were strangely active, as in more active that we have ever seen them in our lives. They were almost running around and utilizing the whole caged area. We assumed it must have been almost time for dinner. Right after that we ran into a hula hoop competition area! Although Sadie couldn't quite figure out how to convince her hips to keep the hula hoop around her tiny waistline, Mommy showed her how (and stood behind her to help it move for her). She loved it and danced and hula-hooped to the music with the other kids for a good while.

 We also enjoyed the gift stores. Sadie isn't really old enough to "demand" gift items yet, and we are enjoying that as much as we can while it lasts. She is just happy to play with them, then say bye bye and move on. However, we did find several funny masks that Gammy and Sadie enjoyed trying on and Gammy couldn't help but buy her a little monkey "grabber" toy. She loved that and let it "bite" everything in sight for the next half hour - people's noses, plants and leave, skirts, rocks, etc.

 As we were heading to the front, one of our favorite memories from the night happened. Sadie stopped in the cave area where there was a little light streaming through, and put on a dance and singing show for anyone who would watch. She sang and danced and people just stopped and watched her as they passed by. Moms smiled at this two year old's natural confidence and energy and we just sat there amazed by Sadie's natural skill to make people laugh and smile. If only everyone had half the confidence Sadie holds.

 Sadie also enjoyed watching a penny go round and round a couple of times by the monkey area. The giant apes are one of her favorites, as you can get so close to them by looking through the glass.

 Sadie also likes playing the drums in the area and taking photos with any available animal statues. That little elephant statue / bank has actually been at the Houston Zoo since Gammy was a little girl. So cool when people choose to leave some of those amazing items in place for generations later to enjoy.

 We were headed down the main entry-way towards the front gate when we heard loud music and saw dancing animals! There were giraffe ladies on stilts, dancing monkeys, an ostrich in a tutu, an alligator, and all kinds of sights to see! A dance company was hired to come for the celebration and Sadie had so much fun dancing with all of the animals. The monkeys were her favorite and she took a little picture with them before leaving and gave each one of them a big hug. We even saw our friend, Lea Bodie, while we were there and agreed this was one of the coolest events for kids!

 One of the funny memories we had was Sadie's prize. We were all excited to see what "prize" the kids received before leaving. It was a simple dinosaur poster rolled up in a tube. We were all bummed. Man, a poster? That's all. but leave it to Sadie to be thankful for even the little things. She LOVED it and showed us it doesn't always need to be big to impress a tiny soul. Sadie sat down on the curb and opened her poster with delight, fully satisfied in her new prize. We hung it on the wall for a good week afterward, right where she pointed out it would go perfectly in the living room. On our way home, we barely made it to Luby's before they closed and enjoyed jello, chicken, and green beans for dinner. A wonderful evening at the Houston Zoobilee and we plan on going back again next year.