What better way to start of the year than a trip to the zoo?!

After spending New Year’s Eve with friends who have twin 7-year-old boys, we were ready for real-life chaotic small animal activity (if you haven’t spent New Year’s Eve with small children old enough to feel the excitement, you’re missing out).

To ring in the new year, the kids made homemade pizzas and monkey bread and played non-stop, making Rainbow Loom jewelry (read: scattering small rubber bands all over our friends’ house). You can also never go wrong with a bunch of Solo cups for stacking and smashing (and Poppy-house making):

And our friend Bardo again proved you really CAN move an Oreo down your face without touching it – this time on video! It’s mesmerizing.

(CLICK FOR VIDEO)

I got several “action shots” of the kids outside as they got warmed up for fun:

And we rang in the (East Coast) New Year with lots of loud poppers and exclamations (or screaming, whatever you call it), then slipped the girls into PJs and headed home.

On the first day of 2018 we watched our friend’s 15-month-old daughter, Addie while they moved into their new place. So of course we took all 3 little monkeys to the zoo! Zoe had decided she wanted to head straight to the gorilla area and write down all the information on the signs there. She made it through the first description of Rapunzel, “a very sweet gorilla who was born at the Cincinnati Zoo on February 20, 1984…” before she asked me to take a picture of the sign so she could keep enjoying the zoo. Best laid plans.

As the zoo began to fill with families who had the same great idea we had for New Year’s Day, we headed to the California Condor Rescue Zone, an indoor playground I had never known existed there (and I’ve been to the zoo several times). I was super excited until we walked in, and I saw manmade “cliffs” all around the perimeter of the room, with ZERO climbing equipment.

Zoe has taken two rock climbing classes at a local college, but with instruction and strapped safely to cords. I watched that class ONCE. That’s all I needed. So if you put that child (who instantly started climbing and claims she has done that a lot at Zoo Camp) along with TWO younger kids (monkey see, monkey do), and you probably don’t want ME in that room…

Thankfully, Addie had no interest in climbing. Ella, however, instantly climbed herself up to a spot she couldn’t find her way down from, leaving me to squish between a window and that rock to help her out… In the adjoining room (which I encouraged) there was a condor vet setup where you could pretend to care for baby and adult condors, and where any parents who care about the safety of their children (which does not frequently include my husband) could find a few moments of relief:

(Notice I did not put the baby in the crate. Oh, and it is remarkably easy to get small children excited about crawling into one…)

Sure, that didn’t last long, but I’d say fun was had by almost all. Not a bad way to start the new year, if you ask me. Up next, GLAMPING. But that’s for another post. Stay tuned!