Tuesday, November 12, 2013

chicago :: the lincoln park zoo...


one of the highlights of our trip was the lincoln park zoo! we loved that its not too far away from the city, accessible by public transportation, open and FREE 365 days in a year!! 

say what?! freakin' amazing right!?

{oooo water!!}

we have not brought blakie to the zoo in singapore so this was his first close encounter with animals and boy was he enthralled! he was wayyy impressed by the underwater view... and then he spotted the seal and went batshit craaazy!! it was hilarious!


overall, we were very impressed at how well kept the zoo surroundings are. i've not been to a zoo in forever but it didn't smell too bad and the viewing gallery was toddler friendly and they could watch the animals from up close without assistance!! 

we thought it would be a great learning experience for blake so we were enthusiastically pointing out the animals. "look blake... ZEBRA!!" kinda way... but we spotted him getting all excited about little bugs or shrubs or picking up random rocks!! lol


our ruddy-cheek boy and his papa..

p.s. blake gets these red cheeks whenever we go somewhere chillier! it looks really angry in pictures but in person, its a little dry and doesn't bother him. any tips, guys? sunscreen? moisturizer? or just leave it alone?


there were little exhibits and animal houses scattered throughout the zoo. we didn't have time to explore everyone (because we were trying to cover our grounds before naptime!!) but the ones we saw were very cute and well labelled! its definitely child-friendly with pictures and little snippets of fun facts for older kids to read!! i loved this little baby giraffe!! definitely the highlight of my "african journey"! 

i was also quite impressed by the activities planned by the zoo. just the weekend before we visited, they had a fall harvest special with a mini pumpkin patch and hay rides. and now, its big black bear's 26th birthday! how fun!!


we made it to the petting zoo, a separate area from the actual zoo! but booboo face caught sight of the bales of hay and decided he'd play there instead!!


there was a lot of pulling hay out of this horsie's mouth. 

*sigh*


shortly before he passed out leaving us a fuss-free afternoon to hit up the stores!! 

that very evening, we hit up fogo de chao, a brazilian steakhouse for some yummy and not healthy grilled meats. i was mighty nervous because its our first time lugging a fully-awake kid into an adult restaurant with proper linen and cutlery! its not super fancypants but in my mind, i could imagine him screaming the house down, or spilling wines, or crawling everywhere in the romantically dark restaurant!!! but he did super good!! he ate TONNES and loved pan de queso just like his papa & mama! and then was endlessly fascinated by the fire grill and the spinning meats!!

we were such proud parents!! needless to say, he slept super well that night because we loaded him up with all that yummy not-so-good stuff!
and that's how we celebrated the last day of our little eleven month old!

when we tucked him (and his super round tummy) into bed, i stayed with him a little longer because it was his last night as a wee little baby. i kissed his round forehead a few too many times, touched his soft damp hair as he drifted off into dreamland. im glad i got to do that because the next time he opened his eyes, he would be a little wide-eyed boy all of ONE year old!!

xx

4 comments:

  1. Try Pawpaw ointment (from OZ) if his cheeks are dry from the cold weather. Great for dry lips too! (When we travel to cold countries, I smear my kids' faces with Pawpaw/baby moisturiser when they are asleep so they don't dry out or crack - they won't let me do it when they are awake haha)

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    1. DOH! why didn't i think of it!!! i even brought it with me!!! i'll do that at our next trip!! when he's asleep!

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  2. I would suggest coconut oil :) It's natural and will make him smell delicious!

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    1. ooo ive read a lot about the benefits of organic coconut oil! and miranda kerr takes it everyday too! sounds gooooood!

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