"Little Zoo"

Yesterday Braydon worked for the day and my dad treated the rest of us to a trip to the Lehigh Valley Zoo (click here). We've been to the Philadelphia Zoo (the "Big Zoo") a couple of times with K & O, but had never been to the -- much smaller scale -- Lehigh Valley Zoo. I have to say that for Kyle and Owen, right now, at age 3, the "Little Zoo" was just PERFECT. Highlights for them were the river otter, running like madmen along the zoo paths, and a horse-drawn hayride.

Highlights for me were having my parents there to help me with these two tyrants. Seriously, sometimes (i.e., when they are overtired) they are so, so bad. And it is nice to have my parents around to: #1) help me keep them in check, and #2) help affirm for me that no I am not losing my mind and yes, indeed, they are super super super "active" and... uh... 'challenging' at times to parent. Most of all, though, it is nice to have my parents around to: #3) tire them out. There is no one on this earth (Braydon and I included) who can physically and mentally exhaust them like their MorMor and MorFar can. In fact, yesterday -- July 2, 2007 -- something unprecedented occurred. At the zoo, at about 2:00 in the afternoon, Owen stood by a tree and refused to move. As I walked toward him to pick him up he said to me: "Mommy, I'm sleepy. I need to go to sleep now." I stood there in shock. Then picked him up and handed him to my mother. :) Oh, and also, it is nice to have my parents around to: #4) make me a margarita at 5pm.