A Day at the Zoo

Dan has been a planning a day at the zoo for us. Tuesday is "two-for-one" day so we decided it would be the perfect day. Not to mention, the weather was expected to be beautiful. Dan got back from his early morning class and we packed up for our day long trip to Birmingham. I brought a pillow and blanket so I could take a nap in the car. Dan spent the drive up with Feist while I slept my little heart away. Next thing I knew, we were at Kohls! We bought a bread maker at a reject type store where products that get returned/are dysfunctional or unwanted for whatever reason. It didn't quite work, so we looked up where it was from and Kohls it was. We took it in, took them it wasn't working, and lo and behold... before we knew it we had a beautiful, brand new bread machine in our possession.

We are soo excited to make bread with our own wheat that we will grind into flour ourselves! How delectable and wholesome?!

We stopped by Bed, Bath, and Beyond to get a new down comforter (ours is a little battle-worn/unusable from the little tornado, we have been using a little blanket since and decided with the coming winter months it was time to splurge). We even upgraded to a king-size. Yay!

It was then time for the BIRMINGHAM ZOO! We had the most wonderful time! I was a little apprehensive as I usually get depressed from the animals being in captivity, but they seemed happy for the most part. Dan convinced me the zoo is helping the endangered species by having them mate and then once they mate they let them go and bring in new critters (I'm almost sure this whole story isn't true but I choose to believe it). At least I know they are advocates for the animals. Dan has been soo excited to go to the zoo for weeks at least. We saw the most amazing, marvelous, and hilariously entertaining animals.

humongous among us

Just to name a few... we saw an African Pancake Tortoise, an Alligator Snapping Turtle, an American Alligator, flamingos, a bald eagle, monkeys, orangatans, gorillas, lemurs, owls, a giant anteater, zebras, Reticulated Giraffes, Southern White Rhinos, a tiger, swans, an otter, an anaconda, ostriches, a kimono dragon, a red panda, kangaroos, hogs... (I could go on...)

they were hilarious just cleaning and grooming each other to no end

There were a few highlight encounters where the animals really went above and beyond to make our visit great...

Sealion exhibit- they just swim back and forth in the water, just gliding around and having a ball. They did some tricks for us and were so smart. We loved them (not to mention taking a little break on the bench while we watched!)

Lion encounter- There is a royal family at the zoo. Daddy lion, Mommy lion, and three little cubs that are 18 weeks old. They were the most precious and fun to see. We got to see the zoo workers feed them and were no more than six feet away! They fed them raw meat and then to keep the Daddy lion occupied while the cubs were still eating, they would spray goats milk in its mouth. What a treat! He was so majestic and strong. We learned that mother lions in the wild do not introduce their babies to the father until 8 weeks and 12 weeks at the zoo because the father can be dangerous to the cubs. The mother is always there by the cubs side protecting them and making sure they get along with Daddy. It was so amazing to see a whole family of lions so close!

you go mama

Lorikeet aviary- They have a bunch of lorikeets that are so very friendly. You can buy a little tin with food in it and then will come up to you and sit on your hand and eat. We, of course, did not feel we needed to spend $1.50 on that so we just went right on in. They love to fly from side to side and zoom so fast right by you (and probably at your face if you don't duck). They are so colorful and fun. I sat down on the bench for a minute and one of them came right up to me on the bench. He kept inching his way over and then started nibbling on my jeans and shirt! It was so great. He started on one side and worked his way all the way around, nibbling away and getting his fill on me and my purse. After a few minutes I got a little nervous and thought maybe he was enjoying himself a little too much, but we certainly had a special bond.

BFF's

Elephant- The elephant was so beautiful and breathtaking! We were really close too and got to get a really good look at him for a few minutes. As soon as we came over he walked right over by us and stayed for a while. He was standing about ten feet away from us and he was turned around so his backside was facing us. My deep thoughts began and I said, "What if he passed gas right now?!" Literally before I could finish my sentence he passed some serious gas, right on command. He knew. We about died. It. was. the. FUNNIEST!!!!

i'm in love

Lastly but certainly not least...

THE LLAMA- We were walking through the barn where they have the barn animals. Dan loved it because he could pet and play with them (my allergies would not allow). We were about to the end and there was Mr. Llama, so tall and funny. He was eating. Dan stood at the gate, just looking at him and the llama stared right back. They would not break eye contact. Dan started making kissy noises at it; he thought they were friends. After a couple minutes of this uninterrupted eye contact, the llama had had enough and he viciously SPIT at Dan's face! And he has good aim. Got him right in the forehead. A little bit of half-way chewed food, a little bit of spit. It was the worst. And best. He must have felt threatened. Dan felt somewhat violated and a little sad that his friend seemed to be having different feelings. Grouchy old guy!

We loved the zoo. It was so much fun. After the zoo we went to Full Moon Barbeque. We were both utterly famished: headaches, grouchy, tired... nothing some food couldn't fix. I got a grilled cheese sandwich and a loaded baked potato and Dan got a BBQ chicken sandwich. We were much happier. :) We then spent a wonderful evening in the temple. What a wonderful place to go to feel the Spirit, serve, and put life in perspective. We are never happier than when we go to the temple together.

On our hour drive home we discussed our hopes and dreams and plans... and boyyy are they great. :)

Could our day have gotten any better? I think not.

lfie.

old post that i forgot to publish:

i have been working full-time in one of the most stressful, overwhelming jobs. my schedule is really hard on me and i am literally counting down the weeks until i can be a normal person and sleep at night and be awake in the day (minus occasional switch-ups!!! (oh, the things people take for granted)... the thought of being able to sleep next to my husband every night is just mind-boggling. the majority of my life now consists of me, at 10:30 pm, saying good-bye to my husband and facing the cold, harsh world until the sun comes up. it's just not natural. i've payed my dues and i'm ready to be done. mind you, i am so grateful for my job and how it has blessed us. not only financially, but i have learned so much about health care, medicine, nursing, people in general, myself, time management, organization, i could go on... i am so grateful i have been able to work for a few years before i have my baby. it's been great, but i'll be nice enough to let dan do it for the rest of our lives. :)

so besides working, we moved out of our apartment last weekend. the lease to our old apartment ended a week and a few days before our new one began so we have been living with our sweet, wonderful friends, the richards, right now. they are ridiculously kind and welcoming. i hope we have been hospitable house guests! so we moved out of our apartment, cleaned every crack, crevase, and cranny, and have our belongings stowed away there for a time.

we had to hold off a few days to move because dan had a big ole test to take last saturday morning in birmingham. we stayed at a lovely hotel the night before so we can just relax and not have to drive over an hour in the morning. we swam at the hotel, went to the temple, went out to dinner and had some delicious mexican dishes, and enjoy our king-size bed! (we were previously bunking out on a twin. mandatory cuddling... the best) we had so, so much fun. dan got all the extras... early check-in (we will get our moneys worth!), a room in a high-floor (level three), and a hair-dryer in the room (i actually did use it!). our room was so plush.

during dan's test, i found world market (i'm in love) and got some fun things for our new apartment, got lost and ended up at a yard sale in vestavia hills, and a few other adventures. i was so thrilled and elated for him when he called me and told me he was done! i could not be any more proud of him. he is amazing. and incredible. and driven. not to mention adorable. thank you everyone who prayed and fasted for him! our prayers were answered and we know Heavenly Father was there helping him with his test. the guy at the testing center was teasing him because every time dan would come out for a break he would be smiling. the guy would say "why are you smiling?! you shouldn't be smiling while you're taking a test like this!" and dan would just say "i don't know! it could be worse i guess..." and the proctor said, "well, i hope you become a doctor. i would come to see you just because of that big smile."

on monday we moved into our new apartment. we really love it. it's spacious and open (once you get past the loong entrance hallway), we have two bathrooms, a fireplace, a back porch, woods in our backyard, a extremely large walk-in closet, a big pantry that so nicely holds our washer and dryer, a ceiling fan and overhead lights in every room, and a parking space that is only a few steps from the front door! oh the luxuries. we are excited about it. we moved in as much as possible in one day, because on tuesday we flew out to las vegas to see the james gang! we are loving our vaca and trying to relax after a very stressful few months...

dan finishes up his summer classes today (weight-lifting and racquetball). he managed to make it through his whole semester undefeated in his racquetball class. that Z-serve is pretty brutal. and he is as muscley as all get out these days. he's making up for my weight gain. we've always been able to complement each other. :)

i gasp every time i step on the scale... it's the best. my doctor might have a heart attack after i get back from a two-week vacation with my family and step on the scale the next day.

oh did i mention we had our big ultrasound?! we are so thrilled to bring a lovely little boy into this world! a first born son is pretty perfect to us. he kicks and spins and twirls. he is going to be the best, best, best little creation this world has ever seen!

cruisin cuisine

my dear sweet mother and father took us on a cruise for spring break! we went on the celebrity century from miami to roatan, honduras & cozumel, mexico! my dad happened to have meetings in fort lauderdale the weekend before dan's spring break... so it worked out perfectly! dan and i left after his lab and drove until 4:00 in the morning. we made a bed in the back so we would take turns sleeping. and we found out that he and i can comfortably sleep in the backseat of the corolla together. like both of us laying out long ways from window to window. woah! who knew?! i was swimmy-headed for a week after the cruise... it's subsided.

i have too many pictures for one post so i'm going to break it up into categories... figured i'd start out with the FOOD. because everybody knows... when you think of a cruise, you think of, dream of, and fantasize about food. or at least i doo...

this was at subway in everglades city.. cute little alligator town.

he is soo sophisticated.

most quaint and relaxing little aqua cafe. it had the HEALTHIEST food ever.

hot cocoa after a good morning work-out with daddy.

pretty parfait

my mom's favorite was a bagel with cream cheese, capers, and tomatoes. such sophisticated tastebuds.

this is from the healthy cafe if you didn't notice... there are CARROT chunks in that roll.

behind the scenes food tour!

no caption needed

FROG LEGS

formal night, looking so classy and handsome :)

this was before dan got sea sick and had to spend dinner outside on the deck :(

CUTEST LEMON SORBET i've ever seen. it was a palate cleanser between courses. and delicious at that!

it's the tiniest :) JUAN CARLOS IN THE BACKGROUND!!!!

dan ran off for like, 30 minutes in roatan and i couldn't find him anywhere. finally found him off with this little one eating freshly made banana chips together!

after an amazing snorkeling spree in cozumel! dan was eating a sandwich we had stashed away.

it's mexico tradition. glass bottle... it's just better there.

surprise!!!

look at us so cute at dinner. that's me with two entrees. i couldn't decide :)

baked alaska night!!!

CHOCOLATE SORBET... have you ever heard of it? it was literally the richest taste that has ever graced my lips. it tasted like 100% cocoa. no one could handle more than the tiniest taste. words can't describe, but.. rich.

baked alaska was a big production :)

that's the whole baked alaska :)

that's the head chef... in case you couldn't tell ;)

sushi etiquette, rub the sticks together to get the slivers off. doesn't everybody do that?!

dan explaining the ins and outs of sushi to mom, so interested.

BRUNCH!!!!!! oh pleeeeeeeeeease let me go back!!!!!!! my stomach just started to churn.

ohh boy...

caesar salad bar is always my favorite.

ocean view :)

one of my favorite pictures for sure. sigh, it's love.

cutest little swan princess

favorite food picture, hands down. how perfect?!?! it was soooo good!!!!!!!!!!

i think this is what heaven might be like.

so perfect. i love those sweet little foreign people who made this. so talented and humble.

coooolest.

suchi chot.

susssshhhii bar! it was so fun to watch him whip it up right there.

she got shrimp cocktails every night literally. it was her favorite!!

mmmmmmm...

MY BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION!!!!!!!! it was sooo sweet to have them all sing to me. i love them.

juan carlos and melwin. they took care of us. :)

this was probably the funniest moment on the whole trip.... this sweet, humble little man was standing up against the wall. we had never seen him or met him before and all the sudden my dad said, "hey, come over here" in a stern voice. i was like, "oh no?! what's he going to say!" all once the man comes over my dad BREAKS OUT IN TO SONG... "doon't leaveee mee lett mee stayyyy," just serenading this man with all his heart... and the sweet little man was completely unphased. just stood there next to him so politely with his hands together. didn't even crack a smile. CLASSIC.

the birthday girl with her birthday treats. spoiled.

classic overeating room service pic. we have one like this from our honey moon cruise and he looks so chubby. it's the best. (yes, we know we went a little overboard. but look! there's fruit...)

bon appetit! i know we did!