PICTURES!!!!! from the St. Louis Zoo

So, we decided Monday night that we would go to St. Louis on Wednesday. Nothing like a little planning! :P I was checking the weather and noticed that, for July, it was going to be so nice in St. Louis towards the end of the week. It had been SO hot and I knew that heat, our kids, and the zoo probably wouldn't mix. So, we decided to go NOW! And I'm so glad we did. It was perfect. You could not ask for better summer weather.

We drove to St. Louis on Wednesday. I was very proud of ourselves b/c we left much earlier than I ever dreamed we would. We can all be ready to go somewhere and it still takes over an hour - just to get out of the house.

We stopped several times along the way to use the restroom and just to get out of the car. There's a very nice visitor center/rest stop just outside of Corning. The nice lady who worked there gave Eli and Claire their very own books about Arkansas. Claire was so excited to have her own book. We had a snack and juice boxes. Since vacation, Claire only wants to drink a juice box. She loved them!

Here's Eli and Claire right before we got in the car. All smiles! How long will that last, I wonder?

We stayed at a Drury Inn about 3 minutes from the zoo. It was new and really nice. We ate at a Cracker Barrell a ways before St. Louis b/c biscuits sounded good! We all went swimming on Wednesday night and then, where else? To Target! The GPS wasn't working right, but we found it (sort of) and the mall that was right down the road. Of course, there was going to be a plan to head back there!

Eli and Claire when we first got to the zoo. I can't ever get Claire to look at the camera, but Eli always obliges with a big smile!

Sharing this little bitty spot was Daddy's idea. Can you tell Eli's pouting? He was not happy having to share his seat!

Eli in front of the snakes. I've lost my other pictures (accidentally deleted them :( ) but there was this HUGE python. Shudder. It was awful. Claire just kept pointing at it saying "wow" "wow"! Yuck!!

I don't think I've ever seen a real camel. They're so strange looking.

Little baby camel. Eli was sad b/c it only seemed to have one hump. But, when he turned, there were 2 - one was just really little.

The Penguins. It is SO cold in the penguin house. We couldn't get through it fast enough. Maybe if it had been 100 degress outside, but you didn't really need a cold break from the 80s!

My sweeties! Aren't they cute?

Spider Monkey! I wonder if it's the same one from high school?

She was exhausted b/c she NEVER sleeps in her stroller. This lasted for quite a while! I'm not sure how many people told me that we were missing a shoe. It was in the basket. Putting on a shoe is NOT worth waking a sleeping toddler.

Awwwww!!!! This is rare right now.

Taking a break. She had to sit on every bench/chair we passed. She loves to sit!

Looking for the monkeys.

Here we are riding the train.

Cuties!!!!

Eli's counting all the fish he and papaw could catch.

Hippos!! I think this is my very favorite part of this zoo! So cool!!

Somehow, I thought I had saved the pictures on the computer, but then I realized that I hadn't. After I had erased them. So sad. I could just kick myself. There were tons more, but I'm glad I at least have the ones I have.

After the zoo, we found a Macaroni Grill, where the waitress immediately asked us where we lived, just b/c I ordered sweet tea. Crazy people, ordering sweet tea! The kids weren't all that excited to walk around the mall after dinner, but it was nice to goof off. I even found OPI nailpolish at Target! Yay! Keith took Eli swimming when we left the mall, while I got Claire a bath.