My kids have never been to the zoo. We didn't have one in Las
Vegas unless you count the crappy petting zoo in Bonnie Springs, which I do
not! So when we found out that the NC Zoo is only 90 minutes away we decided to
take the kiddos. I thought we would have a fun day and then bring home three
exhausted kids.
I was kind of right.
The kids were so excited to go to the zoo! They each had their
favorite part of the zoo. Isabella loved the seals, Molly liked the turtles,
and Mark said he liked the tram ride the best. The giraffes were a huge hit with all three kids.
We were over in Africa about three hours into our day looking at the gorillas when the sky turned almost black. This was not a good sign. Within minutes it went from a nice sunny day to down pouring rain. By the time we found some shelter, we were all soaked to the bone. There was nothing dry on us; even our socks were soaked.
In the beginning the kids thought it was a fun adventure! They were running in and out of the rain and having a great time playing. You have to love kids; they can find fun in almost any situation.
In the beginning the kids thought it was a fun adventure! They were running in and out of the rain and having a great time playing. You have to love kids; they can find fun in almost any situation.
But it started raining harder and the wind blew in which
dropped the temperature. Everyone was shivering and the kids started to get
scared from the booming thunder. Brett and I decided to make our way to the car since there was no end
in sight for the rain and we were soaked anyway.
That turned out to be a big mistake! The kids flipped out in the rain. Mark's sensory processing disorder reared its ugly head in a big way with every clap of thunder. He started screaming and refused to take another step. Brett and I took turns carrying him out which of course made our daughters cry to be carried too.
That turned out to be a big mistake! The kids flipped out in the rain. Mark's sensory processing disorder reared its ugly head in a big way with every clap of thunder. He started screaming and refused to take another step. Brett and I took turns carrying him out which of course made our daughters cry to be carried too.
I think this picture sums things up!
We finally made it to the bus pick up spot to drive us to the
other side of the zoo where we were parked. We waited for 20 minutes for the
bus to pick us up but we did eventually arrive at our car with three screaming
crying kids in tow. Once the kids were in dry underwear (since I didn't have
clean clothes but thankfully had 2 pairs of underwear and 1 diaper) and had
some snacks they calmed down.
Meanwhile Brett and I were wringing out our socks and had nothing to change into, so we drove 90 minutes home soaking wet. And hungry since we gave the kids the majority of the food and stopping for fast food was out of the question-our no processed foods challenge was going on. No way was I going to cheat when I was that close to winning!
Meanwhile Brett and I were wringing out our socks and had nothing to change into, so we drove 90 minutes home soaking wet. And hungry since we gave the kids the majority of the food and stopping for fast food was out of the question-our no processed foods challenge was going on. No way was I going to cheat when I was that close to winning!
Waiting on the bus
Once we got on the road and the kids had calmed down I looked at
Brett and asked "how long do you think it will take until this is a funny
story?" We instantly started laughing hysterically.
Sometimes you just have to laugh! In that situation you could only
laugh or cry, and we already had three crying kids. Picture us driving down the road giggling about our bad luck striking again. We will never forget our family's first trip to the zoo and thankfully there are many good memories of the day as well
.
I know that I'm a better person when I try to find the good in the situation instead of focusing on the bad.
Like this moment.
And this one!
Perhaps my favorite picture.
With all the animals and rides, my twins were fascinated with the drains and stopped at every one.
I know that I'm a better person when I try to find the good in the situation instead of focusing on the bad.

Dang rain!
ReplyDeleteWe had a lot of that when we went to Disney World.
Fantastic post. It's true that when you focus on the good in your life, you are a happier person and your teaching you children the same.
ReplyDeleteThere is definitely an art to "finding the good in bad situations"! It is definitely easier said than done. By the looks of the last pics, it looks as if there was a lot of good on that MEMORABLE rainy day at the zoo!
ReplyDeleteThat was awesomely wonderful! Way to go in finding the positive. What lovely memories you have! And yay for spare undies :).
ReplyDeleteYes, big hooray for spare undies! They looked so cute riding back in their panties passed out from all the fun!
DeleteI could not agree more. Laugh it up! We only live once and life is so precious and short -- as you know, of course. Thanks for a lovely post.
ReplyDeleteWhat a great memory though! And yes, my choice is to always laugh as well! Love your blog. Grateful for SITS to have connected us!
ReplyDeleteLaughter took the pain away, literally! So true; we seek the good in the situation and the laughter comes along. Sure wouldn't have wanted to drive that long in soaking wet clothes!
ReplyDeleteThe drive home really wasn't fun in wet clothes. I was very happy when we got home.
DeleteOh the joys of parenthood. Well, it will sure be a day everyone will remember!
ReplyDeleteAnn B.
I like how you teach your kids that even when things go wrong things can still work out and you can see the good in it too. You have made lemonade out of lemons. You will laugh about these stories for years too. Thanks for sharing. Rita Spratlen
ReplyDelete