The first animals we saw were the penguins. We spent about 10 minutes watching them swim about, playing in the water and on the rocky landscape. Kellan seemed mesmerized.
The penguins' synchronized swimming performance was truly enjoyable.
What better place to warm up a bit than the Tropical Rain Forest Building. This is Kellan pointing to the poisonous (albeit very colorful) dart frogs.
A brightly-colored toucan took a close peek at us as we watched him.
The different types of birds at the zoo seemed to be Kellan's favorites, as attested to by the many photos we have of him looking and/or pointing upward (more to come).
The animals Kellan did NOT like were the larger species, such as this gorilla. Even the baby gorilla was frightening, though it was around Kellan's size.
Safety and comfort found on Grandpa's shoulders.
This is the bird Kellan and Daddy were watching build a nest...
...here in this photo.
The giraffe was another large (and thus, scary) animal for Kellan. Mommy thought he was pretty cute, though.
The entire first half of the trip to the zoo, we were making our way to the elephant exhibit because Kellan said he wanted to see them. Of course, we get there, and Kellan is desperately clutching to us, saying "no... no... no..." Poor little guy. Not even the dancing elephant above could capture Kellan's interest (too bad we didn't record a video, it was very entertaining!).
The siamangs were less scary than the larger animals, but Kellan still didn't find them to be all that enjoyable to watch (a shame, as viewing their grooming habits can be fascinating).
Here is one of the favorite animals that the adults of our group encountered - this was an orangutan, hanging out in a tree hammock, staring at everyone walking by. It would have made a fabulous drawing model, it was so still! Plus, the so-ugly-it's-cute face, right?
Finally, an exhibit that Kellan liked that didn't include birds - the meerkats! I mean, who doesn't love a good meerkat show?
Whatchu lookin' at?
Hee, I'm just kidding. Hi!
On our way out of the park, we passed the penguin exhibit again, though this time they had a special animal guest.
Mommy, Kellan, and Daddy, just before leaving.
Grandpa, Kellan, and Grandma, getting in one more squeeze before heading out.
Kellan very much enjoyed spending the trip with Grandpa and Grandma - obviously!
So fun!! Maybe next time, Kellan won't be so frightened of the bigger animals, hm?
