A Wild Time

This was my first trip to Houston, and Workaholic's second. The first time he went down there, he didn't check the weather, and all he took were shorts and T-shirts. He literally had to go buy a new coat and jeans and long-sleeved shirts. When we got there, it was pouring down rain, and it rained again the next day (hello humidity!!) and on Saturday, it was cold. And windy. It felt like Chicago. By the middle of the afternoon, it had turned into a nice day, if you were wearing 3 layers. But we didn't let that stop us!

You know how when you are a little kid, you go to the zoo and just want to play with all the wild animals? And you could spend an hour just standing in front of the tiger exhibit, wondering if they are ever going to wake up, but if they don't, it's OK because you just like to look at them and wonder what their fur feels like and if they smell bad? And would the zookeepers even notice if you crawled into the enclosure? (OK, maybe that was just me) And Workaholic. To this day, he still sees a tiger and says, "Kitty." He wants one, but I put the kabosh on that. So, while in Houston, we took Samantha to the zoo for the first time.



It was really for our friends' kids benefit, because I thought, "Really...she is 11 weeks old, she isn't even going to notice the animals." But she stayed awake almost the whole time, and never cried, and just really loved taking in all the scenery and the animals. I really wanted a family picture in front of the tiger, so this is what we were able to get...

I honestly am not in favor of most zoos. Wild animals are not meant to be kept in captivity, especially when the enclosures are just not big enough. The Houston Zoo is nice enough, but they have 9 elephants, and the space where they are kept is about 20 times too small. (They are big, and need lots of room!) But zoos are super educational and a great way of teaching kids. My friend's 5 year old little boy heard the narrator on a tour we took say that alligators can be born female but turn into male! Crazy!!

Anyway, we had a great time, and Houston is a great place for kids, so I know we will go back. Maybe when she gets a little older...more of a handful!!