Lions, Tigers, and Beers! Oh My!

Woodland Park Zoo is one of my favorite places, and so far it seems it be one of Eleanor's too. A year ago we took the plunge and bought a membership that we shared with Jennie and the kids. Then we moved to California. Oops. But since we've been back I've made sure to get every penny out of that membership I can.

Gavin and I took our friends and their little girl for their first Woodland park experience. I also took advantage of a free member only night with my mom and Brad, where we got to enjoy an animal encounter with a possum and see the zoo a bit less crowded and the animals were more active at dusk. These excursions unfortunately don't have photo documentation, but our other zoo adventures do and I've included plenty of photos for your enjoyment below.

When Michelle and Jason were little I used to take them to Woodland Park at least a few times a year. Its fun to see them try to show Eleanor everything they loved, while experiencing all the new things the zoo has to offer now. One of my favorite zoo memories is when Michelle was little and I took just her; we were looking at the Tapirs when she suddenly got super excited. I thought it was because the beast was right against the window until she exclaimed "Look Karie! A squirrel!" Good to know the local park would have been just as entertaining. Haha!

Eleanor, Michelle, and Jason loved their zoo trip a few weeks ago. Eleanor's favorite animals are the otters and penguins, probably because they are very active and very easy to see. It makes me smile every time she gets excited about the otters, since my own Significant Otter is so very far away in Scotland. Miss you Tiffany!

Eleanor and I also had our very first "play date" with two moms and their kiddos from the mom bible study group I participate in. I was nervous at first, not having hung out with these ladies outside of Bible study, but it was a ton of fun and nice to talk with other women outside of the usual day-to-day. Definitely something Eleanor and I look forward to doing again.

Another AWESOME zoo event was the Brews at the Zoo fundraiser Woodland Park Zoo hosted. Gavin and I had a great date night (thanks for babysitting Jennie!) trying different beers and ciders, and enjoying the entertainment and atmosphere. There were over 40 breweries that participated, free snack samples, animal encounters, and custom button-pin making form Seattle Magazine -which was really exciting after a few tastes. I even had a beer float with a porter and vanilla ice cream that was so delicious! Great night and a fun way for the zoo to fund raise.