Daxton's First Zoo

 

Last week my sister-in-law, Heather, and I decided to take the kids on one more outing before baby #5 joins their family.  Hanging out with Heather for the day reaffirmed my belief that she is a true ROCKSTAR!  I mean who else could corral four energetic kids up and down steep hills pushing a stroller...all while 9 months pregnant?

I realize that Daxton is too young to really appreciate seeing all the zoo animals, but I ended up buying a year membership anyway.  I figured that since the membership paid for itself after 2 visits and I was able to get in another adult for free each time we visited, it would be well worth it.  Plus, I have a lot of friends that have older children that would love to join Daxton and I on outings to the Oakland Zoo.

 

Before entering the zoo, on the right hand side, there are several children's rides available.  The kids really wanted to ride the train before seeing all the animals.  Daxton was awake and alert until the train started to move, at which point he snuggled up under his blanket and quickly fell asleep.  Since I was taking care of my little man the entire time, I gave my camera to Lincoln.  He was extremely excited by this since it's a DSLR.  He looked like quite the photographer with a huge camera around his neck the whole day! 

Daxton's first train ride!

Great job, Lincoln, in capturing such fun pictures on the train.

 Here are some of the pictures that Lincoln and Rulon took of some of the animals we saw throughout the day.  We especially loved all of the chimpanzees.  They were so lively and interactive with each other.  Our favorite chimp even carried around blankets everywhere he walked.

 We found an amazing view of the tigers, which Rulon was very excited about.  He's been reading a lot about them and even doing a special report over the summer on tigers.  I wish I could have captured his squeal of excitement.  Daxton even woke up to say hello to them for a brief moment.  Needless to say, he wasn't too impressed quite yet.

 Funny faces from little William and Dax.

 I absolutely LOVE the below picture of sweet Rulon with Daxton.  He is such a sweetheart with him and constantly giving him loves.  I tried to get Daxton in front of several different animals to document his first time at the zoo.  He pretty much slept through a lot of the day, but I can't help but love those chubby cheeks and full lips in these pictures!

 What a helpful big brother; Rulon helping Will up from his fall.

 The Oakland Zoo has a great Children's Zoo area.  It has several different animals, a petting zoo, and play areas for the children to explore.  While Daxton was sleeping I tried to catch some shots of the kiddos.  I sure do love these kids.  I'm so glad we live close and Heather is always willing to go on adventures with me.

 Overall I think Daxton's first zoo trip was a success.  He was such a sweet baby, waking up to smile for a few pictures and sleeping soundly the rest of the time.  Everyone loved peeking in on him, playing with his little toes, and blowing him kisses.

Even this Chimpanzee thought he was pretty cute!