Brevard Zoo & Pictures from the Past...

It was another mostly quiet week. We are all pretty settled into our summer routine. It is funny that we are now 4 weeks into summer break, which means in 6 weeks the kids could theoretically return to school. We expect to hear in the coming days what the plan is. The Governor is encouraging school districts to have a return to normal (or, as close to it as possible). He wants the students on campus. However, those lofty pronouncements were made before the numbers in Florida began to skyrocket. I remember when I would get a sinking feeling when the new cases exceeded 1000. Today, they were right around 9000. We are definitely going in the wrong direction!

We have continued to try and find things that will allow us to maintain our distance. Today (Friday) we decided to take a few hours off work and try the Brevard Zoo. Thomas and I are comfortable doing outdoor activities, particularly if masks are required. The zoo was fun, although a lot of people had their masks around their necks and were not maintaining distance. I wish people would just follow the rules and wear the masks (especially if they are going to walk right up to me!). I have ranted about that in previous blogs, so I won't waste any more space on my thoughts. Anyway, the zoo was about 45 minutes away, it was an easy drive. It is a loop and we saw lots of fun animals. Kara's favorite was the black bear. She was rescued after somebody kept feeding her and she lost her fear of humans. Because of that, she can never be returned to the wild. They had teenage volunteers in front of some of the exhibits and that was one, which was nice for Kara as she was able to learn more about her favorite animal. Thomas' favorite is still the giraffe. We were able to feed them. It was a little bit of a ripoff, at $2 for one piece of romaine lettuce.  But, the money is for conservation, so we paid without complaint. They don't have pandas (my favorite), but I loved a funny little bird called a Seriema. The monkeys are always entertaining and Jack's favorite was the spider monkey. Anna liked the turtles and Luke can't choose.

This sloth was really relaxed. We thought he was pretty funny!

This is the bird that I liked. 

I had no idea there was such a thing as giant otters, but there they were.

Relaxing and following rules

They had a kangaroo walk through area, the kangaroos were not bothered by our presence (also Emus)

Sweet baby giraffes

This might be my favorite picture of the day.

The zoo also had kayak tours. They were not busy, so we had a tour time all to ourselves. It lasted about 30 minutes and it was so hot! The heat index was 105! We were all pouring in sweat, but it was fun to do the "African Loop" and see the animals from a different angle. Thomas, Luke, Kara and I enjoyed it. Anna and Jack had a little trouble navigating their kayak, but are willing to give it another try.

Zoos have a lot of meaning for our family. When we lived in Norfolk, we were members of the local zoo and went regularly. Anna and Jack took some of their first steps at that zoo. There isn't a lot you can do with 2 18-months old and a newborn, but everyone was always happy to be outside and at the zoo. When we lived in Tennessee we went to the Memphis Zoo almost every weekend. The kids were still toddlers and again, it was a place where everyone was happy. I remember Thomas' dad would call on Saturdays and found it funny that when he asked what we were up to, it was always the zoo. We didn't go to the zoo in DC as often (it was not an easy drive) but we still went a few times a year, and we lived in Maryland for almost 10 years, so it added up. I always feel a little sentimental at the zoo. The older kids may not love it the same way they did when they were 3 and 4, but we still had a good time and it brings back lots of happy memories. Here are some pictures from the Norfolk Zoo:

These are from Dec 2008. I was 7 months pregnant with Kara

Such a happy fellow!

They loved to walk around the zoo.

I couldn't find much from Memphis. Very weird I know, considering how often we went. But here is one of Kara walking around and the three older kids in their matching Memphis Zoo t-shirts:

After the zoo, we went through the Dairy Queen drive through and headed home. Thomas and I were beat and wanted to take a nap, but the kids jumped in the pool, and since that is right outside our window, the nap was not meant to be. All in all, it was a really fun day. We are going to try and come up with more safe activities and take some time off every few Fridays more often.

There isn't much else weekly news. The kids finally went night swimming. Anna, Kara and Luke stayed up late and enjoyed swimming in the dark (well, by the light of the pool light). We had books delivered from our library, so everyone has new reading material again. Oh! There is a house in our neighborhood that everyone thought would be a dream home--whenever we drive by someone would remark on how they wished we could buy it. It has been vacant for a long time and it finally went up for sale. We called our realtor, who lives in our neighborhood, and she was able to get us in right away. Since it was empty and right around the corner from our house, we walked over to check it out. It is significantly bigger than our house and the kids would get upgrades with larger bedrooms and more bathrooms. But, the downstairs had issues. The kitchen was small and the master bedroom was seriously lacking in closet space. And, the shower had a weird window with plantation shutters. So, it was not a dream home after all. I was a bit relieved. The thought of moving again is daunting!