The train was first and foremost on David's mind. We drove almost an hour to the Cincinnati Zoo, and then we sat in the car for another hour waiting to make it into a parking lot. (I think one-half of Ohio, one-third of Indiana, and three-quarters of Kentucky were at the zoo today.) Eventually, I jumped out of the car with the kids, and Greg met us later. I tried to interest David in some elephants, to no avail. We had come to the zoo for one purpose, and one purpose alone--to ride the train.
Here is David checking the map for the location of the train depot while we were waiting for Greg:
Here is David munching on an apple, watching the train go by:
At last! David's turn on the train:
Wee! And choo-choo:
Since we had come so far, and sat in the car so long, Greg and I insisted that David enjoy other parts of the zoo.
David woke up yesterday announcing, "I want to pet a donkey NOW!" It was completely random, and, unfortunately, there wasn't a lot we could about it. (Where did the intense desire to pet a donkey come from??) Today the best we could do were Nigerian dwarf goats:
Before the farewell train ride (so he got to ride it twice), we also saw ducks, a Sumatra rhino, a myriad of wild cats, plenty of reptiles, and some lemurs--but I'll spare you the pictures. When we left, David whined, "More zoo! More zoo!" But what he really wanted was more train. And that's okay. David has perfected the Miss America wave, which he put in practice throughout his two train rides. The wave and his bright smile were infectious and irresistible to fellow zoo visitors. I love that kid! He never fails to make all the trouble worth it.
To conclude, here is a picture of Mary--just along for the ride, as usual:
(Mary, we love you, and thank you for your easy-going attitude on family outings, otherwise we might never leave home.)
