Check it off the list, baby…

Last Thursday I bit the bullet…. and treated Ryan like a normal baby. Well, a normal baby on a feeding tube and oxygen! I drove three hours to meet my sister and her kids at the Virginia Safari Park in Natural Bridge, VA. And, I took Ryan along.

When we planned it, I thought I was going to have a nurse so I was going to leave Ryan home. Instead I was without a nurse and still wanting to go. So, I packed up all the oxygen tanks I had in the house (just in case we got stranded), his daily meds, and some food. And guess what… it worked!

He sat there like a little champ and got cranky at nap time just like any other toddler. But then he fell asleep and woke up happy.

Others had a good time too. Like Abby, my three-year old niece and my sister, Johanna.

And Alysa and Kenneth.

At Virginia Safari Park, you drive a 3-mile track inside the animal habitat. You can buy food and feed the animals from your car window. The animals are extremely tame…. at one point my window was down and I wasn’t holding food. The animals came to my window but moved on when they (quickly) realized I wasn’t offering anything. Another time, I rolled down my window to pet a huge elk-like thing and again didn’t have any food. He came over to my window and let me pet his neck. He was so patient. As was a zebra I pet before remembering we weren’t supposed to pet the zebras!

The kids love, and I mean L.O.V.E feeding the animals.

Ainsley was sitting on my lap so this is the best picture I have of her. It was really neat to see the animals in such a natural state and soooooo close. At times I was hanging out of the window trying to get a good shot of the kids and they would yell, “Mom (or Aunt Leighann), watch out, here comes a beaky bird (Emu)” Or “The camel’s getting closer!” And believe me, nothing makes me move faster than thinking a beaky bird my just use it’s beak on my bum.

Now that you’ve seen the kids, here are a few of the animals.

The camels are enclosed, but you can pull up close to their fence and feed them. They are mean animals and they spit at each other trying to get at the food. Oh and they basically take your entire bucket out of your hands…. after losing three buckets, we decided to move on. But they were kindof cool. How ’bout that nose?

And these eyes…

And ladies, just think of the comments you’d get on these legs.

Or how about a pair of double-jointed knees? They might just come in handy one day.

Or some cleft toes? Perfect for wearing thong sandals.

After the safari ride, we ate lunch at the pavilion and then headed to the petting zoo. It houses small animals like monkeys, goats, pigs, tortoises, reptiles, kangaroos and white tigers. Oh okay, so white tigers aren’t small. And you don’t get to pet them. But I’m guessing it’s a good idea to keep them locked up instead of out in the safari area.

When we came up to these little monkeys Natalie said, “Look! Chihuahuas!”

Love land turtles. Not sure why, but I do. And these were massive. And very slow. Slow and steady wins the race.

And I love looking at the back of this cute head. Especially since it was out and about experiencing life with family.

One warning about the park is that it’s messy. It is really the animals’ fault. They have absolutely no manners and make a mess with the feed. They don’t know the meaning of ‘lean over your plate while you’re eating’ and end up getting food all over your car. So just be prepared.

Johanna’s van floor was spotless enough to eat off of when we started. Really… it was…. I’m not lying. Now the only one interested in eating off this floor has fur, a big nose and bad breath. And no, I’m not talking about someone you know!

The best part about the safari park for me was the quiet ride home. We left the house at 7 a.m. and the kids were zonked by the time we left the park at 4 p.m.

Ryan did a great job…. we will definitely be taking him out more often. Yeah!