The Lights Before Christmas

The rain, sleet, and snow cleared up last Wednesday evening so we could see The Lights Before Christmas at Toledo Zoo. This experience was MUCH colder than our traditional trips to The Phoenix Zoo. Of course we dressed in layers, but the chill still managed to sneak in under our clothes. Brrrrr!

Emma's lips and nose got cold. This was her solution...

Emma is under there somewhere!

The lights were impressive - over one million of them! We found that if we danced around and ducked inside buildings from time to time, we could keep from freezing.

Aha! Emma emerges from her cocoon,

Can you believe this is a REAL tree? I wish I could convey just how large it is. You can see it from across the zoo.

We are way out in front of the tree in this picture, so it

skews the eye into thinking it's smaller than it really is.
This picture gives you a better idea...

What you can't see from this picture is that the gorilla's back is covered in a thin layer of ice.

Yow!

We thought we'd see the polar bears swimming for sure, but I guess it was even too chilly for them.

After dinner, Grandma treated the kids to a merry-go-round ride. Jake first sat on a bench, but we made him choose an animal instead. Is he really getting to old for carousels?

Emma never has trouble finding fun.

Look! No hands!

We love you too!

XOXOXOXOXOXOXO