The Zoo

I really enjoy visiting our local zoo, the Lincoln Park Zoo. I am a bit disappointed, though, when we discover (what feels like) the majority of the animals taking indoor breaks instead of strutting their stuff outside. I get tired of passing habitat after habitat explaining, "Well, I guess that one's inside for dinner," or "The sign says he had to go to the doctor" or whatever. I've even been inclined to think that some of the animals listed don't even exist. Within the zoo, I mean. But despite that, I've come to love the beauty of the zoo grounds and the enthusiasm evident in my children.
We usually go in the afternoon and spend two hours. This is a good amount of time to catch a portion of the zoo (which now always includes a visit to the fantastic tree-climbing structure in the Children's Zoo), leaving a different section to explore during our next visit. Honestly, I find the zoo a welcome change from following my kids around the playground. Much more interesting for me while physical and educational for my kids.
Above, you see two of my current zoo favorites: the beavers and the lovely fall foliage. Below, you see one of my kids' favorites: the animal statues (Those belong to the Brookfield Zoo, but their fondness for animal statues extends to all zoos). Really, this is why it doesn't matter if any of the animals are out or not. The only other thing that excites them nearly as much as the statues is the animal poop. If they only had beautifully landscaped pooping-animal-statue parks we wouldn't really even need the zoo.