Omaha Zoo and other discoveries

We spent all day Friday (literally from about (9:30am until nearly 7pm) at the Omaha Zoo.  We were impressed and there was something for all of us to enjoy.  Here are a few favorite photos of the day: 

 

Right after lunch, Rachel surprised the pants off of me.  As we were looking at the gorilla, she rolled her tongue over her teeth and said, "Llllla!"  Of course, we all ran with that and have been coaching her to say "gorilla" ever since. 

 

Among the neat things in the zoo is that prairie dogs and peacocks run wild.  We came upon this prairie dog town and Rachel made a new friend!

 

 

Near the end of the zoo loop, we found another dinosaur dig.  The one at the Durham was easy, with the bones covered in large chunks of rubber.  These were covered in very tiny pieces of rubber that acted like course sand.  For awhile, it was just about Rachel playing in the shade. 

Then Nathan started brushing and digging.  Then he talked Dad into helping.  Soon we were all digging and hauling and brushing because Meliuses just don't give up!  After a lot of work together (and Nathan telling us it was SO much fun because we were all working together, and it was), we uncovered our own Adult barrell-bodied Rhino. 

 

 

As far as getting around the city goes, it was perfect as we never left the same street!  Our hotel room had a great view of the train bridge crossing the Missouri River, just a block from the Durham Museum.  (Could there be anything better for our boys?)  We stayed on the end of the Old Market District, so we walked to fun restaurants, including The Old Spaghetti Works (with a table-to-table balloon artist), Zio's Pizza, and Ted and Wally's Homemade Ice Cream. 

 

Before leaving Omaha Saturday morning, we walked all the way to Iowa and back on the Bob Kerrey Pedestrian Bridge.  That is the kind of thing Landen and I get excited about. :)

 

 

The rest of our vacation was spent in Brandon at Rick and Katie and family's house. 

 

 

 The kids played wonderfully together.  And guess what?  Rachel's "gorilla" easily doubles as "Lydia" and "Isaiah."  How convenient! 

 

Tomorrow brings . . . school!

 

You know those moms who are sad about the first day of school?

I'm not one of them.

 

:)