Nothing Stays the Same....

Yesterday we took Darlin' D to the Maryland Zoo and much has changed since I was last there. I believe the last time, I was on a field trip with Meagan when she was in middle school. The trip was sponsored by the Art Department and the kids were to do quick drawings of the different animals. It was then called the Baltimore Zoo. When the girls were young, there were many times when Lou and I took them to the zoo for the day.

The whole layout of the zoo has changed. There are no longer cages next to cages as you walk down one main walkway. It has gone to habitats for the animals which is so much nicer and this had been started years ago. But now it is all larger areas which is wonderful for the animals and great walkways of stone and wood where many visitors can view the inhabitants of each area.

Lou and I became aware that taking a toddler to the zoo as Grandparents is much more tiring than taking a toddler to the zoo as Parents. Also, we are much slower. When we pulled into the parking lot with all the young parents, we were still getting Dylan out of the car and into the stroller, tucking the diaper bag into the compartment in the back of the stroller, and the "parents" were already pushing their strollers to the entrance, leaving us in the dust.

There are many wonderful sculptures now throughout the zoo. The lion above has been there for years. We have a photo of Holly sitting on one of the pair when she was two years old. The lions have been moved from their original location. Unfortunately, Lou didn't get the whole lion in the photo.

The photo below is outside the Polar Bear exhibit

And what thrilled Darlin' D... Playing with a stick!

I plan on putting together a book with the photos of the animals I took for Dylan so he and I can sit down and remember our day at the zoo.