As recent (ok, maybe two years isn’t so recent anymore) transplants from Chicago we loved the Brookfield Zoo, which is really the mother of all zoos.  But we decided to give little ol’ KC’s zoo a shot.  Let me begin by saying—there is nothing little about this zoo.  We went on a relatively cool day last week with the girls and we thanked our lucky stars that it wasn’t hot out because the “Africa” exhibit is literally IN AFRICA.  It is so far between each exhibit that I feel like I got my exercise quota filled for the week.

We had a great time.  Here’s us gearing up in the parking lot.  Woo hoo!

You can already see Tessa eyeballing Nora’s toy.  Get ready for grabfest Kansas City-zoo-style.

The elephants were awesome.  We got so close.  They were “painting” pictures by spraying paint with their trunks on paper held by the zookeeper.  Cool.

Birds.  Lots of birds.

There was this cute little shelter with a big wooden rocking chair overlooking the lake.  Who needs to travel to Lake Tahoe for a vacation if you have the KC Zoo!?!

Sooooo fun.

We got some snacks.  Yum, keys at the zoo are delicious.

Those were some FAT hippos.  Likely they had too many snacks, too.

The zebras, giraffes and a rhino were all in one, relatively large area.  The giraffes kept charging the zebras who were just trying to get to the lake.  It was fun to watch the animals RUNNING around but it seemed a little stressful for the zebras.  I don’t think Zookeeper Bob got the memo on African rivalries because at one point the giraffes had the zebras cornered and we weren’t sure they were going to get to have a drink that day.  Yikes.

More fun—paci-style.

Check out that kitty cat.  Meow.  This was the ultimate stare-down.  Tessa blinked first.

By the end of the day we all fell asleep.  I highly recommend the KC Zoo to anyone who enjoys walking.  The zoo was beautiful and we got to see a lot of animals but a hot day would probably be tough on the parents and the kids.