We try to get to the zoo at least once every time we’re in Omaha. In case you didn’t know, the zoo in Omaha, the Henry Doorly Zoo, is one of the best in the country. You’ve all heard of the world-famous San Diego Zoo, right? The first time I went there, after frequenting the Omaha zoo my whole life, my reaction was, “It’s nice. The plants here are cool.” Basically, growing up running around the Omaha zoo ruined me for most other zoos. Poor Annalie, she’s gonna have the same problem. (Though I will add that the San Diego Wild Animal Park is simply wonderful, a step above any zoo I’ve ever seen, and if you have to choose between it and the zoo when you’re in San Diego, pick the Wild Animal Park. You won’t regret it.)

This time, we were able to arrange a trip to the zoo with Katrina, Zach, Josh & Alex. We met them there in the afternoon, after the boys got off school, which turned out to be a brilliant idea on our parts. By that time of day, the zoo isn’t very busy. We both got rock-star parking, instead of having to walk for ten minutes just to get to the door, and then once we were in we practically had the zoo to ourselves. It was strange and very cool at the same time.

We walked through the desert dome and went downstairs to see the bats and other nocturnal animals. We wandered over to the monkeys and past the sea lions.

We encountered this strange, exotic machine called a “pay phone.” Alex had never seen one before and thought it was really neat.

And of course we fed the koi. When I was a kid, we used to just drop popcorn off the bridge for the fish, which probably wasn’t very good for them. Now, they have gumball machines filled with food pellets, and you can buy a handful for a quarter. And I actually remembered to bring quarters with me this time, which was helpful.

After we fed the fish, we headed over to the petting zoo. On the way, Annalie felt it was important to consult the map. And since the train wasn’t running that day, we let the kids walk along the railroad tracks.

Peafowl wander all over the zoo. It must have been mating season when we were there, because we saw many peacocks displaying their gorgeous plumage and doing mating dances for the bored, indifferent peahens. It was actually quite hilarious.

The petting zoo was full of goats and chickens, as usual. When I was a kid I think they had sheep there too, but apparently they don’t have sheep anymore.

We have a picture of Annalie standing in Henry Hippo’s mouth when she was about 14 months old. She was much smaller back then.

By the time we left the petting zoo, we were all quite hungry and tired. We decided dinner at Wheatfields in the Old Market was just what we needed. Really, I will use any excuse to eat at Wheatfields, since it’s one of my favorite restaurants. And I love going to the Old Market. When I was in high school, I didn’t go to the mall, not unless I wanted to see a movie or needed to buy jeans at the Gap. The Old Market was where I hung out with my friends. I’ve always loved old buildings and quirky places, and the Old Market is full of them both.

After a delicious dinner (tomato-cheddar soup and chicken salad sandwich, yum!) we walked back to our minivans and said our good-byes. It was such a fun evening, I’m thinking we might have to make a tradition of going to the zoo with the Venns when we’re in Omaha.