Beautiful Zoo Day!

Like the rest of the country, this winter is beginning to wear on us. Thankfully, with all of that cold and snow that we've been getting, we've also gotten a few spurts of sunshine and warm weather. That's one of the reasons I love Colorado. While you expect to have the cold temperatures in the winter, Colorado likes to give you a little respite from the cold with a sprinkle of sunshine and maybe a day or two with temperatures in the 60s. When this happens we try and take advantage by getting outside. This particular day we headed to, guess where? 

Along with what seemed like the whole city of Denver, we made the trek to the Denver Zoo! Having 9 children and winning a family pass to the zoo has proved to be quite the win for our family! My oldest, age 12, is now 5'5" and pretty much towers over me. See why I can often be seen wearing 5 inch heels? ;)

The sea lion demonstration always draws quite a crowd.

Our foster children have never been to the zoo and were in awe of all of the animals that they saw. It was pretty adorable.

The sea lions at this zoo are able to perform many tricks such as jumping out of the water.

Given the correct reward the sea lion can leap 6 feet out of the water and touch a ball!

My children love to visit the Komodo dragon. I'm not sure what the draw is for them, but I think it has to do with the way he slithers along the ground and makes eye contact with them.

The elephants have a new home as of last year. It's a beautiful wide open area for them to roam, and as visitors we can see them a little better.

The elephants also share their home with this Gibbon and his brother. I've been lectured that Gibbons are not monkeys because they do not have tails. They are however, cousins, in case you were wondering.

These Parakeets have to be my most favorite birds in the Tropical Discovery exhibit. I just love how their gorgeous colors pop!

Have you ever seen a Sloth? Well, now you have. This is the closest I have come to seeing this guy's face and body. Normally, he's hiding so high in the tree that he goes completely unnoticed.

This guy figured it was a beautiful day to come down the mountain.

Most of the time the mountain goats lay around soaking in the sun.

The Black Bears decided to stare at the visitors the way we stare at them. How does it feel to have someone staring at you?

The children love checking out the reptiles, snakes, and creepy crawling creatures. I would just stay out of this area if it was up to me.

I'm pretty sure this water tortoise is bigger than most of my children.

Silverbacks are fun to watch. You never know what kind of show they'll put on for you.

It was a lounging around kind of day for the zoo animals. I think they were enjoying the warm weather like we were.