exploring DALLAS

Our first full day in Dallas came with a full schedule! With everything from the zoo to swimming and a movie we needed the energy to keep going all day...what better way to do that then with a beautiful room service breakfast! I just loved the fact that someone else made that much bacon and delivered it right to my door! Aaahhh, vacation!

After breakfast, and after Brandon left for his conference, the boys and I headed to the Dallas Zoo. We were excited from the moment we stepped into the zoo because we found out that our OKC zoo membership got us into this zoo for free! What a good surprise to start our day! After a quick stop at the gift shop to rent a wagon, we began exploring the zoo.

When we came upon the gorilla exhibit there were some zoo workers cleaning up the cage area and one of them told us that this female gorilla LOVES to pose for pictures! They were right! Everytime she saw my camera lift to take a picture she would turn her head and look up at me!

"OUCH! I think that alligator bit me!"

The coolest part of the Dallas Zoo, we thought, was the Children's Zoo! It has a playground that makes you feel as small as a bug by exhibiting oversized play equipment in the shape of eggs, nests and turtle shells and it also had an underground exhibit, which we explored first! First, the boys tested their "jumping skills" on this path where depending on how far you could jump the wooden posts told you which animal your jumping abilities were most like. With some cheating, I think Ash could jump as far as a cheetah!

Then we headed into the underground. The boys first began crawling through this tunnel until they found out that halfway down the tunnel there's a glass case holding a huge spider! Suddenly, they both backed out screaming "Spider!"

They did, however, make it through the tunnel where you could pop up inside the meerkat and bird exhibits!

Then we hit the playground! Pretty cool huh!?!?

Next, we came upon the tiger exhibit and it was decorated in an asian theme...

which inspired Maddox to show off some of his Kung Fu Panda moves!

Finally, it was time for lunch!

And, of course, ice cream!

Our trip to the zoo was alot of fun! We stopped at the gift shop on our way out and the boys each picked out a pair of binoculars and a cup decorated with animal prints!

After a good nap at the hotel, it was time for a swim. The boys had been asking to swim since the moment we arrived at the hotel but when we actually got to the pool they ended up only swimming for about 40 minutes. The pool was located on the rooftop of the 3rd floor and so even though it was a really pretty view the wind could get a bit chilly after you got wet. Oh well! It was fun while it lasted!

A portion of the pool was inside this glass enclosed room and you could swim under a glass wall to get to the outdoor portion of the pool. Maddox usually doesn't really swim in a large pool and spends his time just sitting on the stairs getting his feet wet. Well, at this pool the only stairs stepping down into the pool were inside this glass enclosed space. So, I put him inside the tiny room and then went to the outside pool area so I could watch Ash outside and still see Maddox through the glass walls. Unfortunately, there were also two little girls swimming and playing on the stairs and Maddox gets REALLY shy around people he doesn't know. So, he just stood at the edge of the pool watching the girls...making sure no one came near him...

when one of the girls, though, tried to hold Maddox's hand to help him into the pool coaxing him by telling him "it would be okay", Maddox got very anxious and begged me to take him out of the glass enclosed room.

He looks terrified! I felt bad for him but couldn't help but snap a few pictures!

He finally couldn't take it anymore and yelled through the glass "She tried to touch me!"

Ashtyn on the other hand (and I found this quite scary) was not in the least bit afraid of these girls and even began splashing them with water. Eventually two other little boys caught on and splashed the girls too. The girls were giggling and running from one side of the pool to the other while the boys chased them and splashed them. (Sigh) This starts WAY too early...

After swimming, we purchased some time on the hotel room TV for Ashtyn to play video games.

Finally, after dinner and bathtime the boys and I snuggled in and rented The Night at the Museum 2 on our TV. The boys are addicted to the first "museum movie" as they call it and we had never seen the second one! It was well worth it! We can't wait for day three in Dallas!