The Shields Adventures: The Zoo and Science Museum in Minneapolis

This past weekend we decided to take a trip to Minneapolis just for fun. We went to the Science Museum, mostly to see the dinosaurs as Parker's loves "Rarrrrrsss" as he calls them. We also like to look at all the science experiments. Parker loves to try and figure it out and see what happens, but I'm not sure he knows what he's doing yet! Then we went to lunch and then to the Como Zoo. We had tried to find this zoo on a previous trip to no avail....but it was a great zoo to go to. It was small enough to do in a couple hours, which is what we wanted...and the animals were all awake and having fun in their winter enclosures. The monkeys were especially active. They were swinging all around back and forth. Addison wanted to be as close as Parker to the window, and would yell until we got her right up close. She is really wanting to be in Parker's business these days. The seals were great also. There was a big one and a much smaller one...they were playing. The big seal seemed to be showing off. He would talk...and it was quite loud. He or she, I'm not a seal expert, would come to the glass right where Parker was and talk to him and show him the ball he was playing with, dive down, and do the same thing. It was like they were playing with each other. Parker loves to play ball, I'm sure he would have been so ecstatic to play ball with a real live seal! In the summer they have sea lion shows, so we'll have to go back again then. We did see penguins, lions, jaguars, zebras, giraffes, reindeer, gorillas, sea lions, a giant tortoise...a real one too, not just the one you see below, and some other's I'm sure I'm forgetting...It was a great trip to spend as a family. Parker soaks up so much and watches everything. He seems to remember everything he wants to....the next morning when he woke up he asked me if we were going to the zoo.

Parker checking out the triceratops fossil.

Parker, Addison, and Daddy listening to stories on the phone about dinosaurs. Parker couldn't seem to comprehend putting it on his ear...he always wanted to have the mouth part up. Really, it's funny he knows how to use this kind of phone!

Addison is kind of bright in this picture, but she liked exploring the exhibits just as much as she could!

The was at the zoo. Parker and Addison were riding a tortoise! Addison has to do everything Parker does, so of course she got up there with him, and he gladly held on to her.