Zoo Day

Wouldn't this little guy make the perfect pet?... Maybe not.

We went to the zoo today, taking advantage of our brand new family zoo membership, which we purchased for $85 ($10 off the original rate, thanks to a coupon we received in the mail). That's not an inexpensive buy, but we think it's worthwhile in our case. Here's the rationale that went into our decision-making process:

1. Our son's interests: He likes animals, and he likes being outside. We knew this is something he would enjoy very much. The educational factor doesn't hurt, either.

2. Bang for the buck: The membership costs less than a total of two non-member zoo visits for a family of three. Our zoo isn't too far away from where we live, and we know we will be there more than twice throughout the spring and summer.

3. Guest options: We're allowed to bring one guest with us, gratis. This will come in handy when our families visit in April and May (my parents and Trent's mom will be here in April; Trent's dad will be here in May). This is something our families will enjoy, too.

4. Something to do with the neighbors: We are good friends with our neighbors, who have two small children. They have a zoo membership, too, so this summer we plan on doing a few group visits to the zoo. 

5. It benefits a good cause: I know not everyone approves of zoos, but from our perspective, zoos help preserve species that are losing their hold on their once wild territories. We think preservation is important. We're impressed with the upgrades our zoo has made to benefit its animals, and we know that a little of the money from our membership will go towards more positive changes.

6. It gets us more involved in a larger community: Because we work from home, it's easy for us to stay within a three-mile radius of our house and rarely venture out. We don't want to do that. This summer, we want to explore not only what our local community has to offer, but what our city has to offer, too.

We stayed for about two and a half hours this morning. Our son loved the monkeys (figures - since he's one, too), the macaws, the reptile house, and the meerkats. By the time we reached the petting zoo, he was tuckered out. We'll save that for the next time.