Madeline visited the zoo for the first time this weekend. We have several options for zoos within a short drive from Charlotte but we opted for the Riverbanks Zoo in Columbia because it is the best and the day was unusually cool and overcast for this time of year.
We headed out right after breakfast and arrived shortly before they opened for the day. Madeline was talking about the animals she was going to see the whole drive down!
She reads the Madeline in Paris book at bedtime so frequently that she can recite it from memory and was so excited to be able to say “Pooh Pooh” to the tiger herself. Haha!
She loved every single animal we saw but I think the absolute highlight of the day was riding the carousel with Corey. She chose to ride on an elephant.
Madeline also thoroughly enjoyed feeding the goats at he little farm because their tongues tickled her hand and watching the penguins swim under water.
Our only little hiccup was she didn’t understand why she couldn’t climb into the exhibit to touch a kangaroo. Thank goodness that was nearly at the end of the morning.
We left at lunch time, had a quick barbecue lunch in Columbia, and then drove home and arrived just in time for her to take her nap.
I have visited the zoo so many times as a camp counselor and I was really pleased with how smoothly our trip went. A few tips for navigating the zoo with a toddler:
1. Stop for a potty break before going inside or have them use the car potty in the parking lot because there will be no mention of it once you get inside until they’ve had time to calm down from the initial excitement.
2. Monitor your time if here are certain things you want to see. We knew that Madeline does best in these types of things when we spend between two and two and a half hours. She wasn’t ready to “go bye bye” when we left but she was at the point where she was starting to be less cooperative.
3. Pack water, snacks, hand sanitizer, and a change of clothes and bring a stroller in even if they want to walk. It was nice to buckle her in with a snack after she through her little Kangaroo tantrum to give her a couple minutes to calm down.
We had such a great time! What are some outings on your summer time bucket list?
What a fun time. E loves the zoo and carousels are the best.
What a fun summer adventure! We love to go to our local farm and my daughter loves seeing all the animals! I love that Madeline has memorized the Madeline book and was quoting from it! Too precious!