3 Kids React to the Zoo

We have lived in St. Louis for 14 years now and it still amazes me every time we walk in to the zoo for free. We really are pretty spoiled with freebies in St. Louis. It can make going on vacation elsewhere a little eye-opening as you pay $50 for a family of 5 to go to a zoo a fraction of the size of the one we have here in STL.

This Saturday a.m. was a great time to take advantage of the zoo. We got there around the time they opened in order to beat the crowds and be able to go to the Children’s Zoo for free. It was fun to watch my three kiddos react in their own unique ways.



Micah, our 11 year old, asked about a million questions which has always been his way. He read every placard in front of every exhibit and mentioned some of the bits of animal trivia. He confidently walked right up to one of the zookeepers and peppered him with more questions. I opened the computer today to see that Micah had downloaded a list of animals at the zoo with links to more information about each. Insatiable is too soft of a word to describe this kid’s thirst for knowledge.



Elise, our 7 year old animal lover, discussed her desires to be a vet or zookeeper. She quickly slipped into some imaginative play in her own mind about her future occupations. The girl can come up with a story in about 2 seconds flat. She is still trying to overcome some fear issues so when a chicken walked around near my legs she said “Careful, Mommy, I think that chicken wants to eat you.”

Isaiah, our 4 year old, was not altogether interested in looking at animals from afar. However, when he could do anything “hands-on” like brush the goat, push a button to hear a bug noise or get splashed by the penguins, he was thrilled. He closely watched the chicken walking near my legs too but he seemed un-phased by its potential to eat me.



Funniest story of the day was when Isaiah perfectly imitated the sound of a cockroach. He had pushed the button to hear the sound about 20 times and as we were leaving he nailed the imitation. Not too unusual if he were more verbal, but from a child with his degree of speech issues we were all a bit taken aback. Elise said in all seriousness, "Well, maybe he is a bug and we just didn't know it."