This summer should be nicknamed “Zoo Summer”.  First, we visited the Nashville Zoo, then The Little Zoo That Could, and, most recently, the Birmingham Zoo.  Both girls have birthdays soon and when we asked them what they would like to do, my animal-loving Kyndall decided to go to the zoo instead of having a party.

We woke up bright and early Monday morning and made the two-hour drive to the Birmingham Zoo. (Unbeknownst to us, the zoo was offering a discount for Pokemon Go players.    TIP:  Be sure to ask for any daily discounts at the ticket window!)

For a typically sweltering summer day in the south, the animals were out and about a lot more than I expected.  The baby bears were running and playing, a giant hippo was out of the water catching some rays, and a rhinoceros lounged about, napping in the sun.  We didn’t make it to the big cat exhibits on this trip, but we did catch a peek of them prowling around as we rode by on the zoo’s train!

The Birmingham zoo’s resident camel, Hope, gave the girls a quick ride.  (Speaking of camels, and in case you haven’t seen Zootopia, let me entertain you with a camel joke:  What do you call a three-humped camel?  Pregnant!! Ha. Ha. Ha.)

And of course, my girls always have to take advantage of all photo props.  How cute is that giraffe and gorilla?

Since it was such a hot day, we took advantage of the Birmingham zoo’s super cute splash pad area.  The zoo has two huge splash pads, complete with variating water sprays and a bucket that dumps water.  It was the perfect way to cool off in the middle of our zoo exploration.

The girls made fast friends with Leo the giraffe.  He loved the lettuce they fed him and the keeper was great at encouraging the girls to interact.  She had them hold the lettuce behind their back so they could feel Leo’s tongue, over their head so he had to reach out and get it, and up close so they could pet his head.

The lorikeet exhibit was one of our favorite things about the Birmingham zoo.  We were able to feed them nectar and they kept landing on us.  At one point, Kyndall had four birds lined up across her shoulders.  She was in Lorikeet-heaven!

After a super fun-filled day at the zoo, this is exactly what we ALL felt like doing!! Since we didn’t have a super comfy stroller to ride in, that wasn’t an option.

The Birmingham zoo also has a huge zip-line course that looks amazing.  On our trip, the zoo’s scales were not working properly, so we weren’t able to participate.  I definitely recommend giving that a go if you are at the zoo, though.

My future animal scientist/birthday girl was able to talk to several of the zookeepers about what she could do as a future career.  While she is still leaning more toward marine biology (so she can work with dolphins!), her second option is to study animal science and become a keeper for the elephants!