The McCurrys Go to the Zoo!

Having been to the San Diego Zoo and the LA Zoo, we thought it only fair to give the Santa Ana Zoo a try. We'd heard from friends and family that it was a small zoo with mostly monkeys, nothing really exotic. I think we went in with low expectations and man, we were pleasantly surprised! The parking was easy, the admission fees reasonable and even on a holiday (President's Day) it wasn't too crowded.

For her birthday, Ian's grandparents gave Ruthie a book about going to the zoo. Totally unintentionally, we had been reading her that book on the week leading up to going, which we decided to do pretty last minute. She loves the book and when we were at the zoo, totally connected the book with her visit. At first, she kept saying she was afraid of the monkeys but she warmed up to them pretty quickly. She liked the camel and the giant anteater (which was my favorite), but as always, the thing that captured her attention most was the other kids.

We packed our lunch and ate it at one of the many benches throughout the zoo. I was really impressed with the seating, play areas and shade - they definitely had families in mind when they designed this space. It was nice how small and contained it was. We were only there about 3 hours but it was perfect and just what we needed - low key, a change of scenery and a great time as a family. 

If you're in the area, I highly recommend a visit. Two thumbs up! 

And now, back to our Mecca...Disneyland with Aunt Mary, cousins and Grandma and Grandpa tomorrow!