Fuzzy Hedgehog at the neighbors home
Knoxville Zoo With Gabe
Tuesday April 30, 2019
Nanny Dana
Nana Debbie
Lydia & Gabe Koogler
Cousin Shelby Mobley
Nana Debbie told me one day that her granddaughter Shelby's elementary school was going on a field trip to the Knoxville Zoo. She told me we should all go and take Gabe before it gets too hot to enjoy it. I jumped at the chance as did Gabe and Lydia. Nana Debbie's plan turned out to be excellent! I picked up Gabe and Lydia and met her at the zoo. We all arrived just behind the school bus from Porter Elementary. We had done a good job of remembering most of the important stuff. Our minor troubles began in the parking lot on the way in. I was thrilled to have remembered the stroller. I tried pushing it and it was acting wonky. Lydia tried it and it was no better. By the time we got to the ticket window we realized it had three flat or nearly flat tires! The lady at the ticket window told me I could push it round to the stroller rental booth, and they'd air the tires up for me. We were delighted. We got in at a reduced rate thanks to being part of the school trip. The stroller attendant had us fixed and ready in minutes. All seemed to improve.
We went first to the bears. Gabe was liking the zoo, but could not understand why he was not allowed to go pet the bears. He believes all animals are pets. He loves them all. He fears none of them thus far. The stroller was still not acting 100% right, but better. We met up with Nana Debbie and Shelby and her friends at the next area. We saw elephants, giraffes, and zebras. The kids played in a sort of obstacle course and the prairie dog town. Everyone was having fun. We went to see the red pandas and macaws and other birds. We saw monkeys.
Gabe was needing a drink by about 10:30 a.m. so we stopped for a dry diaper and snacks.
He had a dance off with his cousin Shelby. They are hilarious. She is a sweet girl and so fun.
He adores her and her older sister, Claire. The stroller was getting worse by the minute.
I heard my daughter-in-law swear at it, which is so unlike her. She was over it and so was I.
I told her not to fret that I would simply park it by the stroller booth and rent a different one for the day. That is what we ended up doing. We checked it before we did for wheel latches and any controls we might have missed. We found nothing. A rental stroller for $10 for the rest of the day solved the problem. Another link to the dance off video
Gabe is a picky eater having been diagnosed with a sensory integration disorder. His brain has trouble making sense of incoming signals from his mouth and tongue. He has trouble with many textures and smells. We finally had to stop for lunch. We had brought Ramen noodles of all things.. and I had dragged along a backpacking stove to be able to prepare them. This is part of coping with this child's special needs. The bistro at the zoo.. the new dining venue... was amazing! They have good healthy selections which we enjoyed. Asian stir fry and rice.
We asked them if they had either hot water or a microwave. They went above and beyond and prepared his ramen noodles! I can't say enough about how wonderfully Knoxville Zoo staff went above and beyond to make this a pleasant family trip for us. That includes the attendant.. a young man at the carousel who was able to fill us in on the best deals for value.
It will really help on future trips. I go so seldom to the zoo that I forget from one time to the next what the best ideas are price wise and other.
Mike mike mike mike mike.. what day is it? Hump DAY! Yeah!
Lydia and Gabe on the camel.
Gabe rode the carousel. He took a camel ride. He rode the miniature train with Nanny.
After lunch and another dry diaper we visited the petting zoo. He was finally able to handle the animals like he wanted to. This helped a lot and he enjoyed himself. He liked the goats and sheep. He brushed them and loved on them. We went to the play area nearby.
He played with other kids and us on this part of the trip. He climbed rope nets. He climbed towers. He went down slides and through tunnels. All these things are part of what his occupational therapist has said will help his brain make sense of incoming signals.
We wore ourselves and him out. After the play area it was hot and little man was super tired.
We were over it and ready to go to the car. We stopped for a break to play in an old utility vehicle that is pretend. Gabe loved it. I had to work on engine trouble He had to as well.
We took turns driving. He took turns driving with other kids and pretending with them.
Finally we made it back to the jeep. He got a dry butt, a bottle and a blanket and was asleep in no time. Our ride home was easy and uneventful with little traffic. All in all a great day!
We are blessed to live in a town where we have a fine zoo. It was begun many years ago by Jack Hannah!
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Dana 🐝