Everyday is an Adventure!

Last Friday, I took a rare day off from work, and we all went to the zoo.  It also happened to be the opening day of the MN State Fair, so I figured, "That's a great day to go to the ZOO!" :)

At some of the exhibits, it was almost like we were the only ones there.  Just us ... and the animals ... up close and personal. 

And in one case, a little too up close and personal. :) 

I don't have a picture of the rooster that attacked me (because I was busy rescuing Wesley), but I have the puncture wound and the big bruise on my leg to show for it. 

OK - now that I mentioned it ... here's the story.  The zoo has a little farm area where you can pet the goats and see cows getting milked. In the cow barn, there was a very large and very majestic rooster sitting on a fence.  As we walked into the barn, Wesley and the rooster locked eyes, and the rooster proceeded to stalk him.  Wesley started doing a dance .. trying to keep my body betweeen him and the rooster.  Somehow, Wesley knew that rooster was bad news.

The rooster jumped down from his perch and started advancing on us.  Wesley was nearly frantic, and so I turned around to pick him up and get him out of pecking distance.  And at that moment - I felt a searing pain in my calf.  I whirled around to see the rooster's tail feathers as he made a quick exit.  We all looked down at my leg in shock as blood seeped  from a puncture wound and an angry bruise started to appear around the spot where the rooster placed his pick-axe of a beak in my leg. 

Lesson:  City girls should not interact with country roosters.  And never make eye contact with a rooster! :)

But other than that ... it was a very enjoyable and relaxing day at the zoo!

"Russia's Grizzly Coast" was a great exhibit as one of the bears splashed
around in the water and playfully pressed his nose against the glass
right in front of the kids' faces!

Prairie dogs are always entertaining as they stretch out in the sun
and pretend to be pelts.

Whenever we see goats, Jayden starts telling us stories of how he watched them
being slaughtered and eaten in Ethiopia.  He can tell you just how to tie the feet
and where to put the knife. (Nice!)

This picture was taken seconds before my run in with the rooster. :)

Despite all of the great animal exhibits, we spent the most time in the
butterfly enclosure.  The kids loved watching them and identifying
all of the different kinds.  They eventually figured out that when a butterfly
lands on a flower, you can put your finger under their legs and they
will perch on your finger for awhile.

And since we were near the Twin Cities, it's only a short drive to our favorite
Ethiopian restaurant (Fasika) in St. Paul.  As soon as we walked in the door,
we could smell the delicious spices and my mouth started to water. 
Jayden sniffed the air and then broke into a wide smile, "mmmmmm,
it smells good!" he exclaimed.  We ordered enough to have
leftovers for lunch the next day.

Even though Wesley is too young to remember his life or experiences in Ethiopia,
he instinctively knows how to tear off pieces of injera (a pancake-like
bread that you use instead of silverware) and scoop up the
sauces and stews (wot).  A couple of times he looked at me
with a big smile and said, "spicy!" as his nose ran from the berbere spices. 
If you have never tried Ethiopian food, we highly recommend it!!