About 20 seconds earlier, this bird tried to build a nest out of Emily's hair. She was a good sport - our little fearless one.
Here's Abby striking a pose near some birds behind glass. Many of the "glass houses" had soap rubbed on them - it's a technique they use to ease animals into their new homes (they can't see the visitors as well). Of course this is clear - so these birds are veterans.
This is a North American Cutie Pie. Don't be fooled, they can turn on you in a second. And you shouldn't give them too much sugar - it can cause unintelligible rants and fits. However, if you can find the right formula of food, attention and sleep, they make great company.
All of my kiddos love Komodo Dragons (including my husband). This is a cool exhibit. You can literally put your face 2 inches away from his (or her) face. And they have really long forked tongues.
Day #2 we headed to the rink to watch our future figure skating stars take to the ice. This is one of those high risk/reward trips. We were either going to have a blast - or it was going to be a disaster. Fortunately they all really enjoyed themselves. Whew.
Okay, so if you haven't been ice skating since the 70s or 80s (or longer), you might wonder what in the world Austin is using. This is where the people who live up north are probably having a chuckle. Yes, that's a skating walker - used to keep southern kids from falling when they "ice skate." Pretty funny looking, but quite effective.
Watch out, Kristi Yamaguchi. (Or your job is safe, Kristi Yamaguchi.)
James and I skated also. I think we were starting to get the hang of it after about 3 hours. I didn't fall once, but had several balance checks. James was a different story. He fell right on his face once and swears he cracked a rib.... then once when he was racing Austin. This is the only time Austin fell down - because James ran into him at the finish line. I have a pretty funny picture that he'd kill me for putting on here!
