I had the distinct pleasure of accompanying the Regents first grade classes to the Zoo in San Antonio. And by distinct - I mean I was part of an elite group of 6 parents for our collective 12 children for our class. Plus their wonderful teacher Mrs. Boyd. ;) (I'm not complaining - that ratio is awesome but also comical - two kiddos were out and we had two "extra" parents come that weren't official chaperones).
The fieldtrip(s?) I participated in last year were all parent-driven...I'm not sure what the cut-off is for when they do a bus - or when its a sweet chartered one - but that's what we got! The kids thought the potty in the back was (of course) awesome.
Here we are ready to go!
They were all encouraged to bring something to keep themselves occupied on the bus (no electronics) and they were so impressive! We had kids reading, playing uno, doing word searches.
Some silliness
Arrival, quick snack + potty break, then off to see the animals. And of course what they stop to really look at first is a bunch of fish and maybe a turtle in a sort of drainage area.
Can you remember going to a zoo or some place like it and being this amazed? I mean look at this precious thing!!!
What's behind Owen that he's so excited about???
His animal - the porcupine!!!
Checking out some monkeys just monkeying around.
We really had great weather - slightly overcast and later the sun broke through. It was warm but not hot. Still, all the little indoor places (aquarium, bird place, reptile house, etc.) were welcome breaks from the sun.
I really do have a thing for elephants.
But a real one. And by myself.
We have been so blessed by Owen's teacher this year - she really has been the perfect match for him. We love you Mrs. Boyd! (FYI: maps are sometimes more fun than animals that don't want to make an appearance!)
LUNCHTIME!
Back at it.
And then there was this guy. Usually they're all holed up in their shell in their tiny little pond and don't give you the time of day - no, no, not this one. He gave us quite a show - moving around and then stretching out his crazy long neck with crazy long tongue and going after some food!
We're getting weary...
Perfect time for a photo-op!
In the reptile house - Owen made sure we went to see the anaconda.
Our class split up at the end to catch a few things specific kids wanted to see - so not everyone made it in time for the pic on the entrance statue while we waited on the bus.
One of my man and I.
We had a great day - I love being a chaperone! (And thanks to Bee for coming over at 6:30 in the morning to be w/ the girls since we had to get there so early, and for Nana for hanging out with the girls the rest of the afternoon!)
Oh - I forgot to mention that one of my favorite parts of these trips is the chance to get to talk with other moms that I haven't gotten to know very well. Its especially fun to talk to the ones who have older kids - they get to tell us all about some of the trips the other grades do. Washington-on-the-Brazos, a plantation and Civil War cite in LA, NASA...Europe. Sign me up!!! :)
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