Those Scary Gorillas

On Thursday, I got to spend a rare day with just Nathan.  I don't think I realized it until this week, but it's so rare for me to be away from Anneliese.  It was really fun to have a big-boy day with Nathan.

We met Jenny and her daughter Katie at the zoo.  It was... hot.  But the kids loved it.  And it was surprisingly uncrowded for a summer day (maybe we can thank the the 95 degree mugginess for that). 

Their favorite animals seemed to be the lions.  There were two, they were both sleeping in the sun, and they were gorgeous.  Because of the lack of crowds, the kids got to spend a long time lingering in front of the lions, roaring at them and talking about them and just staring in awe.  (Best line of the day came from Katie when the female stretched in the sun after her nap: "she's waking up! she wants her mommy!"  So cute.)

As happy as they were with the lions, they were twice that terrified of the gorillas.  Seriously, what is it about gorillas that's so scary?  I mean, I knew Nathan wasn't a huge fan, but Katie too?  I don't get it.  They're so sweet!  They smile!  What's not to love?

But our kids just huddled on a bench, as far away from the gorilla den as Jenny and I would let them go, and... whimpered.  Pathetic but sweet.  The other people were amused that they were crying and saying the gorillas were too scary, and then asking to see the lions.  Really, what planet do these kids live on where gorillas are scarier than lions?

By the end of the day, Nathan and Katie were best buds.  Clearly they have a lot in common -- awesome mommies, and a mutual fear of gorillas.  (I promise, we didn't ask them to hold hands like this.  They did it all on their own.  So so stinkin' cute.)

Yay for a fun mom-Nathan day!