The Oregon Zoo has a wonderful wintertime event every year called Zoo Lights. Zoo Lights is where thousands of LED lights are strung up, molded into animal shapes, or covering the zoo train. It starts right after Thanksgiving and runs to January 1st.

This has always seemed like a magical experience for me, until we took Elizabeth this year.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The first problem is that it is cold. I never understand why they don’t do this in the summer instead of the winter. A summer night at the zoo with all the pretty lights would be wonderful (and romantic sans kid). Instead it is in the winter where the temperature is in the 30s and 40s.  Maybe I am a bad Oregonian to be fazed by the temperature, but I think the thing I hate most is being cold.

So we bundled up very well and got there right when they opened at 5 PM. I don’t think I had ever waited until Christmas week before (or when all the kids are out of school for the holiday), but it was packed.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The darkness and crowd was a little scary for Elizabeth, but she kept talking about seeing the animals so we thought that was a good sign. Except we couldn’t see any real animals (well, we did see a pack of goats at the farm, but that I think was it for us). We got to see some pretty light animals at least:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

By the time we finished looking at the farm, Elizabeth was done with the whole thing and asking to go home. After parking and waiting in line for tickets, we only spent about a half an hour in the zoo. Elizabeth had also insisted on being held the entire time (poor Duncan).

When we were leaving we started looking at it from Elizabeth’s perspective. Instead of a lighted winter wonderland, it was a dark, crowded, smokey (from the steam from the train), almost Halloween-like atmosphere.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Not so perfect for the 2 year old little one.

As we were walking out, we were worrying that we permanently traumatized her against the zoo. So what to do? We bribed her with a trip to the well-lit gift shop where we let her pick out a toy. Meet the newest members to our household:

 

 

 

 

I know, not the best parental moment, but I think it worked.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

She asked this morning when we can go back to the zoo and ride the train. As for Zoo Lights, I think we will have to wait a year or two before trying it again.

~Krista