Ronin’s first birthday was exciting if not for him at least for his parents. Our little baby is now a toddler. How the 12 months flew by. Mom and Dad had planned a day at Turtleback Zoo since Ronin gets a kick out of seeing dogs and cats. Well, the Turtleback Zoo has changed alot since Mommy went there last. It was nicely designed and landscaped and it now had a train ride and carousel.
The first exhibit we saw was the reptile room. Unfortunately there was not too much movement in the exhibits and so there was not so much excitement for Ronin. We then took pictures of Ronin, Mommy and Daddy in the local photo booth. Daddy was the only one looking at the camera. Mommy and Ronin were too busy looking at themselves on the monitor.
It was a hot and humid day and so many of the animals were conserving their energy by resting in the shade as we all wished we could. Ronin did love watching the penguins (who appeared to be the coolest animals in the zoo while they were diving in their pool) and the bears that kept pacing back and forth in front of the display window. There was also the peacock that was wandering freely around the zoo. Ronin wanted to touch it while it was watching itself in the reflection of a bumper of a maintenance truck and posing as if to strike an opponent.
We also took Ronin on one of Mommy’s favorite rides, the Carousel. Ronin was placed on a stationary giraffe unlike the other animals that could go up and down. Daddy was standing with him the whole time. Of course, Mommy got a kick out of the ride more than the birthday boy. Ronin just stared with a blank face while the carousel went around and around. That was okay. It won’t be long when Ronin will be jumping up and down to go on all those vomit inducing rides while Mommy and Daddy wait it out at the exit.
When the clouds dissipated, so did our protection from the sun as well as our energy levels. Mommy and Daddy decided to cut the day short since Ronin appeared tired and Mommy and Daddy were getting burnt. Before we left, Mommy and Daddy made the stop at the gift stop to make sure we got Ronin a momento of the day: a stuffed Rockhopper Penguin.
We then celebrated his birthday at Lola’s and Lolo Pop’s house where Ronin took a nap before eating cake and playing with his gifts. Ronin was fascinated with the candles on his cake and did not understand the concept of blowing out the candles so Mommy and Daddy took care of that. Ronin got a cordless phone from Lolo and Lola, a Duplo yellow bus, Little Tykes sports center, and chatterbox telephone.
Overall, it was just another day for Ronin but it was a landmark moment for his parents and his grandparents. Our little guys is 1!!!