Today was a bright, sunshiny day — perfect for a visit to the Phoenix Zoo. Knowing that Max would need his afternoon nap, we decided to see if we could get out of the house nice and early. And by shortly after nine we’d finished breakfast and were on the road. We’d never been to the zoo here before. We got there just before 10:00, right about the same time that about 20 school buses emptied their loads at the front gate. But we managed to ‘leap-frog’ the teachers with their classes of children and the zoo was big enough that we got to see the things we really wanted to see without any delays. So we saw giraffes, tigers, lions, monkeys, elephants, and a sleeping rhino. And deer, birds, and snakes too. And the best part of the zoo may have been the merry-go-round.

We finished the zoo visit around 11:30 and headed back for home. Along the way we stopped at a burger restaurant and had lunch outside on the patio there. Then home, just in time for nap time. While Max, Alex, and I slept, Tim and Sue went to the Fruit Market in Apache Junction and to the grocery store to pick up things we needed for supper. I took two golf clubs and went across the road to the driving range to hit some balls. After about thirty minutes or so Tim and Max joined me there. The three of us went for a long walk and ended up at the kids’ play structure not too far from our house. Max had a great time climbing and sliding until we decided it was time to go back home.

Snacks around the table– and supper soon after. We watched a Mickey Mouse Christmas movie until it was time for me to read Max a bedtime story and tuck him in. Then we watched an episode of “the trip to Italy” and some CBC National News before Sue and I bid goodnight to the kids and excused ourselves to the bedroom.