Portland Zoo

Steven and I decided we would celebrate the end of a hard term of school by going to the Portland Zoo. This was an adventure of firsts for Steven. First train ride, first zoo trip, first time not sleeping in a crib/playpen. He conquered all of these firsts with amazing grace. We only had the on comings of a few meltdowns but no total meltdowns!

We left Eugene on the 9 am bus. Luckily I upgraded us to business class, which came with a $3 coupon for the dining car, which saved us since we were in a rush and didn't get breakfast. OK so maybe it was because I though the train left at 9:30 and had planned on going to Theo's and getting oatmeal.

We got our seats and set up for the trip. Steven brought some books, a dinosaur, and some Lego's.

Of course he couldn't sit still for too long we ended up walking up and down the train (and I mean the whole train) a few times. Went to the dining car and got...yes...OATMEAL!! Then Steven discovered that he could just walk around the car, there was only a few other people in there and he didn't go too far from me, like the seat row ahead and behind me. He also developed an obsession with having the trays pulled down.

We arrived in Portland after a few hours where my wonderful friend Kim picked us up. After a side trip to her house to pick up another wonderful friend Zoe, we were off to Red Robin for lunch during which Steven passed out. But not before popping his balloon and scaring me half to death. He fell asleep sitting in his high chair, leaning against me and clutching his new balloon.

Freshly rested, and well fed we were ready to spend the rest of the day at the zoo. Where after standing in line we had our tickets bought and paid for us by a friendly stranger. Which made the whole trip even better!!
Then the four of us begin our trek around the zoo. Steven's favorite part appeared to be the giant fish tanks where we could push his stroller right up to the glass and see them swimming around.

We saw many other animals, including bats, penguins, elephants, the monkeys, pretty birds, the list could go on for a long time. What we didn't see though was the lions (they will be back in 2009) and we didn't see but a glimpse of the tigers as it was sleeping behind some bushes in a stone cave.

A monkey but for Kim!!

And I can't have this zoo trip without some great group shots of the four of us at the zoo with a giant bunch of penguins. Oh and of course Kim riding a wooden horse!!!

Steven passed out after the zoo and slept all the way up till dinner time.

Then we had a great night in Kim's totally awesome town house in the city! Think wine, chocolate chip cookies, and a great game of Apples to Apples with her boyfriend and a cute Peace Corps guy. The next day we went shopping and headed back to the train depot.

The return train was not as peaceful as the first. Steven did not want to sit down in his seat for very long, and the train was a lot more jumpy then the first one was. Luckily for us the arcade room was closed due to the token machine being broken so we hung out in there. Steven was able to run around and play hide and go seek under a cabinet. We had peace and quiet with no interruptions. Even though we had a great weekend it is always good to be home!!