Tag Archives: animals

Nov22

Substitute Pet Gifts

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Substitute Pet Gifts

Hello! The holiday season is right around the corner and for some reason, pets are a popular gifting option. Post holidays? Local shelters are packed to capacity with unwanted animals that were gifted. Like the trend of pet bunnies for Easter, animals are not something that should just be given with the potential of giving them away. They are part of the family and should be treated as such through extensive research and evaluating of if you have the time or resources to care for a pet, or if your children are capable and responsible enough to care for it. With that in mind, let’s explore some pseudo pet gifts that are an excellent compromise until you are all ready for the real deal:

Pocket Pets:

Handheld devices, apps, and video games can make an amazing substitute pet gifting option. You could consider a retro Tamagotchi, a subscription for an app like Finch, or a game like Animal Crossing. These gifting ideas are interactive, fun, and offers a level of care to build up responsibility skills to have a pet. I personally would LOVE a Mr. Rengoku Tamagotchi from Demon Slayer! I also adore my daily use of Finch and occasional use of Animal Crossing. Speaking of Animal Crossing, there is going to be a HUGE update coming in January which makes this game all the better. The beauty of it? Once you’re done playing, you’re done for the day – no more care is required!

Plushies:

Honestly, what kiddo (or adult) doesn’t want a new plushie?! Of course, nothing is better than snuggling up with a pet but snuggling up with a plushie is fabulous too. I do so every night! 😀 Squishmallows are a forever popular option or how about a trip to Build A Bear to create your new best friend? Little Live Pets sets are also a really fun option as these plushies have three babies to dress up, groom, and feed. There is a set for dogs, cats, rabbits, and guinea pigs too which is perfect if your kiddo is craving a small animal. I got the rabbit set last year for my niece as she wanted pet bunnies just like me. ❤

Volunteer Date:

Prior to getting a pet, it is so important to understand their level of care, wants, and needs. To develop those skills, you could present your kiddo with a volunteer date. You could grab some lunch and spend time at a local shelter. Shelters offer training sessions for volunteers to learn about care taking. Once these classes are complete, you will be able to walk, socialize, feed, and clean up after the pets that need to be adopted. What’s more, your family might be able to develop a bond with a specific pet after putting in the work first and foremost. Whether you end up with a pet or not after this process, it’s still a win/win as the shelter will have some extra help.

Robot Pets:

Robot pets are super cool and can move and groove along with your kiddo. They can bark, wag, walk, eat, and some can even go to the bathroom! These toy pets can let you know when they are ready for a snack or need to be groomed. Bird pets can perch on your shoulder, monkey ones can grasp your finger, but no matter what you choose can be cuddled, played with, and treasured. This is a great stepping stone in the responsibility department!

Pets are not a gift but the options above totally are!! 🙂

Did you have a toy pet growing up? What are other pet substitute ideas? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Sep17

Pet Supplies Plus Is A Must

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Pet Supplies Plus Is A Must

Hello!! Johnny and I adopted our beloved bunnies, Melvin and Penelope, in November of 2022 and will be celebrating our three year buniversary here soon! They have brought an indescribable amount of joy into our lives and I simply couldn’t imagine our home without them. Since the homecoming of our pets, I have been a loyal shopper on Chewy and was making purchases at least every month. The convenience of ordering all of their supplies in a matter of minutes couldn’t be beat so I never bothered shopping anywhere else. However, my tune has changed drastically…

Every once in a while, I will need a new bag of hay or bedding before a Chewy order is due and will visit the Pet Supplies Plus down the road from me for a reup. These trips were few and far between so I wasn’t interested in signing up for their loyalty program. One faithful day about two months ago, I stopped in for more bedding and saw that they were running a stellar buy one get one half off promotion and was able to purchase bedding and hay for the tune of thirty something dollars. It was a TOTAL steal and in that moment, I realized I was sleeping on Pet Supplies Plus for far too long. In almost three years, I have never seen Chewy run a promotion that good.

After making my purchase, I immediately went home and created a rewards account and the savings have been nonstop. Since signing up for it, I receive thirty percent off coupons constantly and that is a substantial amount off of bunny supplies. Now, I am often getting their hay and bedding for twenty-five to thirty dollars in total. With Chewy, I was spending at least forty-five for these necessary supplies and that is a huge difference! I still shop Chewy for their hutch cleaner, favorite toys, and pellet food because Pet Supplies Plus doesn’t carry them. Believe you me, I wouldn’t be ordering on Chewy period if they did!

When I find a brand or company I like, I tend to be fiercely loyal to it and that was certainly the case with Chewy. But listen, literally EVERYTHING is so damn expensive now that if I can find a better deal elsewhere, I’m just going for it. My bunny supply cost went from roughly one hundred dollars a month to seventy if that and that is an amount that can’t be overlooked. I also really appreciate that Pet Supplies Plus teams up with a lot of the local rescues in the greater Akron area! While I love the convenience of online shopping, I love saving moolah even more. 😀

If you are a pet parent and have a Pet Supplies Plus in your neck of the woods, I truly can’t recommend making a visit there enough. You will be amazed at the difference that their promotions, coupons, and rewards cash can make!

Where do you shop for pet supplies? Have you changed where you shop recently? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Sep16

Cleveland Zoo Asian Lantern Festival

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Cleveland Zoo Asian Lantern Festival

Hello! Every summer the Cleveland and Columbus Zoo host the most wonderful Asian Lantern Festivals. It is a spectacular event that features light up and motorized displays, traditional music, and amazing performances. During a recent trip to the Cleveland Zoo, I was able to see a lot of the different displays but it was during the day time and when the sun goes down is when the magic happens. This past week, I was lucky enough to go to the drive through Lantern Festival with my beloved downstairs neighbor. It was the very last night to be able to do so and we had an absolutely fabulous time. The day turned to night as soon as we arrived at the zoo and we got to experience this stunning feat of artistry before our very eyes. Check it out and be sure to keep peeping my TikTok for a video tour soon!

^^^ How cool is that?!?!

This was my first drive through Asian Lantern Festival and I am so appreciative to the Cleveland Zoo for making this event accessible to everyone. As my neighbor does not get around the best, this was the way to go and I feel so happy that I got to be with him for his very first time seeing the big show. He booked us an eight PM time slot and our almost hour drive to Cleveland was spent chattering away about how excited we were. And, minus a few hiccups, we were downright giddy by the time we got to zoo.

We both kind of expected to be able to get right into the zoo upon our arrival and that was SO not the case lol. Traffic was completely flooded with festival goers and it took us a solid forty minutes to reach the zoo’s entrance. Then, it was at least another fifteen for the bottleneck we found ourselves in to break up so we could proceed with the tour. Note to self: It is NOT a good idea to drink an entire bottle of water during the drive to the zoo. I had to pee SO bad and bathroom breaks were not an option SMH. -_-

Blessedly, once we started being able to drive through the zoo at a steady clip my bathroom woes subsided because holy wow. It was even better than I could have imagined! During my last evening Asian Lantern Festival outing, it was still quite light out and we missed the majesty of the lights on a pitch black night. That is exactly how you should experience the fest because it literally felt like being thrown into a fairy tale. The lights, music, motion, and the cool breeze with the windows down was intoxicating. We could even see some of the animals in their exhibits when we reached traffic jams and that was an awesome bonus.

The displays at the festival included flowers, foliage, and regular zoo animals but also featured a heavy dose of the mythical. There were fairies and dragons as well as the creatures traditional to Asian legend. I loved the different fairies the best and also adored the undersea displays. The tunnel with the canopy of fish swimming in a swirling ocean was breathtaking. At my summer day trip to the Cleveland Zoo, I walked through that tunnel trying to visualize how it came to life at night. It was even more beautiful than my daydreams!

The Asian Lantern Festival has now drawn to a close at the Cleveland Zoo and all I can say is: Bring on the next one. The festival is completely different every year and I cannot wait to see how the zoo is transformed next!

What is your favorite yearly event in your neck of the woods? What is your favorite animal real or otherwise? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Sep7

OOTD Surprise

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OOTD Surprise

Hello! This past weekend was a glorious one because it was a three day weekend, baby! Very rarely do I take a holiday like Labor Day off but I went for it and I am so glad I did. Minus a visit with my sister and sweet nieces and a video chat with my blogging bestie, this was the first weekend Johnny and I had zero plans since our birthaversary at the beginning of June. All of the summer activities and get togethers were so lovely but we were long overdue for a few days of doing nothing. Of course, other than doing an OOTD shoot. A shoot that got cut short from the most adorable surprise! Check it out:

Johnny and I decided to walk through the path that goes behind some of the apartments in my community for this shoot as it features a lot of pretty greenery. It was the perfect place to post up and the picture taking commenced. Everything was going as normal until I heard a rustling behind me. I turned around and was able to see a cat bolt it into the foliage. I figured it was long gone and then it came back seconds later and I realized it wasn’t a cat at all but a KITTEN! Johnny and I named her Tiger and she was as friendly as can be. Stick a fork in that photo shoot because it was SO done lol.

As we were giving Tiger all the love, her darling calico kitten companion watched from the sidelines as well as the mama cat which we didn’t even notice was on the apartment side of the path the whole time. We must have spent a solid half an hour playing with Tiger and it was so hard to tear ourselves away. We were worried that they didn’t have a home and were blessedly able to confirm with someone who was walking to their apartment who the owner was and we confirmed with them too. Had they not had an owner and if we didn’t have bunnies, I think they would have been as good as ours!

This is the first and cutest time an OOTD shoot as ever not gone accordingly to plan and I am so not mad about it. Our little afternoon with Tiger is easily one of mine and Johnny’s favorite OOTD memories!

Have any of your blog posts or pictures not turned out the way you wanted? What happened? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Aug30

Columbus Zoo Highlights

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Columbus Zoo Highlights

Howdy! I so enjoyed my trip to the Columbus Zoo with Johnny and my brother and it really was an adventure. The Columbus Zoo is freaking gigantic and we were exhausted by the time it was time to head home. Even more so because we may or may not have forgotten where we parked the car and wandered around the parking lot for a solid twenty minutes. But that’s neither here nor there lol. Everything at this zoo was beautiful and you could easily spend an entire day there and then some. While there was a new sight to see everywhere you looked, I had two major highlights of our outing: The aquarium and feeding the lorikeets! Check it out:

We have an aquarium in Cleveland and it actively sucks. It is expensive to get into, is about three rooms in total, and you could get through the entire property in a half an hour. Although the aquarium at the Columbus Zoo wasn’t a full fledged one like you might find in bigger cities, it might as well have been! The only thing I had to compare it to was the Cleveland one and the Columbus Zoo was infinitely better in every way. It was glorious and so relaxing! The air conditioning, the sound of water, and sights so wonderful it looked like you were watching a screensaver on the computer.

When you enter into the aquarium, you will find a touch tank for the kiddos and a few exhibits leading up to the piece de resistance. As you venture further, you are greeted by the huge tank that runs the length of the sizeable space from floor to ceiling. It was spectacular! We found several species of sharks, fish, and coral in the exhibit and myself and crew were amazed. To see the sharks gliding about, schools of fish traveling together, and a few cheeky fish playing hide and go seek in the coral was like having a view straight into the ocean. The tank was so big that we were seeing brand new things each time we stepped a few feet. Had this been our local zoo and not one two hours plus away, I think we would have sat on the movie theater style seats to kick back and enjoy the splendor. We had a lot of zoo to get through, though!

After we managed to peel ourselves away from the undersea show, we stepped into the next section for manatees, stingrays, and sea turtles. Once again, it was ginourmous and complete with mangrove trees! We arrived at the perfect time because it was snack time and all of us had to laugh. The sea creatures were snacking on hearts of romaine just like our bunnies! It was so funny to see the manatees swimming while munching away at the leafy greens that they held in their flippers. In fact, countless animals at the zoo were having a romaine treat and we would love to know what the zoo’s leafy green budget is. WAY more than the seven bucks Johnny and I spend every week and a half. 😀

My second favorite highlight at the Columbus Zoo took place in the Australia portion where there was an aviary that housed lorikeets, which are small rainbow colored birds. You could walk through the aviary or you could purchase some nectar to feed them. Of course, I had to give it a go and am glad that we only purchased one cup of nectar. There was plenty to go around for my brother and Johnny to feed them too. All of the lorikeets were perched on branches and eagerly waiting for their next nectar fix. It was SO cool to give them their treat and once you were feeding one, all of the rest wanted in too. There was a point when I had three lorikeets to my tiny cup of nectar! I very much wanted to feed the giraffes but we didn’t have the time to do so. I am really happy we took the time to feed the lorikeets because it was such an awesome experience!

If you are ever in the area, I can’t recommend a trip to the Columbus Zoo enough. You will absolutely love it and I wish we could go back this weekend!

Does your local zoo have any animal feeding experiences? What is your favorite sea creature? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Aug29

Columbus Zoo Babies

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Columbus Zoo Babies

Howdy! This past weekend was a super great one because I went to the Columbus Zoo with Johnny and my big bro, Andrew. We decided to do an end of summer hurrah with a little road trip and had the most wonderful day exploring the gigantic and beautiful zoo. We also had the perfect weather for it – cloudy and barely eighty degrees. That’s what I’m talking about! We saw so many incredible things during our day trip but perhaps the most exciting was seeing all of the baby animals that have recently been born. A brand new baby elephant, gorilla, orangutan, and mandrill. Baby girl gorilla, Mara, was feeling shy and tucked away with her parents but we had excellent views of the other three! Check it out:

Baby girl elephant has yet to be named!
Baby Clementine!
Baby Link!

Miss Baby Elephant was born about a month ago and weighed in at two hundred and fifteen pounds. Since then, she has gained eighty and is getting bigger by the day! The elephants had a massive exhibit at the Columbus Zoo and a special area for viewing the new baby girl. My crew arrived at the viewing station at just the right time. She was laying down beneath her parents for a few minutes but then got to her feet! She walked a bit with her mom and dad, walked by herself for a while, and was getting used to moving her trunk around. It was SO amazing to see and I seriously could have watched this little big one all day. It was absolutely majestic and I cannot wait to find out her name after the zoo hosts a contest to select it. ❤

The buzz on the baby elephant was so strong that I had no idea we would be seeing other babies too. Three precious baby monkeys, to be exact. Unfortunately, I couldn’t get a picture of baby gorilla, Mara, because she was safely tucked away in the shade with her parents. We did get fleeting glimpses of her, though, and oh baby was she a cutie! Miss Mara is a little over one year old and is still tiny as can be. We got to see her roll around and get comfortable away from all of the hubbub and I bet she was ready for a well earned nap after finding that sweet spot!

In the orangutan exhibit was darling little Clementine and I legit can’t get over how adorable her name is. Just thinking about it now has me distracted from cuteness overload! Clementine was born in late November of 2023 and was the first baby of her mom, Khali. Like our viewing of the baby elephant, we got to see Clementine right in the nick of time. She got out of her mom’s embrace for a few moments and explored the grass before Khali scooped her up and took her into the tree house. Had we arrived at the exhibit any later, we wouldn’t have got to see Clementine at all and I am SO happy we did. It was one of my favorite parts!

Finally, was a baby boy mandrill named Link. As avid Legend Of Zelda fans, we were all about that name! Link is a little over a year old and was so totes adorbs. He was having some solo time when we got to his exhibit and was digging about in the dirt, playing with sticks and leaves, and carefully examining tree bark. It was so neat because he was literally right in front of us and I was on pins and needles to see what he did next. After his play time, he sat down and I melted into a puddle when I saw his great big eyes. I think he is going to be a handful for his mom and dad in the best way possible. ❤

A day at the Columbus Zoo is a ball no matter what but these babies made it so much better. Stay tuned for more from this fabulous trip!

What is your favorite animal? Do you have a favorite zoo to go to? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Jul20

Cleveland Zoo Adventure

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Cleveland Zoo Adventure

Howdy! This past week, I enjoyed a wonderful day trip to the Cleveland Zoo and had a ball. Not only were a lot of the animals very active, but the whole zoo was decorated for their spectacular Asian Lantern Festival. After talking about it for years, my family finally went last year and it was awe inspiring. I assumed that a lot of the decorations and displays would be reused and I was dead wrong. Everything about this Festival was different and it is so cool to me that you will never experience the same Asian Lantern Festival twice! Take a look at some pics and be sure to follow me on TikTok for videos from this adventure:

^^^ Look at that lil face! ❤

The Cleveland Zoo is an amazing staple in my neck of the woods and is a joy to visit. It’s a sprawling, beautiful park that boasts six different areas and a seventh soon when their rain forest is done being remodeled. There is the African Savanna, Wilderness Trek, Australian Adventure, African Elephant Crossing, Waterfowl Lake, and a section of Primates, Cats, and Aquatics. Every exhibit is a sight to see and there were plenty that I simply couldn’t tear myself away from!

While the entire Cleveland Zoo outing was fabulous fun, there were some definite highlights. My top favorite has got to be in the Australian Adventure at the Kangaroo exhibit. I was able to see a tiny baby Joey outside of its mom’s pouch and that was something I had never seen before. I joked that I didn’t realize they had legs because you usually only see the top half of them lol! It was SO incredibly cute and I could have watched the mama/Joey duo all day. Speaking of babies, the Koala at the zoo recently had a little one and you could just make it out while they relaxed in their tree. The Australian Adventure was bursting with new babies and that was really cool to see.

Bear Hollow was also an exciting place to visit as the bears were all up and moving. We saw them snacking, one climbed to a high up net in the exhibit and was hanging out there, and the Grizzly Bears were play fighting in the water. One of them totally bitch slapped the other! And, last but not least, I absolutely adored being able to feed the giraffes some romaine lettuce (Just like my bunnies!). So much so, that I did it twice! Hey, when at the Cleveland Zoo amiright? 😀

Sans the decor of the Asian Lantern Festival, the Cleveland Zoo is a very scenic park. However, it transforms into somewhere magical when the Festival is in full swing. The decorations were astounding and it felt like walking in a fairy tale. I was mesmerized by the colors, the artistry, and the enormity of each and every display and felt so lucky that I could see a second Festival as I now know that it’s totally different each year. If you thought the pictures alone were jaw dropping, just wait for when you see the displays at nighttime. They light up and a lot of them have motions too. It is an absolute MUST if you find yourselves in good ol’ Cleveland, Ohio during the summer!

From start to finish, my day at the Cleveland Zoo was the best. I cannot wait to see their remodeled rain forest because construction was underway and it is HUGE!!

What is your favorite zoo to visit? What’s your favorite animal? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Jun10

How To Take Care Of Your Self-Sufficient Home

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How To Take Care Of Your Self-Sufficient Home

In recent years, more and more people have seen the benefits of living a more self-sufficient lifestyle. This way, you are able to live off the grid and still look after your family. You can save money and reap the rewards of your own hard work. Even better, you can live a greener lifestyle as a self-sufficient lifestyle is often a more sustainable way to live. Of course, there are different ways to be more self-sufficient. A lot of people still rely on outside infrastructure, but you might be surprised at how much you can do for yourself if you look after your home:

Feeding Your Family:

There are a few different lines of thought about how much land you need to feed a family. If you want to be completely self-sufficient, most sources recommend about five acres of land for a family of four. This includes growing vegetables, crops, and even livestock. As well as the food itself, you also need to consider infrastructure like barns or storage areas, buffer areas like fences and hedges, woodland for firewood, and extra areas for rotational grazing if you have different livestock.

However, most people might not manage to be completely self-sufficient, especially because it takes a lot of land, a lot of investment, and a lot of work to keep it going. But even with a smaller portion of land, you can still grow most of the vegetables that you might need throughout the year, as well as rearing chickens for eggs and meat, and even keeping bees for honey. This middle ground is a much more common option because it’s more manageable for most people. No matter how much land you have, it’s important to plan what you grow, where you grow it, and how much food that will provide. This will allow you to maximize the land you have.

Utilities:

As well as looking after your plants and crops, you need to look after yourself. For many people, it’s relatively simple to set up their utilities so that they’re mostly, if not completely, separate from the grid. Solar and wind power can keep your property running, and you can set up a generator if there’s an emergency. You also need to get batteries for storing the power so that, if you lose it for whatever reason, your home can still have electricity.

You can also use natural water sources like lakes, wells, and rainwater for your home. You can store it in cisterns and clean it before you use it. You will have to make sure that you check local regulations when using natural water bodies or wells. A septic tank can store any waste so your home doesn’t need to be hooked up to a sewage system. You will have to get regular septic tank pumping to maintain it and empty it when needed.

Decorating Your Home:

Once you have all of the practical steps covered and your home is self-sufficient, you can focus on making your house feel like your home. You can decorate the exterior and interior for that cottage-core feeling, making sure that you balance practicality with aesthetics.

Creating a self sufficient home is an exciting adventure and can prove that you are much more capable than you thought!

Featured Image By: Unsplash

May27

Bunny Love

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Bunny Love

Hello!! Johnny and I have been proud bunny parents to our mother and son duo, Melvin and Penelope, for the past two and a half years and it has been an absolute gift. They have brought an indescribable amount of joy and laughter into our lives and we just love them so much! Ever since adopting them and bringing them home, Melvin has always been our little adventurer. He loves to play and explore and never shies away from cuddles as he was handled by humans since birth. Penelope, on the other hand, is shy and timid. She clearly did not have a lot of human contact in her life and can be quite skittish.

It has been a long process to get Nelly Girl fully comfortable with pets and love and I am pleased to report that she has been making great strides. In fact, it’s almost as if she’s a completely different bunny than the one we brought home. It took a lot of patience and innovation for my bunny girl to not shy away from affection and it was worth every minute. We have been enjoying several times daily cuddles and it has been fantastic! If you have a skittish bunny, here are some of the techniques that worked for me:

Patience Is A Virtue:

I have always believed that Penelope would open up when she was ready and that meant doing everything on her own timeline. If she would run away in an attempt to pet her, I wouldn’t push it. If she was accepting of pets and love, I would utilize that time fully until she was ready to be done. If you continue to push your bunny into a level of contact they aren’t comfortable with, you are just going to terrorize them and they will consider you an unsafe person. I never wanted this to be the case so slow and steady will always win the race. And it did!!

Love Equally:

My two pet bunnies have polar opposite personalities and if you have two buns, it’s so important to not compare them. Whenever Melvin is ready for some love, I always ALWAYS attempt to give love to Penelope too. If she was not accepting of it, that was okay. Instead, I would talk to her in a soft, calm voice and look her in the eyes. That way, she was still receiving affection in a way that was comfortable for her. And, eventually, this coaxing resulted in her coming to me for pets rather than running away. This was one of the most beneficial techniques I used daily and I am so happy that my voice has turned into something that is soothing for them.

Favorite Things:

The way to Penelope’s heart has always been through her stomach lol. That girl can eat and one of her favorite things is an apple treat! If you have a food motivated bun, use it to your advantage when you try to pet them. That way, they will associate your touch with something pleasant while they are munching away on their favorite snack. Another great way to bond is by feeding them by hand. This is something I do with the bunnies daily. If they don’t come to you right away with treat in hand, that’s okay. Give them the option to do so and then place the snack down after a few minutes so they can have it on their own. Once again, patience is a virtue!

Get On Their Level:

Cats and dogs will typically come to you when they are ready for affection. For bunnies, you need to go to them if they are in their hutch. Tread lightly when you are on your way to avoid startling them, speak to them, and get on their level rather than hover over them. Bunnies are prey animals and a looming presence over top of them can be intimidating. If the bunnies are having free roam time, sit on the floor for a while and see what happens! Every morning, I spend some time on the floor doing paperwork. Eventually, my bunnies would come visit me as I was working and it is always a highlight of my morning. ❤

If you have a skittish bunny, be patient, kind, and don’t come on too strong. It took time for Penelope and we have such an amazing bond now!!

Do you have any pets? What kind of personality do they have? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

May9

We’re Going To The Zoo!

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We’re Going To The Zoo!

Howdy!! The Akron Zoo simply blows my mind. It is the most wonderful place right in the heart of downtown Akron and every year it just gets better and better. It’s wild to think that this park and all of the amazing animals are literally right in the middle of the city lol. Every visit to the Akron Zoo is a fun one and it’s the perfect size because you can do and see everything in one afternoon. I recently took a trip to the zoo with a friend and I had no idea that I was going to be walking into Jurassic Park! Check it out:

When we approached the entrance to the zoo, we were greeted by a gigantic T-Rex and it was like “Wait, what?” lol. Little did we know, the zoo was setting up for an animatronic dinosaur adventure. Unfortunately, the dinosaurs weren’t moving when we visited but there were an abundance of them in all of their massive glory scattered throughout the park. It was definitely a different experience to be greeted by a Brontosaurus at the turn of a corner! Our visit turned into a scavenger hunt to find all of the dinos and it turned our outing into a unique adventure.

As we explored the park on the search for dinosaurs, we got to see so much awesome activity and a lot of napping in the exhibits. It was the first super hot day of the year and all of the big cats were snoozing in the sun! The animals that were up and about were moving and grooving, though. The penguins were swimming, the monkeys were swinging, and the Grizzly Bears were taking a dip in the pool. We were lucky enough to see the brother and sister bears, Cheyenne and Jackson, playing in the water. Granted, their playing looked a lot like fighting but as long as they were having fun lol. We could have stayed and watched them all day to see what they were going to do next. 😀

We were the happiest campers after our Zoo Day and have grand plans to return once the animatronics on the dinosaurs are in full swing. It will certainly be a sight to see!

What is your favorite zoo to visit? What is your favorite animal? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah