This is a sight we have seen many times.
But only through a window.
Last week, we saw it up close and personal.
It's the home of the bears on the Grizzly Coast
at the Minnesota Zoo.
We frequently say that we love our zoo,
but on this particular day they loved us back!
We frequently say that we love our zoo,
but on this particular day they loved us back!
The zoo is celebrating its 35th year
by holding monthly "Making Wild Memories" contests.
I sent in this memory of my tiger lover the first time I captured him beside one of the big guys.
It made me gasp a little. But look at his big smile.
That same smile showed right back up when we won the contest
and got to go meet the bears face to face.
It was early on a characteristically gloomy Halloween morning,
and we got to be there to put out their special treats.
So after we fed them a little snack while they were still indoors,
we went out into their exhibit to get it ready for their arrival a little later.
and we got to be there to put out their special treats.
So after we fed them a little snack while they were still indoors,
we went out into their exhibit to get it ready for their arrival a little later.
Diana was our "boss" for the morning.
She helped us find good hiding places for the treats
(and reminded us to watch where we stepped).
We could not be of much help
bringing in the pumpkins for the bears to "carve".
They were massive!
Before long we cleared out so the bears could make their entrance.
They wasted no time getting busy.
Kenai...
Haines...
and Sadie...
each of them making quick work of their treasures.
We got to watch from the special viewing area up on top--very fun!
After the pumpkins got old, the bears started hunting for the other things we had left.
We're so spoiled to live so close to the zoo and visit often,
but this was a zoo day unlike any other.
Thanks so much to Josh and Diana for making it happen for us!
We're grateful for the day, and we truly appreciate what you do EVERY day.
4 comments:
What a fun experience for you, Ben & Bethany! Glad you won this privilege!
Carla
What a treasured memory to hold forever....A beautiful series of shots....
Wow! What an amazing day Tracy. I bet your kids won't ever forget that. :) blessings, marlene
Oh my goodness! I am so happy for you. This looks like a tremendously fun thing to do. Way to go with your contest win. You are such a star!
Kaishon would die of happiness if he could do this sort of thing. I am going to see if I can get him a job at the zoo next summer. I didn't really want to do it because the zoo is about an hour from our house and I didn't feel like driving so far every day, but I know he would love it so much. So, maybe I will : ).
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