with 4 little blondes at JAX Zoo!

First, I have to thank my first niece for this day of fun!

It was such a nice one-day vacation!

Not only did she buy my admission ticket...

and bump it up so I could do all the extra stuff, like ride the train, or feed giraffes, or pet stingrays...

but she waited for me to get to Hinesville...

giving us a late start.

That worked out okay, though!

Michael and his girls were to meet us at the zoo and they were only 15 minutes ahead of us!

Right place, right time!

(smile!)

Right place, right time seemed to have been where we were all day, too.

After celebrating vultures at the entrance, with me thinking of Snoopy doing his impression of them, we were too early for the train... 

but right on time to stingrays!

Christina always likes this activity and she was joined by Leila and Miyah.

She says the trick is to hold your hand like a fist, as that's how the trainers feed the rays.

The mother to the right there was paying attention to those tips to attract the marine beasts!

(smile!)

Then we boarded the train, right on time!

There were even two rows of seats waiting for us!

Right place, right time!

Next stop: home of the komodo dragons!

RAWR!!!

No, wait, I don't think these giant lizards actually do that sound.

They are pretty big, though, and stick their long tongues out a lot.

The four little blondes watched for a while, but then it was time to go see something more exciting.

Michael was cool with that, so off we went!

And just what attracted their attention most?

Those girls all wanted to see otters!

Hey, me, too!

But, here's the thing about going in search of those playful mammals in the heat of the day:

they're napping somewhere cool.

Right?

So, even though Miyah and Chloe and Alyssa and Leila searched high and low, no otters were in sight.

Not a single one.

Sure, there were little fish, and even a fairly big one -

and hey, what a gorgeous waterfall! -

but no otters.

What's that about a waterfall?

I don't know that they even noticed it - lol!

(smile!)

After a bit more wandering about in search of those beasts, they decided these would do nicely!

Oh, yes, these on the carousel would suffice!

Actually, they would much more than suffice -

they would be perfect!

And how do I know that to be true?

Because they rode it over and over and over!

I got on once, but vertigo convinced me to stay off to the side lines and take photos...

that was fine by me, naturally!

I especially like this one, with Alyssa, Leila, and Chloe all in a row and riding herd on Miyah in the row ahead, near the inside wall.

Might that be a full gallop for them?

I'm not sure, but it was at least their fifth time around!

(smile!) 

After all that, Christina's two wanted the splash park, but Michael's two wanted to check out some of the other areas of the park.

Me?

I took a break and had a hotdog, as well as homemade kettle chips.

Oh, yes, I definitely needed that energy boost!

Plus, I had chips to share with the girls to abate their hunger - very nice!

And guess what?

The 4-D movie about prehistoric sea creatures was just about to start as they changed into dryer clothes, and Michael and the twins had returned!

Right place, right time!

That turned out to be a bit scarier than anticipated, so Chloe spent the latter part of the short film in my lap, as wind blew and sea water spritzed us and the seats shook!!!

That was actually pretty nice.

(smile!)

Then what to do?

Well, the carousel was right there...

I mean, seriously...

it was literally right across from the cinema... 

so of course the girls went right back on it!

I think they were trying to ride every different animal!

There's Miyah, in the pale teal, on the left, on the okapi!

Next up is Alyssa, smiling aboard an alligator!

Leila, in pink (which I thought she didn't like?) is in the same row as the littlest girl, and she's riding on the back of a panda!

And what does Miss Chlo have, there the right?

A giant ostrich!!!

But that was only for this turn.

For the other four or five rides, a different mount served for each girl, aided by them having to get back in line for each turn around.

Good thing the zoo wasn't crowded!

In fact, there were a lot fewer people here on this Saturday of Labor Day weekend than I was expecting, just as there had been few on I-95 as we drove in (as well as later, when we were returning to Hinesville).

What a fabulous break for all of us!

Right place, right time!

Speaking of time, it was winding down there, heading to 5 o'clock.

"Closing time, you don't have to go home, but you can't stay here."

So, we made haste to visit some sites quickly.

Over to the herpetarium for the snakes!

Over to the jaguar enclosure to visit Banks, the baby born on Daddy's birthday this year!

(What a nice coincidence that I was wearing Daddy's shirt today!)

Over to the aviary to feed the birds!

Over to the other otter pen near there, for one last look for those sleek beasts!

Ah, no luck, but the young woman working there told us the otters had been put away for the day.

After all, it was past 5 o'clock and they were off-duty.

Hahahaha!

And as we talked with her about the mynahs, especially the dancing one, I glanced over...

just in time to see an otter cruise by the littlest girl.

How very cool!

(smile!)

And what was waiting in the parking lot?

A penny...

which she found...

but I know Mama left it there.

Right place, right time.

(smile!)