Going to the zoo, zoo, zoo...

How 'bout you, you, you?
Oh Raffy, how I love your catchy tunes.
After a 6 mile walk on the Military Ridge Trail today with the girls, the in-laws came to Verona for a pre-Easter visit.  Thankfully I had spent all week cleaning the house (phew!), so there wasn't much to do to prepare but do our Saturday morning walk.  As I sit here and write this post, it's cloudy, windy, and looking like rain, but it was a beautiful sunny morning for a walk.  It was the typical walk with the girls: lots of pulling, squirrel and bird chasing, barking at the occasional runner or biker.
Shortly after we got back from our walk, Beth and Charlie pulled in the driveway.  We decided to go to Graze on Capitol Square for lunch.

Andrew has been dying to go to this restaurant since we moved to Madison almost 2 years ago.  As we ate dinner at L'Etoille last July after our first wedding (yeah, we ended up having 2... that's a whole other post), he kept going on and on about how he wanted to eat next door at Graze.
 We started out with some fried cheese curds and beignets.

Then everyone settles in to eat some eggy dishes while I stuck to a veggie burger.
After eating, it was off to the zoo!  One thing I absolutely love about Madison is the Henry Vilas Zoo.  It is small, but so cute and FREE!  A definite must-see if you are ever in Madison.  Not surprisingly, there were quite a few people at the zoo since it was a beautiful day out.  We spent about 30 minutes walking around seeing the animals.

Walking into the zoo.  And Andrew's first picture as a baldie!

Polar bears!

Trying to see what all the fuss was about.  The otter wasn't even in the tank.

Macaw

blue macaws

Giraffe lounging inside

Rhino

Camels

I'm one of those people who just loves the zoo.  I could spend all day there.  And one of the perks of being a kindergarten teacher?  I get to go there at the end of the year!  Henry Vilas is a pretty good one.  It's no Brookfield, but I do enjoy it.  If you've ever been, or if you're just a zoo lover like me, you should consider donating.  Running a zoo isn't cheap, you know.
In other news: we are 33% of the way to our goal of $5100.  That's right, one third of the way there!  We still have 125 days left before the big walk, but I know they will fly by!  Thank you so much to everyone who has already donated.  We appreciate it so much.  If you are still thinking about it or want to learn more, please visit our team page.