Zoo Time is Family Time

As a father, I am always looking to find fun ways to engage and interact with my kids. Whether it’s playing around the house, dancing around the living room or playing some catch outside, I try to be on their level and let them know that their Dad is there for them.

I find that it is important to try and encourage learning in the activities that I do, and thus we as a family do a number of things together that would allow for this. One of the things that we do every year is purchase an annual membership to our local zoo. The Potter Park Zoo in Lansing, MI, is a very nice zoo. It’s small, but still fun and full of little scientific wonders that are just amazing. One of the best advantages for us as a family has been the reciprocal agreements that this zoo has with other zoos and aquariums. This alone has allowed us to visit a number of zoos in the past that would have otherwise been a bit cost prohibitive.

Just last week for my birthday, I decided that I wanted to visit the Detroit Zoo, and we had a blast. Just watching the kids’ eyes light up when they saw some of these animals was priceless and worth taking the day off! Not only did they learn a lot that day, but I did as well. I learned about my kids and what interests them and what they like/dislike. For example, I was interested to watch my eldest practicing her tactile learning. I have always known that she is a hands-on learner, but this trip really showed me that if I give her something to do with her hands she can solve it amazingly fast, whereas my youngest is much more contemplative, looking at the animals for long periods of time and asking lots of clarifying questions. While I had seen this in them in small snippets in the past, this trip really opened my eyes to their differences!

I think that all parents need these types of opportunities to touch base and check-in with the family as kids grow up so quickly. I know for me, these years have gone by in the blink of my eye. And I imagine that the rest of their childhood will continue to go by as quickly!

So I continue to look for ways to interact with my kids that brings time together and fun. I know that as the weather continues to get nicer there will be a ton of other ways to connect, and I am really looking forward to it!

So what do you do if you don’t have a zoo near you? There are so many different activities to find and explore – you can check your local newspaper for special activities in your area or go online to your town’s website. You can always visit the local museum or head outside for some hiking, geocaching or even a picnic together. It can even be a small activity such as taking the family out for ice cream. The important thing is the time you spend together, not the activity per se!