Our no labor, Labor Day

Although I could argue that any day with a kid is labor day...yesterday truly didn't feel like work, and I'm so glad that we both had a few days off to spend as a family!I had to work Saturday and Sunday but both Grant and I have Monday and Tuesday off to party! Monday morning we got up, went for a run and then headed out to the zoo! It was Rowan's first trip to the zoo (the last time I went to the zoo was the day I found out I was pregnant with him :) This zoo was definitely quite a bit different than the World Famous San Diego Zoo but it had it's own good things about it. For starters, there was hardly anyone there! We got an early start and it was not a Japanese holiday, so I think those 2 things we had going for us. However, it was ridiculously hot when we got there. Eventually we got some cloud cover which made for a much more comfortable walk around.

I loved this mosaic wall at the entrance...it was very impressive!

 Then we entered the play area, where I think Rowan was equally fascinated by the fake animals as the real ones in the rest of the zoo :) Loved this picture of him checking out the hippos mouth!

 Water liles...reminded me of Balboa Park (although the rest of the landscape did not ;)

 This guy was my favorite! A Mandril. His butt seriously looked like it had been tie dyed...blue, pink and yellow, so awesome. We got there at feeding time too which was fun. He used his little pincer grasp to pick everything up and then get lazy and just licked it all off the ground. This is exactly how Rowan used to eat while he was perfecting his pincer :)

 The hippo exhibit was awesome! (Mostly because I don't think I've ever been so up close and personal with a hippo). They were also feeding them right when we got there. It was crazy to see how giant their mouths were!

 Pregnant giraffe. Can't wait to see the baby :) There's a pregnant elephant at this zoo too.

 SO MANY TURTLES!

 It was a such a fun morning at the zoo...it definitely is different than an American zoo, but it was fun to see these animals up close and awesome to see Rowan get so excited about them!

 After the zoo, we headed to grab some lunch and a few things we needed at the exchange while Rowan napped. It was perfect timing. Then we went to Torii beach for the rest of the afternoon/evening. The weather was perfect, the water was an amazing temperature and we had this cute little setup with chairs and an umbrella. Couldn't have planned it better. We played in the splash pad for a few minutes when we got there and then went down to the sand!

 Rowan loved floating around on the boogie board!

 This kid is entertained for hours at the beach. Whether we were in the sand or water he is just so engaged in whatever he is doing. It's awesome.

 Just going for a stroll on the beach. We got some dinner at the little grill on the beach which was delicious.

 And then sat and watched the sun set!

Yay for labor day...headed out for more fun today!