Toronto doesn't have the letters "S" or "P" in it but if it did...

A crowded Family Day at the Toronto Zoo - February 20, 2012

Family Day weekend found us in Toronto with our good friends Coop and Michelle. We hit the Toronto Zoo, and Zed finally, and quite randomly, learned to pronouce words that begin with "SP." Up 'til now it was always "F"...so Springer Spaniel always sounded like Finger Faniel. Quite sweet when you're three years old, but not so good over the long educational haul.

Our friends Coop and Michelle are two of the most kind and thoughtful people that we know, and Zed tuned into it pretty quickly. Her and Andrew became fast friends, but more impressively was her impossibly fast and easy connection with Michelle. The two were BFFs before you could say Zoey Sakura. In less than 24 hours they went from complete strangers to inseparable Zoo buddies.


Michelle and her new BFF, Zoey - Toronto Zoo

It's easy to imagine that kids have infinitely more refined radars for sussing out the cool people than us grown ups do. Zed was quick to latch onto Coop and Michelle. She was almost instantly comfortable in their home, and happy to ignore half the universe if Michelle was available to pry some attention from with a smile, or a little grasping hand, or a quick shuffle to sit a little bit closer. We watched with quiet amazement as the two girls fell easily into one another's affection. It was paralyzingly sweet to watch.


Zo, Coop, and Michelle making their own pseudo-family - Feb 20, 2012

We don't get to Toronto enough, and there are times when we wish we could sell everything that we own and live a short subway ride away from some of the best people that we know, but reality always pulls back into reality. We'd certainly be out of orbit in Toronto. It's not that we aren't city people, it's just that we may not be Toronto people. Just as New Yorkers are New Yorkers, and Angelinos are Angelinos, Toronto has it's own kind, and we just may not be it. We'd happily give it a shot to see Coop and Michelle more often though. It's a different and amazing feeling to find the comfort of the easiest kind of friends around, and one we only find with a few people. That's not to say that there aren't plenty of people that we love, but few relationships are as easy as this one. We take our cues from Zed, and she's fairly convinced that Coop and Michelle are first rate friends.


Dad and Zo - Family Day, Toronto Zoo

After three years we're quite certain that we're Zoo people, even if we're not quite sure what else we are, we're most definitely Zoo people. Our obsession started with the Honolulu Zoo, and was further bolstered back home in Detroit, and then found a whole new gear in New York. We brought our infatuation with animals in cages to Toronto for Family Day, and weren't disappointed. It's a stellar Zoo...huge...and loaded with awesome displays...indoor Orangutan and Gorilla environments, elephants and rhinos...hippos, and giraffes...tigers, and a couple of lions that will take your breath away...the place is and incredible...kinda just like our friends, Coop and Michelle. Win-win.


One last carousel ride with the Carousel Kid - Toronto Zoo, Family Day, February 20, 2012

It was cold, but bright...and we walked a lot, and waited a lot (way busier than we thought it might be), and of course the food cost a lot...but there isn't much we'd have rather been doing than hanging out with orangutans and friends. After four or five hours and a little girl who oddly enough had more energy at the end of the day than she had at the first, we hit the carousel for one last ride and then said our goodbyes. We had an awesome Family Day weekend. Zoey has a new BFF, and we've got one more Zoo under our belt.