Once there, we strapped and snapped into the stroller, opened the rain hoods, put on the gloves, and off we went. Immediately, it was clear that this was going to be fun! Everything was lit with lights of every sort, and K was instantly mezmerized. There was a group of men playing Christmas Carols on their horns, and she sat in awe. She loves "instruments," so it was very exciting to her to learn about this new breed, called horns.We pressed on, up and down the hills, and K narrated about what she was seeing and hearing. One of the most conversation-inspiring things was the sound of the waterfall in the Polar Bear enclosure, which apparently was quite fascinating, despite the fact that that bear wasn't out to be seen, and she couldn't have seen him anyway in the dark, down at stroller-level. Each area of the zoo was lit in a different way, and it was fun to go from place to place to see what else was new.
We stopped in at a manger scene, where Kirienne was very intriqued by the baby Jesus lying in the hay. There were goats and cows, too, and the whole setting was warm and nice. She wasn't so sure that we should have left Baby Jesus there, but I assured her that he'd be fine and warm.K's favorite attraction at the Zoo is always the elephants and the giraffe, so off we went to see them.
She immediately noted that they were eating hay, using their noses to bring it to their mouths. She later recounted this for B, so that he'd have a little better understanding of elephant behavior. He'd been working at adoptions at the shelter, so he missed getting to come with us (not that he'd wanted to. He, understandably, thought I was NUTS to try taking K out to the zoo in the wet dark, staying 'til past her bedtime. He was happy to opt out of the potential insanity that would likely arise).
Surprisingly, K was quite happy and well-behaved for most of the visit, and her crazy-baby antics were pretty minimal until the witching hour began to draw nigh.
I decided we'd best get situated with our dinner before too long, so we made our way over to an indoor seating area, parked the stroller and unwrapped ourselves from our multitude of layers. I'd brought along a delicious and nutritious Taco Bell dinner for us, so we chowed down happily on burritos and enjoyed our run for the border.
After dinner, we stopped off to get a Gingerbread Man cookie and some carmel apple! MMM! But, even the sugar was not enough to take the edge off of Kirienne's increasing fatigue. She insisted we go to see the giraffe, so we trekked back to the elephant/giraffe area, and entered the sweat chamber where other wet and weary zoobies were checking out the creatures. 
I thought, "At least here we'll be able to have ONE picture together!" So I set up the camera. Alas, K's "Happiness and Cooperation" meter had already run out. What I got was a whole lotta attitude. I guess I should have expected it, but I always have that little slim hope that we can have a 100% fun time...
It looks like we're having fun, doesn't it?? Until you look a little closer...
She was incensed that I would DARE to take her water and ask her to look at the camera for a picture... And so, it was time to go!
We got back to the car, reversed all the preps that we'd made to be weather-proof, and started on our drive home. It was dark, it was cold, it had been fun and then it had gotten not-so-fun. It had been a full day and a 360-degree experience. So, not far from home, I asked K, "I bet you're tired, baby! You'll be ready to sleep!" She said, "No, Mommy. And, I am still riding in the car, also!" Like, "Duh, Mom! I can't sleep in the car!"
We got home, took a shower, and headed for bed, but she was fighting the crash the whole way! Once she pops, she just can't stop, but that's how we know she's still SuperK!
