Simple

My 6 year-old is pretty well-traveled for his age. He has been to Jamaica, Disney, San Diego, skiing in Colorado and most of the east coast. But you know what is awesome?? That he told me today was 'the best day of my life!'

Today was a random teacher in-service day, and I wanted to do something fun. I had several plans in mind, but have been laid up with a pulled back muscle which made me reign in the idea of a trip to the beach or Philly. So, I looked fairly local and decided on a teeny tiny zoo and the ever popular (free) Herrs Factory Tour.

Now, mind you, this kid has been to the San Diego Zoo and Wild Animal Park. We stayed in a 'savannah view' room at the Animal Kingdom lodge in Disney with giraffes and zebras grazing feet from our balcony. The zoo we went to today is a little hole-in-the-wall zoo that is perfect for little ones who like to feed the animals. The 'reptile house' consists of a little room with a few aquarium tanks in it. But he loved it. He walked alongside cage-free peacocks, fed goats, sheep and prairie dogs (MY personal favorite,) and stared in awe at a 20 ft/200 pound Burmese python.

We killed the zoo in about an hour, admired an ordinary duck in an ordinary pond, and headed to the Herrs factory, which happened to be on our way home. We caught a tour, and grabbed hot dogs along with our free chips for lunch. We picked out some snacks to take home from the gift shop (I am curious what is wrong with my 'OOPS!' pretzel nuggets, but at 50 cents a bag, I got 4) and headed home. He even cooperated with me when I wanted to stop at the grocery store to grab something to make for dinner.

I loved this time with him. We lead such chaotic, expensive lives...it was nice to take pleasure in something so simple. And the fact that he truly enjoyed it was just perfect. I even reasoned with him in the gift shops at both places. He wanted to buy something, and couldn't even think of what he could possibly want. He found a plush stuffed potato at Herrs that he felt he couldn't live without, and I asked him what he would do with it. He said 'nothing' and put it back without any further prompting. Wow!

Today, I feel like I have done something right in raising my kid. Even though he has had some pretty grand adventures and can navigate airport security like a seasoned business traveler, he still takes pride and interest in simple activities. He was engaged in the factory tour, listened to descriptions about animals and learned a bit about endangered species...He was genuinely interested. And that makes me proud. Not only of him, but of myself.