We are going to the zoo zoo zoo ......

So today will be another quiet day - I have been up most of the night with a tummy bug, eventually sick at 4.30am - yuck! Thankfully this morning I am ok. Tummy bugs are very worrying for kidney patients as they can attack the little function we have. I did have kidney pain all night but it is also better this morning. So thankful.

 Our day at Woburn was magical. Our plan had been a day at the seaside for Chloe's birthday but we decided it was just too cold. Even at Woburn I had to wear a coat and my gloves. I am still struggling with the cold when we are out - often because i am wearing the wrong clothes - always hopeful for sun!

These photos are not very good as they were taken with my phone - often througha window. But they give you a flavour of what we saw.

 Going in term time was lovely as apart from some school parties it was quiet. There were 2 big school parties - one very well behaved with 6 children to 1 adult all very engaged and listening to their adults. The other with 1 adult to 2 children and the adults all talked to each other and the children were just pulled along behind. There was a lot of screaming and crying from these children! It reminded me how proud I was to take our school children on trips and how well behaved they always were.

 I had so many favourite moments during the day. I will just tell you a few (you can miss this bit if you don't like detail!)

• Young bears being fed by a keeper right in front of our car. The bear caught 2 fish and couldn't carry them both to the grass so he left one which was then taken by a beautiful red kite swooping down. Poor bear was very confused when he returned for his fish.
• 2 lionesses walking straight towards our car and then just passing by close enough for us to touch them (if we had had our window open)

•  Monkeys with tiny babies playing by the side of the car
• Monkeys climbing on top of the car, a passing car laughing and us realising later that the monkey had used the car as a toilet! 
• Birds of prey display - such magnificent birds 
• Penguin feeding
• A mummy penguin sitting on 2 eggs - right by the side of the path
• Marmosets - swinging freely around the park

• Tigers - walking slowly in front of our car closely monitored by the keeper in his landi. 
• Lemurs sitting on the fence right next to us with their beautiful tails
• Babies and even more babies of all sorts
• Beautiful elephants and giraffes at the entrance
• Informative keepers who were so interesting to talk to
• Yummy picnic (and warm blanket)
• Ed's patient driving as Chloe and I said just a few more minutes! And returning for a second drive around because we wanted to see the bears again!

 As you can tell I loved SO much of the day. What a lovely way to spend a birthday. Not sure why it has taken us 24 years to do that! I was glad to see that the animals had a lot of space but we had the joy of seeing them close up. Chloe saw many of these animals in Uganda in the wild but often they were much further away. 

So the rest of the week includes cooking for Sunday - we are hoping to have a go at Cox buns in a tower! Flowers, bible study, womens breakfast, Paul's concert and Chloe's family party. We would like a bit of sunshine for Sunday if possible.