CT Mommy Blog

Our trip to the Beardsley Zoo was a great Mother’s Day surprise.

We celebrated Mother’s Day this year at Beardsley Zoo in Bridgeport, CT.  Moms were honored with free admission to the park.  Children under 3 also get in free daily.  Our family of 4 got into the zoo for a grand total of $12!

I’ve been to Beardsley Zoo before, but never with my own children.  I wasn’t sure what to expect since the girls are well into their terrible twos at only 16 months old!  I was pleased to find out that we had beat the large crowds and the girls were able to walk around the park at their will.  It’s the perfect size zoo for a toddler; not too big, but there are still enough fun and exciting animals and exhibits.

Juliette spent most of the day motoring around the zoo like a runaway train.

The goats at Beardsley Zoo were pretty playful.

We enjoyed observing the sleeping wolves, popping up in the prairie dog tunnels, and even heard the tigers roaring.  We took the girls on the carousel.  I could remember riding it years ago and it was special now to bring my girls on the same ride.  Jules and Livie loved it!  Outside of the carousel is a picnic area.  We let the girls walk around the small play area and were greeted by a beautiful peacock.  The peacocks are allowed to roam free on the property, and he even gave us a show by spreading all of his feathers.

This peacock roams free at Beardsley Zoo and isn’t afraid to strut his stuff.

We had to leave the stroller outside of the rainforest exhibit but it was worth it to see the monkeys and colorful birds.  It was Olivia’s favorite as she pointed around the room asking in her tiny little voice, “What that?” Another favorite attraction was the petting zoo.  There were very friendly goats who wanted their heads rubbed just like our own golden retriever.  Outside of the petting zoo were 6-day-old baby hogs!  They were adorable as they cuddled up against their mama.

I had no idea baby piglets were so small and cute!

Olivia was really interested in what the animals were doing, especially the monkeys.

As we were leaving the zoo we saw the ticket line wrapping around into the street, and were glad that we had such an early start to our day.  A day at the Beardsley Zoo is a great way to wear out even the most active of toddlers.

A couple of beautiful birds sharing the sunlight on Mother’s Day.