Bronze Anniversary -

Blogged by N8 and JME

Recently, we celebrated our eighth anniversary, which traditionally is the bronze anniversary.  We didn't get each other any gifts made of bronze, as tempting as it was to get bronze tennis shoes and sandles, but we spent the day together and that was priceless. 

We decided to do one of our very favorite things together, and that is go to the zoo.  We really enjoy it there.  It is really nice to walk around looking at the animals.  It gives us time to talk and relax together.  We went to the zoo last year, too; however, it seems we always see something different. 

Squirrel!

This year was the first time that we saw the Kookaburra bird.  We were walking past when this one started making a call.  Its feathers got all fluffed up and its call was so unique.  It was one of the highlights this year. 

We had to get a picture by the big old 'Bronze' Gorrilla, just for the sake of the occasion. 

JME wore the same lotion as last year (Forever Sunshine from Bath and Body Works) but the peacock wasn't interested this year. 

However, the camel was.  He was blowing kisses at us left and right!

It was hard to get a really great picture of the gorilla through the glass, even though he was right by us.  It was still really cool to have him right up close.

We saw this cute little baby elephant last year, but she hasn't seemed to grow much since we saw her last.  While we were checking out the elephants, we read that elephants are pregnant for 22 months.  It gave us a new perspective on a few things and made JME glad she isn't an elephant. 

We always love to see the monkeys!!!

The rhinos enjoyed basking in the sun.

One of JME's favorite things to see are the bats. 

And N8's very favorite thing to see is the sloth.  Nothing like going to the zoo and seeing the sloth to bring on some good old-fashioned sloth fights. 

The zoo had separated the tigers, probably because they were in heat.  The male tiger kept pacing around, trying to find a way into the female tiger's area.  She just hung out, oblivious to the whole thing.  Typical female. 

We really enjoyed seeing the giraffes again this year.  The one closest to the camera spotted a little squirrel and followed it around the enclosure.  The squirrel came right over by our feet and the giraffe was not far behind.  It was fun to see it up close. 

Last but not least, we saw the wolves.  They were pretty cool too. 

After a fun filled few hours of the zoo, we had a pretty big appetite and decided to go to Tucanos.  It is a restaurant that we both enjoy a lot, N8 especially since he served his mission in Brazil and gets to have a little taste of the food he had while he was there for two years. 

We really like Brazillian lemonaide.  It is made from limes.  JME ordered that this time and mixed it with guava juice.  It was delicious.  It tamed down the lime quite a bit, but it was still really refreshing. 

Tucanos is a Rodizio-style restaurant, which is a Brazilian bar-b-que.  The waiters come to your table with all sorts of meats from snake to chicken hearts and anything in between.  They give you a little "traffic light"  When the green is up, that gives the waiter the signal that you are ready for food.  When the red is up, that tells the waiter to stop. 

They also have this fabulous salad bar that you can enjoy while the meat is coming around.  It has sushi, pao de queijo (cheese bread), feijoada (black bean stew) that you serve on white rice and topped with farofa (fried manioc flour, collared greens, and meat), quail eggs, and palm hearts. 

JME's favorite thing to get there is the feijoada from the salad bar or the roasted pineapple.  N8's favorate thing to get there is the chicken hearts. 

One of the last things we did that night to celebrate our anniversary was go to our cousin's Wheelin' Jazz Basketball game, which we also try to do every year.  We always have a great time at the game and are amazed at the upper body strength and skill that the team mates have.  Among the celebrities this year were Alex Boye, Shawn Bradley, and of course, the Jazz Bear. 

JME's mom really likes Alex Boye, so we had to make sure we got a picture with him.   

Shawn Bradley was so tall!  We felt bad for him when he was playing in the wheelchair.  He did not look comfortable at all. 

How does he do that?  It is a really cool trick, but seriously, how does he do that? 

Again, it was really cool to see how driven and competitive the Wheelin' Jazz are, not to mention how talented.  We could never make a basket sitting down, let alone try to dribble a ball while trying to work a wheelchair.  It is pretty impressive. 

It was great to see JME's cousin and his wife and the little girl they are fostering right now.  They are a very neat family and we sure love visiting with them and going to his games.