I spent my Veteran’s Day weekend with my favorite veteran!

Patrick signed up several weeks ago to run a 5K in Staunton on Saturday. The race wasn’t until 2 in the afternoon, but we left early because he said we were stopping on the way … for a surprise.

It turned out to be the Virginia Safari Park, one of those places where you can drive around and the animals come right up to your window to eat!

It. Was. Awesome.

The first animals we saw were an aggressive gang of llamas, but then there were camels and ostriches and sweet, timid little deer. There were zebras, great big bison, swamp water buffaloes and emus. We got to meet all of them up close and personal (one sneezed/spat on Patrick) and then walk through the petting zoo area where we saw kangaroos, giraffes, lemurs, goats and piggies. We will definitely be going back there with children some time …

Then off to Staunton, where Patrick finished the 5K in less than half the time it took me. Showoff.

By the time we got back home we were starving, so we picked up some Chinese take-out and settled in with Lola (who was fascinated by all the different animal smells on us).

This morning we woke up with an urge to go see a movie. We decided on Bee Movie, which is every bit as cute as it looks!

Then we went to St. Mary’s hospital for a Birthing Expo, where they had lots of vendors explaining why you simply must have their prenatal massage gel or babyproofing products or postpartum Pilates classes. We also sat through a class on the phases of labor, which didn’t give us any new information but was still kind of fun. (They showed a video at the end, but it wasn’t the gory kind. Maybe next time!)

Tomorrow, I have my 12-week checkup at the doctor’s office, and then another ultrasound on Wednesday!