Lion bait...

This weekend we visited lions and tigers and bears...oh my! (Sorry...had to say it.)

We also made friends with pythons, chimpanzees, the world's largest rodent, silkie chickens (that is their real name) and so many more.

Can you guess where we were?

Not St. Louis, not Omaha...not anywhere close actually.

We were in little old Manchester, IA.

Living up to his good guy image, Matt planned yet another surprise getaway for the family.

He wanted me to guess our final destination and with only one clue available to me I felt pretty confident.

I told him I would write down my guess on a piece of paper and reveal it to him when we were close.

Matt said he too would write an answer on a piece of paper.

My only clue was our destination was just shy of a one hour drive.

So I guessed...

I know Cedar Falls is much less than an hour away but I felt confident anyway.

Shortly before our arrival Matt opened my guess then handed me his paper.

It said...

He was right; I was clearly wrong.

Anyway, when we pulled up to the our final destination it looked nothing more than a run down, farm house petting zoo.

I thought, "Oh, the girls will like this."

We stepped inside to pay and the woman pointed out we could buy food to feed the animals. Of course, it is a petting zoo.

"This food on the left is for the chickens and ducks."

I thought..."The girls will have fun feeding chickens. Kate can pretend she is Cinderella."

"And the food on the right is for the bears and wolves."

BEARS AND WOLVES?! 

WHAT THE WHAT?!

Yah, this place was awesome.

It was full of animals from around the world...in Manchester, IA.

I still can't believe I'd never heard of the place. It's called "Cricket Hollow" by the way.

We even saw a cheetah and several African Watusi. 

I thought the Watusi was just a Blues Brothers dance.

Show's what I know!

Probably the coolest moment was watching the lions.

We were about 10 yards from the lion cages when one of the lions starts roaring and snarling.

I was a little nervous...and then CJ takes off running, happily screeching for joy at all the animals.

But she was headed straight for the roaring lion cages, apparently bound and determined to become lion bait for sure.

Thankfully the lion cages held and the king of the jungle stayed put.

I was ready to toss a wild boar at it if I had to.

Nonetheless, I didn't take any pictures of the lions because at that point I didn't want to rile him up anymore.

You can't see this guy too well and I forget his name but the sign read that he is the largest rodent in all the world.

I would definitely jump on a table if I saw him run through my house. Ew.

The guy on the right is named Mr. Stripes.

And I'm pretty sure the guy on the left is winking at me.

There were SOOO many more animals.

I had no clue African lions, Siberian tigers, the worlds largest rodent, cheetahs, porcupines, sloths, Burmese pythons, scorpions and pink butt monkeys (I'm sure they have a more scientific name) live in Manchester, IA.

So fun!

Thanks Matt for another fun family outing!