Aw snap. I completely forgot to post about our wonderful trip to the Austin Zoo and Vegan Chili Cookoff last weekend! We drove in early Sunday morning (as in 2am), and stayed in a hotel. After a quick stop by the Austin Convention Center to see Thomas the Train, with a friend's 5 yr. old, we headed out to the zoo. The Austin Zoo isn't like many other zoos that we are all too familiar with. This zoo is a refuge for rescued animals coming from neglectful situations. Many are retired or saved from the circus, found or bought from abusive owners, or given a good home when one was not otherwise provided. There was also a Vegan Chili Cookoff being held there by the Lonestar Vegetarian Society. All kinds of people and groups from the Austin area, and even from Houston, Dallas, and Ft. Worth got together and showcased their chili recipes. We met many lovely animals, and had some amazing vegan chili. I don't have any pictures of the lovely chili, but let me just say I can't wait to go back next year and stuff myself all over again.






The male lion was absolutely gorgeous. He swaggered over to us when we walked up and was really chilled. He had dreadlocks and everything, and I instantly fell in love. He kind of reminded me of a hippie. The little guy chewing on the wire, and the guy sticking his tongue out were in the "petting zoo" area, which was just full of all types of small animals doing their own things. They really just wanted some lovin'.