Date Day!

To say we were spoiled while we were home is a serious understatement. On top of seeing a plethora of family and friends we were treated to the pleasantries of having family offer to watch the little monkey so Scott and I could enjoy some guilt-free adult time.

We had a free day to do whatever we pleased. Off to Omaha we went!

First stop, the Henry Doorley Zoo.
The last time I'd been to the zoo I was in fourth grade. No joke. I'd forgotten how awesome Omaha's zoo is. This year Trip Advisor (the world's largest travel site), named the Omaha Zoo as the number one zoo in the US.

When Marcus is old enough to enjoy the zoo - and it's not an outdoor inferno - we'll be sure
to get him to Henry Doorley.

Snapping photos of animals in their exhibits bores me a bit, however, I left you with a few photos (above) that made me smile. 

The dessert (that dome thing you see in the upper left photo) is awesome. While we were at the zoo it was H-O-T. It was cooler inside the dessert than outside. Eek.

The aquarium was fabulous, and a nice retreat from the heat and humidity. 

And the butterfly garden! That right there, folks, is pretty much all I needed for our zoo trip to be a smashing success! 

Should you ever make a trip to Omaha (which I'd highly encourage) be sure to stop by the zoo!

GROSS.

To cool off from the blazing heat - keep in mind, in SoCal a "hot" day along the coast is about 86 degrees without humidity - we headed to the Old Market. Seriously, one of my all time FAV spots. No trip to Omaha is complete without a stop in the Old Market.

To the Upstream Brewing Company we went. I love the exposed brick walls, the hard wood floors, and unique food choices on the menu. Oh, and let's not forget their BEER!

We noshed on a cheese and artichoke dip and washed that down with a raspberry lager (for me) and a wheat beer (for Scott). I ordered a to die for shrimp pizza while Scott ordered a burger (yawn!). Looking for a place to grab lunch/dinner in Omaha? The Old Market. Upstream Brewing Company. 

Lastly, I COULD NOT WAIT to head to my ALL-TIME favorite spot in Omaha (in the Old Market, naturally). 

There is this quaint little ice cream shop, Ted and Wally's, that makes my mouth water just thinking about their homemade ice cream. Of course I insisted we walk to the shop for a scoop, or two.

I was giddy just thinking about what flavors they would have to offer. Then, I saw the sign on the door (see lower left photo)... They were CLOSED! The freezer was broken. Whaaaat? Shut the front door! Rather, OPEN the front door!
It was practically 100 flippin' degrees, and the ice cream shop's freezer was broken. Insert serious sad face. Guess that just means we'll have to try again the next time we're in Omaha.

It was so great to get out and have our own little "date day." But, when we got home I couldn't have been more excited to be greeted by my little monkey..

Marcus and Uncle Tyler hanging out.
Can you tell the little monkey was a bit wiggly for the photo?? :)