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Brooklyn Adventures: Prospect Park Zoo

Over the past few months, I’ve started to receive more and more Brooklyn requests. Locals and tourists alike want to know our favorite spots to workout, run, sip, shop, eat and explore with Katie. While I have a few ideas in the works, today’s post highlights the most wonderful Brooklyn adventure we had with Katie this weekend – Prospect Park Zoo. \

One of New York City’s four zoos, the Prospect Park Zoo is located on the eastern side of Prospect Park. It’s a small, 12-acre zoo perfect for a short visit. We spent 1.5 hours exploring the grounds with Katie on Saturday and really enjoyed our experience. Even on a hot, Summer Saturday the zoo was busy but not packed, allowing us to easily navigate with the stroller and even allow Katie to practice walking. There is a mix of indoor and outdoor exhibits, providing a nice respite from extremely hot or cold weather.

The zoo’s main attraction is the sea lions, which are located at the center of the zoo. There are feeding sessions three times a day – 11:30am, 2pm and 4pm. While I’m sure the sea lions are especially playful at this time, they were engaging with the crowds and chasing each other even when we were there; without the trainers or food. Katie loved squealing and pointing at the sea lions. Beyond the sea lions, the zoo is organized into four different areas: Hall of Animals, Discovery Trail, Animal Lifestyles and the Barn. Throughout these exhibits, there are 25 animals ranging from the alpaca to tamarins. While it was hard for Katie to appreciate or see some of the animals who were further away or hiding in the shade, she was able to appreciate every section except the dark bat section.  If an animal was out of site, we focused and pointed out other things in the area such as birds, flowers, trees or even playful children.  As you would expect, the zoo staff said that the best time to visit is early in the day when the animals are more active. During the summer months, many of the animals will hide in the shade during the hot afternoons. 

The highlight for us was the barn area as Katie was able to safely pet pigs, sheep and alpaca. Next time, we will make sure that we bring spare change or a few dollars so we can buy feed for Katie to give to the animals.

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Hours: The zoo is open 10-5 PM during the Summer and Fall hours but closes at 4:30 during the winter.

Admission: Earlier this year, we purchased the Family Zoo Plus Membership which gives us access to all of the zoos throughout the city as our nanny enjoys taking Katie and the two boys in our nanny share to the different zoos and aquarium on a regular basis. If you don’t have the membership, admission to the zoo is $9.95 for adults, $6.95 for kids and children under 2 are free!

Transportation: Subway (B/Q/S), Bus (B41/B47) or Car (street parking on Flatbush Avenue)

Best For: Young children or people who are exploring Prospect Park and want to squeeze in some animal time

Food: While there were food options, they were a bit underwhelming. I was happy that we chose to bring Katie’s lunch in a stay-cool bag and give it to her while sitting under the shade.

 

You can easily experience the entire zoo in a few hours or even visit for a shorter, more focused trip if you’re short on time or trying to squeeze a visit in between naps. You can access the zoo via car, bus or subway. We found plenty of free parking on Flatbush Avenue, just a few steps from the zoo entrance.

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Workout Recap and Running Gear I’m Loving

Happy Wednesday!

Another week of half marathon training is in the bank! Last week was a week of highs and lows, as is often the case during a training cycle. Thunderstorms wreaked havoc on my outdoor runs and the heat and humidity definitely had an impact on my body during the workouts. But, a tough week only makes us stronger, right? I also made a few changes to this week’s workout schedule based on what I learned from last week.  This week I’ve realized that depending on the safety of the YMCA treadmill is smarter than trying to find time to run between storms. I also realized that getting a deep tissue massage the day before a tough workout is not a good idea. Instead, moving forward, I’ll try to plan a rest or pilates day after massages. 

So, with that said, here’s what last week’s workouts looked like.

  • Sunday– Long Run (8.5 miles at 9:56 pace) felt absolutely amazing the entire time including lots of heat, humidity and hills! I couldn’t stop smiling after this run as everything just CLICKED!
  • Monday- Tower Pilates class at A-Line Pilates
  • Tuesday- Early morning (4:45 AM) tempo run including a 15 minute warm-up, 6×2:00 fast followed by 2 minute recovery, cool-down (4.6 miles at 9:30 average pace)
  • Wednesday- Rest Day
  • Thursday- Four Mile evening run through Brooklyn (4 miles @ 9:29 pace)
  • Friday- Tower Pilates class at A-Line Pilates
  • Saturday- Long Run (6.7 miles at 9:55 pace) felt horrible the entire time. It was one big struggle fest and completely opposite from the previous long run. The heat and humidity was brutal but the reason I stopped short of the 9 mile goal was because my glute was killing me and there was thunder and lightening. I realized afterwards that my glute soreness was due to Friday afternoon’s deep tissue sports massage as well as some of the Pilates moves during Friday’s class. Moving forward, I’m going to avoid massages and Pilates the day before a long run.
  • Sunday- 30 minute Flywheel at home ride to shake out my legs

As I’ve been running and working out more regularly, I wanted to share a few items that I’ve been loving and using or wearing on repeat.

Brooks Bedlam

  • Apple Airpods – I’ve been using these non-stop for the past few months and am still surprised that they work so well during even the sweatiest of tempo runs. Yes, they stay in place. No, they don’t fall out. My only annoyance is that if I touch them during a run they signal Siri to start helping me and pause my music. But, I bet there is a way to correct this if I take the time to research it. If you haven’t tried Airpods yet, I highly recommend them!
  • Brooks Bedlam Running Shoes – So these new Brooks shoes do not officially launch until September 1st but as part of my Brooks Ambassador partnership, I was able to get a sneak peak. I’ve used these shoes for my tempo runs the past three weeks and love how responsive they are! It doesn’t hurt that they are the best looking Brooks I’ve seen to date – bright and colorful knit that keeps my foot feeling snug and secure. Since I prefer a more cushioned ride for my longer runs I will be using these for my shorter runs and tempo workouts each week.
  • Ali On the Run Show Podcast – Running is fun but sometimes it can get lonely. I’ve been spending my miles with Ali and her guests over the past few weeks, finding inspiration from Allie Kieffer, Michele Gonzalez, Kara Goucher, and Kayla Itsines to name a few! It has been such a joy to watch Ali bring this dream to life over the past year and I’m proud to say “I knew her way back” before the podcast when she was blogging daily about her training and balancing running and working at a large dance publication.
  • Brooks Greenlight Short Tight – I can’t remember the last time I ran in something other than these shorts after discovering them three months ago. Actually, I do remember. It was yesterday and I regretted every minute of the decision as the shorts moved around, hung lower due to sweat and left me with an unfortunate chafe mark. I am the proud owner of three pair of Greenlight short tights and have been telling everyone I know about them. They stay in place, support me, have pockets, are breathable and, believe it or not, are flattering too
  • Spotify – Once upon a time I dedicated time to putting together playlists for half marathon and marathon training. These days, I take advantage of others playlists that I discover on Spotify by typing in the type workout I’m doing in the search bar. For example, for yesterday’s tempo run I listened to a special tempo playlist that I discovered and a few weeks ago, my long run was powered by a “marathon playlist” that I found using the search function.  If that’s too much, then feel free to follow my playlists or check out the Speedy Workout, Tempo Run – 175 bps, or Elder Millenial Tour Official Playlist (thanks Theodora!).
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Katie’s Favorite Books – 14 Months Old

Like her parents, Katie loves to read. Or, I should say that she loves to spend time flipping the pages through her books and having people read to her, especially when she’s sitting in their lap. Some days, she’ll sit and enjoy three or four books at a time while other days she loves flipping the pages before we can get the words out of our mouth. Regardless of her mood or the day, we always read at least a few books together. In fact, each night, as part of our bedtime routine, I read two or three books to Katie while rocking her. These peaceful moments are often my favorite part of the day.

I thought it would be fun to share some of Katie’s favorite books now that she is 14 months old. Some of these have been favorites since the very beginning and others are new additions.

 

Katie’s Favorite Books at 14 Months Old

  • Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes: Bo and I both love reading this book to Katie as part of the bedtime routine. The gentle rhyme seems to calm her and I love counting kissing her nose at the very end. The story is a wonderful one, helping teach children that the world is filled with all different children who still have things in common.
  • The Very Hungry Caterpillar:  Somehow Katie didn’t own this book until two weeks ago. While walking through a Walmart store in Arkansas during a work trip, a number of co-workers asked me about Katie’s favorite books when we passed the book aisle. When they realized Katie didn’t own this book, they changed that immediately. It’s such a fun story and the bright colors and holes in the books keep Katie entertained. This weekend she dragged the book over to me no less than five times, hoping to hear about the very hungry caterpillar who ate too much.
  • Brown Bear, Brown Bear What Do You See?
  • The Going to Bed Book: We have a number of Sandra Boyton’s bright, vibrant, lyrical books, but this one is my favorite. I read it to Katie every single night before bed. Unlike some “bedtime books” , I like that it is short and an easy-to-read even in a dimly lit room. Katie now enjoys turning the pages once I finish reading them and knows that it is a bed time book. Earlier today Bo lifted it out during reading time and she pushed it away, replacing it with another book.
  • Sniff, Munch & Lick Books: I bought these after seeing no less than five local moms rave about them on their Instagram or Facebook feeds. Katie loves the movement in this book as it is filled with moving animals, flaps and textures. Unfortunately, many of the heads are now taped in the book after Katie ripped them off but, she still enjoys flipping and reading the book with me even though not every animal’s beak, tail or mouth moves anymore.
  • Pat the Bunny: Personally, this book makes me laugh as it is such a classic and very retro. But, whether due to the multiple textures, flaps or fun holes, Katie has gravitated towards this book since she was very young. Ours has been hugged, gnawed, flipped and loved on a daily basis over the past few months.
  • Where’s Spot: We’ve replaced this book twice due to Katie aggressively ripping off the flaps but regardless, it’s still a favorite.
  • First 100 Words: We’ve had this book since Katie was born and originally, she seemed attracted to the bright, small, thick pages. These days we read the book slowly, trying to draw her focus to at least one of the items on each page. Some days, she just wants to quickly turn the pages and other days we almost have her repeating the words – sort of.
  • Elmo at the Zoo: Katie loves turning the pages in this book and the fun animals allow us to practice different animal sounds with her as we read the book. She pulls this off the shelf at least once a day, in hopes that we’ll read it to her and include all the fun Sesame Street and animal sound effects.

 

 

Pictures courtesy of Alexis Damen photography.

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