We made the 2 + hour drive out to the Game Farm yesterday. If you haven't been there, it's a park you drive through (you're not allowed out of your car) and you can feed bread to roaming wild animals. There are llama, prairie dogs, eagles, a white rhino, bison, zebra, yaks, deer, elk, fallow deer, and peacocks. They also have Black and Kodiak bears you can feed and they even do cute little tricks like wave or stand up to get some food. They also have caged wolves, coyotes, tigers, lion, and a couple of cougar....but they looked pretty sad and lonely. All in all, it was a nice experience because E & L had a blast, but I was preoccupied with K (more on that later) to get too upset about the conditions these animals are really in.So our first stop on the tour were the llama's. We witnessed a baby llama seconds after birth. It was all slimy & trying to stand. The placenta was just a few feet away. It was all very gross, but beautiful at the same time.
O, did I mention I forgot my camera? Yep, I'm pretty disappointed, but it turns out I probably wouldn't have been able to take many pictures anyway.
You see, our next stop was to see the yaks...and that's when our nice little day trip got interesting. While feeding the yaks some bread my darling little K, who was sitting on my lap in the front seat, started to "yak" all over me. I started yelling for Jason to get me something and to help in some way, but it was as if he was frozen (to his credit, our backs were to him, I was only asking him to "do something...get me something" and there was nothing near him except his fleece, which he gave up for family). I was stuck with one hand holding K, one hand holding her throw up and there was a yak fogging up my window waiting for me to feed him some bread. It's not like I could roll down the window and hold her over the edge to puke outside....not with wild yaks surrounding our car waiting for bread. Finally, Jason came out of his paralyzed state and helped clean us up. The rest of the ride/tour I tried to focus on K, be excited for the other kids as they experienced feeding these animals at such a close range, and I really, really tried myself not puke from the awful stench permeating my clothes. Of course I did not bring a change of clothes for anyone. It was a day trip, remember.....and I haven't carried a fully stocked diaper bag in 6 years. When do you ever need that stuff when you actually are prepared and have it?
We did have an encounter with a mama bison. You're advised upon arrival to keep your car moving at all times in the bison field because "they can get aggressive and damage your car". Well, we had to stop because there was a mother in the way who refused to move. As we crept closer, she decided to shield her baby and step in between our car and the calf. Jason called her bluff and crept forward, little by little (and may have gave her a little nudge). As we sat and waited patiently, the other bison surrounded our car waiting for bread and fogging our windows with their breath. I was about to wet myself because they are soooo huge and all I could hear was the warning upon our arrival, "keep your car moving because they can get aggressive". I don't like my kids to know when I get scared so I started my nervous laugh. Then I was trying to be quiet so I didn't startle the bison....then I got even more nervous. I think Jason wanted to feed ME to the bison at that point. Finally, the calf decided to move then the mother left.
After driving away from the bison, we entered fallow deer territory. These small deer stretch their necks to reach up and grab the bread from your hand. We started moving forward and they started to follow, so we sped up a bit and they pursued. Now the boys started holding the bread out the window trying to see how fast they would run along side of us before rewarding them for the quarter mile, record time.
We were approaching the end of the park (I was quietly giving thanks while the kids were exchanging loud, sad sighs) and there was one last, large elk wanting some bread. E wanted to feed him, so he rolled down his window and gave him the last piece of bread. His velvety rack was so beautiful I forgot, for just a second, there was an enormous, hungry mouth inches from my first born. It was a trip to remember. Sadly for K, her memories won't be so great. As for me, I will never again be able to look at a Yak without thinking of the time my daughter "yakked" all over me.
And now, two years later, I am still in awe as I hold this sweet little girl in my arms and watch her sleep. My heart just melts every time our eyes meet and she gives me a big smile. I'm having so much fun being her Momma. 
