There’s probably no better place to test the rough and tumble quality of clothes then at a zoo.

And there is no better zoo in Australia then Australia Zoo.

Steve Irwin has a special place in our heart; he was a special man doing amazing things to help our planet. I think Australia Zoo is what zoos should be about: conservation and education. It is one of the few zoos in the world we will visit for this reason.

Craig worked at Australia Zoo when we lived in Mooloolaba in 08 on the construction team. We went often taking our visitors there and just for a family day out.  It was Kalyra’s first experience of a zoo and Savannah’s first where she was awake and aware of what she was seeing. (Her very first visit to a zoo was when she was only 4 days old so perhaps that might not count)

We dressed the girls in their new Big W clothes and headed off for a fun family day out.

Savannah was a little timid at first, but bravely reached out a hand to stroke a lizard that greeted us when we first arrived.

We headed straight to the Kids Zoo, which is where all the farm animals are. The kids can feed and pet the animals. It was hilarious to watch Savannah’s reaction when the animals came close to her. At first she freaked out and quickly turned to cuddle her Daddy.

The goat had a chat to her though and let her know how special he thought she looked and to not fear the animals because they are her friends.

His talk must have worked because after that her arms became permanently outstretched for cuddles and pats and even waves hello.

Actually I think she was working some kind of voodoo magic with those hands of hers. The animals seem to obey her commands to sit, walk or eat. (Just check in the photos below)

I’m happy to report that the BIG W outfit the girls wore stood up to the test. They were bright and colourful so it was easy for us to keep track of our girls amongst the crowds. It meant the animals could see the girls and were attracted to them in the crowds.

The croc during the show in the Croccosium could see Savannah’s commands to jump higher and snapped his jaws with glee checking out Kalyra’s face of horror!

The clothes were so pretty that they make our photos pop. Having special family days out means you want your photos to pop. They also stood up to the petting, animal handling and crawling around on the dirt and grass.

And then they were perfectly comfortable at the end of the day when it was time to conk out in the pram.

It was a shame that Savannah fell asleep right before we entered the Koala Walk. This was one of my favourite parts to Australia Zoo. I’ve never been able to get so close to koalas in a zoo before and actually pet them as they walked around the trees so close to us. I had never seen koalas so active before either.

The zoo keepers were very close by to ensure the koalas were not being over petted or the sleeping ones were disturbed. Signs were clearly marked as to which ones were to be left alone and which ones could be patted.

Savannah did not miss out on feeding the elephants though. Mummy was probably just a little bit more excited as elephants have the special animal place in my heart. It was awesome to get so close and watch their trunk-radar sniff out the food and then slurp it up.

Hand feeding the kangaroos was just as fun. Savannah was happy to have them hop on my lap and I helped her hold her hand out to feed them. She kept grabbing the food out of the bag and trying to feed them herself and was happy to reach out and stroke them.

I kept thinking how lucky we are in Australia to have opportunities like this to get so close to our native animals. It’s the best way for our children to learn about them and to understand that they are important to and need to be cared for and looked after. We tend to want to take care of living things the more personal contact and experience we have with them.