I Had to Stand Up for My Family at the Zoo… 😳

He said, I've never seen you do that, Cole. Well, she said, well, I'm trying to teach my kids. The dude came up like so, he was like already. It's like he was sitting there just stewing on it. He knew what he was going to do and say. Then he said, you're going to learn some rules now. For what? What do you think? That's exciting, huh? Love you. I thought you could use one. You went on a bike ride the other day and borrowed your sister's. So I thought, you need your own. And I thought we'd have pancakes for breakfast. With chocolate chips. Is it good? And then what are we going to do? Go to the zoo. Last night, Cohen was sitting out here on the floor while I was putting up balloons. And he was going, Judy's birthday, Judy's birthday. And clapping his hands. He'll be excited. Oh, yeah. Let me hold the box. Oh, my word. This is so cute. So cute. They're so adorable. Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you. You're welcome. It was taking hours to get through to the zoo. That's true. Cohen, it's your first time at the zoo, bro. No, it's not. Okay, his first real time at the zoo. No, he was, yeah, one. Not even one. Homegirl, do you just have a bag of hard-boiled eggs you're carrying around? Bro, if you want to fight, I'll fight. That's my girl. She got her bag of hard-boiled eggs. You know I love you. You look like water bottles. I told you I didn't want to bring all those. It's too many. I love the zoo. I like the walking. I like the sunshine. I don't like it on a hot day. But I like it on a day where it's 75 and partly cloudy with a breeze. It's beautiful. Like one of my favorite things to do, probably. The sky's hot. Go get in the wagon. It's funny how God was like, let's make the predators blend in and make the prey stand out. Gotta eat. But, but, they confuse them, you know, with all their stripes. That's what they say at least. Never seen a lion not catch a zebra though. I've never seen a lion catch a zebra. Oh, you haven't watched the National Geographic? Oh, on TV. Cohen! Did you show them your shirt? Show them your lion shirt. See what they say. Israel, can you roar at them? Oh yeah, he's coming for you now. He senses another lion in the territory. Have you ever seen a monkey before? Well, you have, but it's probably been a while. I found a bear! A bear? Where? Right there! I think that's called a panther, Cohen. Oh, he's coming right there, Cohen! You see him? Oh my goodness, he's coming over here, Cohen! Look at him! Cohen! He's coming to see you! What do you think about that? Oh my goodness, Cohen. Here he comes. It's okay, you're okay. It's okay, he can't get you. Cohen, he can't hurt you. Don't bang on it, don't bang on it. Don't be scared. What? That wasn't scary. It was. It was scary? Did you think he was going to get you? He's not going to get you. What do you think about that, bro? Look at that thing. He's coming for you. You want to see his muscles? Oh, you can see his muscles? Yeah, man, they're big. What? They're bigger than who? Bigger than who? I don't think so, Cohen. He put me in there with that gorilla, and I'm going to take him down. What do you think about that? You want to see me? Okay, well maybe next time. We just don't have enough time today, so next time I'll do it. That baby was sticking his butt at the other baby. Oh, dear. I saw it. What happens? This is going to be good. What happens? Wait. Watch out, watch out. I'm going to see you. Go this way. Go that way for Nana. You're crazy. Hold your glasses. One of those bison. What? Can you take one of those bisons down? Yeah, dude. Do you see what I'm working with here? Do you see these guns? Do you think a bison can handle that? These muscles right here? Horns. Horns? Toys. Pursue. Push me? Nah, man. Bison can't handle this. The bison say to his child when his child went to school. What? Bison? Bison. Nice. Colin, what do you see, bro? That's supposed to be good meat on them. I see. I see those. You see those? I see those. What are they? The what? They said they were elks. What did you say they were called? Hammonds. Hammonds? What does that mean? You mean bisons? Those are bison right there. See those bison? Those are elk. She said, I recognize you. What did she say? That was somebody who watches our vlogs. Sorry, I feel like I lied to her. Because I just told her. Oh, you're the one who told her? I said. Now she knows she'll never trust your YouTube channel again. She'll never watch us on YouTube because she's like, I can't trust that family. They're a bunch of liars. Because Danielle told them that the polar bear was going to come back around any minute. And then we waited for many minutes. Look at that guy go. Wham! Bastard! He's going to sleep hard in the car. Then they're going to wake up and want to play when we get home. That's not good. Can you smile? Yes, after you smile at me. Ready? Cohen, what do you want to show me? See that? What? Hold on. See that. See what? Show me. Right there? Oh, there's two. What is it? Is it a dog? No, it's a crocodile. Crocodile? Hey! You were holding my hand. You didn't want me to publicize it? Share it with the world? I wanted to share it with the world. That my teenage daughter still loves me. Tear to my eye! Hey! Come here! Yeah, this is a tuckered out day at the zoo right here. Now I'm nervous he's not going to sleep tonight though when we get home. 3.50. Perfect. 4 o'clock afternoon nap. Love it. I guess I've got some confidence or something. She said, no. She said, I've never seen you do that, mom. What did she do, Judy? Well, she said, well, I'm trying to teach my kids. She's usually like, she's pretty calm about it, but this time it was very emotional. I'm not ready. You're not ready to talk about this? No. Alright, let me know when you are. I think it's just because the dude came up like so, he was like already. It's like he was sitting there just stewing on it. He knew what he was going to do and say, you know? And I'm like sitting here like, do-do-do-do-do, following what I was told, just waiting. Like a good person. I love you, babe. I'm proud of you. I'm sorry I wasn't there to protect you. You weren't even there. So I lifted that thing up all by myself. Well, I went to just do it because I was already mad, so I was like just going to lift the whole wagon up. And throw it at the guy. No, and put it on the front of the thing. Lifted it up myself. You know, normally, normal situations, men who are driving translets and stuff, they will be like, oh let me put your bags in for you. Let me, like they will help. Not this guy. He was teaching you a lesson. Well, I was already mad. No, no. See? So I was like, I'm just going to leave this up there because I'm, whatever. I don't want this guy to even like, you can't put it on there like that. It needs to be folded up and everything needs to come out of it. Then he said you're going to learn some rules now. It's like so rude. That's so rude, isn't it? I'm processing still. Come back later. I'm processing. Never a dull moment at the zoo. Every time we come to the zoo, at the end of the day, Adelyn, her legs stop working. Mine, yeah, stop working. I'm stuck. Can you carry me? My legs stop working. Let's go. Hey, my legs are stopping too. But I'm just, I'm blocking it out and I'm moving forward. Hello, little girl. Are you all alone out here? No, actually, I've got God. Get up. I'll hold your hand. How about that? Fine. And then whenever I fall, you pick me up. And then you put me up on your back. We'll see. It is a beautiful day. I'm outside hanging out with Israel, getting ready to build our raised garden beds. But before I do that, I wanted to fill you guys in on what happened at the zoo the other day. I realize I never did give you all the details. It was pretty ambiguous. But I had a lot to process. I had a lot to process from that day. Because I've never had anything like that happen to me. Actually, one time at the zoo, I had someone comment about I should go to the bathroom to breastfeed my baby. And that was wild. But this was worse. So, remember when we went to the zoo? Remember when we were standing in line for the tram, transit thing that takes you from one end to the other? We weren't actually scratching that. We weren't standing in line yet. I was like, hey, let's see if we can take this train thing halfway. Because we had already seen this. It's like a big loop. John, you can maybe put a picture of the path here. But we went up, saw all the things here. Instead of coming back and seeing all the same things, we wanted to ride it back to the middle and then walk the other part of the loop that we hadn't seen. So, I go up because we have this wagon, this veer wagon with children and things in it. And I wanted to make sure I could even take it on this train car. It's like multiple cars, open seating, whatever. So, there was a guy standing there. And I'm trying to hurry up because they're like about to leave. There was no one on it, by the way. It was completely empty. And there was no one in line. And I said to him, can I fit this on? And he said, yeah, no problem. He's like, are you with them? And he pointed to my kids who were up waiting in this area. So, there's like a shelter. And under it, there's a spot for a line. And then there's an open spot with a handicap sign. It's like a separate area. And so, they were kind of standing around there because we were just trying to ask them a question. And I said, so I asked him if it was okay to take it on. He said, yeah, if you're with them, just wait right here. And you can catch the next one. So, he told me to wait in that little area. And there were two people, I think, that were at that point in the line. And so, he left. And then I was waiting there. Some more people come and they fill in the line. And then, finally, some buses come up. And these are like regular, you know, vans like you see at the airport. Like a shuttle bus. So, a couple of them pull up. And it's a woman and she came up to me. And I feel like she asked me if I needed a ramp for it. And I was like, well, I'm not sure. Because the other thing was like a train car where I think there was an opening spot in the handicapped seating. It would have been open enough to just put it there. But this is like a shuttle with just a thing on the front. So, I was kind of like, where should I put this? I'm not really sure. Does this go? Is it okay that we're just going halfway? And she's like, yeah. And then she asked if the other people were there before me. And I said, those two were, you know. Just because those two were. There were probably like ten other people in line at this point who weren't there before us. But it is what it is. So, she opened their gate instead. Like she like switched and let them on. All those people. And so, I'm like, she said, you can get on the one behind. So, I'm like, okay, that's fine. So, they leave and the next one pulls up. And this guy gets out and he comes around. Literally walks around the front of the thing. Like, maybe like he's on a mission. He must have been on a mission. So, he walks around and he said, what's the deal here? And I'm like, and he was like, what's the deal? I still have no idea what he's saying. I was like, oh, you know, we just were, we need to go to the middle. Like, I don't, what do you mean? What's the deal? Like, it's just like, what a weird question. Like, the first time it was like, what's the deal? Like, what's going on here? What's the deal? And then when I was confused, he's like, what's the deal here? Like, really with an attitude. And I was like, what is he talking about? And so, I was like, trying to think like, oh, you know, where are we going? Like, we're going to the middle. Like, oh, we're just waiting. I don't know. Then he was like, started like pointing at the handicap painting on the ground. And was basically like, why are you standing here? That's the line over there and this would definitely fit. Like, the wagon would fit through it. Like, he was just being real. And I was like, whoa, whoa, whoa. Like, someone, sorry, someone actually told me to stand here. And he like cut. It was so condescending. He was basically like, talking to me like I'm an idiot. He was talking to me like I was there cutting the line and like some sort of disrespectful. I don't know. John is not with me, mind you. Oh, that's another key piece. John took the power chair that my parents had rented and he was like, I'll drive it halfway so my parents could ride the train car with us. So, he was there when that first guy said to wait here with that car. So, I don't know. He left. Anyway. So, he's not there. This guy's like, I'm like, somebody told me to stand here. And I was like, well, somebody said. Like, he came up. He said, wait here. You can get on the next one. So, he says, well, he was wrong. And I'm like, okay. Well, he's an employee with a badge. Like, North Carolina Zoo. Like, he's an employee. He told me to stand here. That's what I was doing. Just following directions. And he cut me off again. So, I was like trying to like get a word in. But this guy is like up here. And I'm trying to like be calm. But also, you're not going to start talking to me like that. I said, no, you don't get to disrespect me like that. And then he said, he said he wasn't being disrespectful. He was going to teach my kids a lesson about what handicap means. At that point, I'm like, no. I'm going to teach my kids a lesson on how not to let people talk to you. However they want to. Like, absolutely not. I was honestly like, don't jump with those. Don't jump with those. Boys. I was honestly like, I surprised myself. Usually in those situations, I get very like freeze up. But I was incredibly assertive. And like, absolutely not. Like, as soon as he started, as soon as I realized he was kind of coming at me, I was like, no, you're not going to talk disrespectfully to me. Then he brought my kids into it, talking about teaching them a lesson. And I was like, also, no. My kids are going to learn from me how to tolerate being talked to. And then he still was just saying. So then my mom was like, do you just want to get on the next one? I'm like, no, I don't. I'm not going to let this guy like make me wait for another car just because he wants to be rude. Because one, this is, even if the employee was wrong and shouldn't have told me to stand there, he told me to stand there. Take that up with him. That's his problem. Like, that is not my problem. I was literally following directions. This is so wild to me. I'm like a young woman, like wearing a dress that day with eight children. And this guy is going to give me a hard time. And then when I tell him, hey, someone, an employee told me to wait here, then you're going to like come even. He doubled down. He like doubled down on this, on how appalling it was that I was standing in this spot. And how, like basically treating me like I was disrespectful and teaching my children how to be disrespectful of rules. And like, I don't know the rule because literally I'm following the rule. Someone said stand here. I'm being obedient. And now you're coming at me. It's crazy. Anyway, so I take the wagon over. I'm getting ready to just like manhandle this thing and put it up on the top. And he's like, it needs to be folded and everything needs to be taken out of it. You can't put that up here like this. And I'm like, you've got to be kidding me. Okay. So I start doing the thing. My dad said something about now he's just, you know, this guy's just being a jerk. And then the guy said, yeah, now you're going to learn some rules. Now you're going to learn some rules. He said it so cocky and so arrogantly. I'm going to be like, I'm so sorry that you didn't have a daddy who loved you and who taught you how to treat women. Like what a shame. What a shame. Because it was so gross. It was so like, do you feel like a man? That's all I can think. Do you feel like a man now? Really? Because like, let me tell you in my book, a man would be like, absolutely not. You're not going to lift that here. Let me like. So come here, Cohen. Right now. Boys. So anyway, then we pull up to the, to the next stop. And like before we get off, he says, my supervisor's right here if you want to talk to him. I'm like, so weird. But like, yes, actually, I would like to do that. Thank you. So how weird that he was like, wanting me to talk to his supervisor. I'm one, maybe cognitively, there's like a disconnect. I don't know. It seemed like he did not really understand social etiquette or boundaries. And like, he just had a very, very black and white sense of, of justice. And like, he was angry that we were standing there. And it's just wild work to come up thinking, like just assuming someone is doing something on purpose. If that makes sense, like to assume that we were there trying to violate the rules and trying to be a problem. And then even after I was like, well, hold on, like somebody told me to stand here. That should have immediately. Okay, well, they were wrong. Like if he had said, actually, we really need you to stand here. I would, I would have been happy to go around the line, which this is even better. All the other people had gotten on the one right before. So there was nobody else there. It was just us. And so, uh, by the time we got on it, a few more people had come behind. But like, literally by the time he pulled up, there was no one else there, which is just wild to me. Like, just open the gate and let us in. Why do you have to just say, hey, next time, can you make sure you're standing over here? We really like to keep this clear for you. That would be kind. I would be fine with that. Um, overall it was wild. I talked to his supervisor and kind of was explaining to him what happened. And it's so funny because this guy was like, not the supervisor, the driver was like, when I mentioned that it was one of the train cars and not one of the transit vans, he was like, that nears it down to two people. Like, he's like so concerned about catching the person who told me to stand there. And his supervisor was like, okay, thank you. Not to me. He was like, we got it, buddy. This doesn't seem like the first time this has happened or something similar. So then he was telling me, the supervisor was like, I just, I feel so bad for the way he talked to you. Like, that doesn't represent us. That's not how it should be. Um, I'm more concerned with that than like, it's really not a big deal that you were standing there. Like, he kept saying it's really not a big deal, but he mentioned that somebody had radioed earlier talking about people standing in the handicap spot and a woman had radioed and he's like, they're not supposed to use the radio for that. Like, you don't talk about guests on, over the radio on the thing. So that, the wheels were turning. I wonder if that woman who asked me if we needed a ramp when I said no, went in and fussed about us standing in the wrong spot, which he was sitting in his transit right behind her and heard that. So he immediately was like, gonna show me. So, which again, I didn't tell her. Someone told me to stand there because I didn't even have a chance to. Like, it's just, it was wild. It was miscommunication at its best, but that guy needs some serious, serious training on how to talk to people. It riled me up a little, especially because John wasn't there. And I was like, man, I really wish he was here because I know he would not tolerate that either. But I did feel really proud of myself for standing up for myself and my children and showing them, like, you don't have to just stand there and let someone bully you. Because that is what he was doing. At the end of the day, because there was no one else in line, and because he didn't just nicely ask me to go the other way, I said the only purpose of what he was doing was to shame me. To make me feel ashamed and embarrassed. Like, that was it. Because he still let me ride the thing. You know, there was like no, there was no other motivation except that he wanted to make sure I knew that I was wrong and make sure my kids knew that their mom was a disre... I don't know. Whatever. Anyway, I digress. It was quite the experience. I'm glad it's over. Thanks for going to the zoo with us. Sorry we weren't recording that whole thing, because I know you guys would have loved to see it firsthand, but I hope my retelling did it justice. Now I'm going to go in, get a snack, and then come back out here and start this garden before it's fall.