Paddington Has Zoo of a Time #PaddingtonMovie #Giveaway

My 7 year-old daughter was tickled when she found out she would be meeting Paddington at the Los Angeles Zoo and Botanical Gardens! In fact, she woke me up before the alarm clock buzzed. Paddington has long been a cherished bear in my home since I was a child. The Los Angeles Zoo held an exclusive meet-and-greet with Paddington in celebration of the 2014 family film, Paddington (available on April 28).

We loved meeting Paddington!

Available on DVD, Blu-ray and On Demand, Paddington stars Nicole Kidman, Sally Hawkins, Madeleine Harris, Hughe Bonneville, Samuel Joslin and Ben Whishaw as the rambunctious Paddington. In this adorable movie, Paddington is a cuddly lover of all things British, who leaves his Peruvian wilds and journeys to London. There, life becomes difficult until he meets the Brown family, who demonstrate unconditional love and kindness.

At the L.A. Zoo, Paddington spread plenty of friendship and cheer to the many children there to meet the charming bear. During the meet-and-greet, families participated in arts and crafts, delighted on yummy snacks, then toured several of the exciting animal exhibits. The L.A. Zoo is also offering guests numerous opportunities to meet the new “babies,” including the new baby kangaroo, along with the baby giraffe, five baby chimpanzees, two baby otters, a baby howler monkey, baby koala, baby pronghorn, baby sifaka, and baby piranha. Visitors can pick up an Activity Guide that includes a special map at the Zoo’s entrance to help locate all of the babies throughout the zoo. Information on the special breeding program is also included within the Activity Guide.

Yummy Orange Marmalade and PB & J Sandwiches!

Name the Joey

Help name the newest baby kangaroo by entering the #NameOurRoo contest! Visit the L.A. Zoo, between now and April 26, take a picture of the Western gray kangaroo baby or any part of the exhibit. Then, post it on Instagram or Twitter with the #NameOurRoo, include your proposed name, or upload your photo and proposed name at www.LAZooBabies.org (“Entry”). Share your entry with friends via a special link and encourage them to vote for your suggested name. Grand Prize is a GoPro HER04 Camera ($399 value) and a Family Deluxe Membership to the Zoo ($165), and two runners-up each receive a Family Membership ($126 value). For more info, visit www.lazoo.org/NameOurRoo.

Rainforest of the Americas

I felt transformed as I walked through this extraordinary exhibit of endangered mammals, reptiles, fish and amphibians. Your family will be intrigued watching the animals living in the tropical rainforest biosphere habitat created for them. Among the 113 acres, make sure to visit the Red Ape Rain Forest, which is one of my favorite spots, for a close-up experience with orangutans. Chimpanzees of Mahale Mountains is one exhibit that I found the most fascinating. There are three baby chimps in this exhibit: two of them are boys and all are under the age of 3, with the youngest being 5 months. It’s cute watching the interaction between the momma chimps and her babies. Interestingly, the oldest chimpanzee in the group is 46, but they can live to be in their 50s and 60s. I also discovered that some chimpanzees can actually develop diabetes. In the wild, chimps can start reproducing at age 4, but in the zoo, they follow a Species Survival Plan (SSP), where zookeepers nationwide/globally decide how to mate animals to control populations. Genetic charts are created, dates are set up. This also helps ensure animal populations are genetically diverse. Even Ben, a chimp was brought in from another zoo to mate with the chimps at L.A.’s Zoo to ensure SSP was followed correctly. As a result, the female chimps are on birth control pills. On your way out or when you first enter, be sure to see the Winnick Family Children’s Zoo; check out some the newest residents of the zoo.

My family and I had a wonderful time at the Los Angeles Zoo and Botanical Gardens. I encourage you to take your family and enjoy the great outdoors.

Admission for Los Angeles Zoo and Botanical Gardens is $19 for general admission (ages 13 to 61); $16 for seniors (ages 62+), and $14 for children (ages 2 to 12).

*This giveaway will run through 11 AM PST April 30, 2015. Winner will be chosen using Random.org from all valid entries and notified via email. Winner will have 48 hours to contact us before another winner is chosen. Giveaway is open to U.S. (18+) residents only.

* We did not receive monetary compensation for this review. Angela received admittance to the zoo as well as a DVD to facilitate this review. Giveaway item will be provided by sponsor. Sponsor has the right to refuse filling prize for duplicate winners from other blogs. This will in no way sway our opinion of the product or service. The review is in our own words and is our opinion. Your results and opinions may differ.