Tuesday, August 16, 2011
Scenic Viewpoint
On the way home, we stopped at a "scenic viewpoint" and took some great photos. It's great to stop and be a tourist in your own city sometimes - we often forget we live in one of the best spots on Earth!
Monday, August 15, 2011
In the Village
We spent the day walking around the Village, shopping and having lunch. It was a great, relaxing, fun, and perfect girls' day!
Sunday, August 14, 2011
Whistler Girls' Trip
I went up to Whistler for a couple of nights with my girlfriends, Helen and Janet. Our other friend, Susan, couldn't make it, which was disappointing! We went without our kids or husbands and had a blast!
Tonight, after dinner, we walked around the site where the Olympic medal ceremonies took place last year. The rings look very cool at night.
These are the "rings" of the Paralympic Games.
We took turns getting a photo with a giant replica of the torch carried by athletes - first Janet.
Then me.
And finally, Helen!
The totem pole beside the playground is also lit up at night.
The sky behind the totem made it look really eerie tonight - too bad it doesn't really show up that well in the photo!
When we got back to our townhouse, we decided to use the masks that we bought at the Body Shop this afternoon. We took some extremely silly pictures, and promised not to share them, but I didn't think Helen would mind this one - it's doesn't show the full facial we had after!
Tonight, after dinner, we walked around the site where the Olympic medal ceremonies took place last year. The rings look very cool at night.
These are the "rings" of the Paralympic Games.
We took turns getting a photo with a giant replica of the torch carried by athletes - first Janet.
Then me.
And finally, Helen!
The totem pole beside the playground is also lit up at night.
The sky behind the totem made it look really eerie tonight - too bad it doesn't really show up that well in the photo!
When we got back to our townhouse, we decided to use the masks that we bought at the Body Shop this afternoon. We took some extremely silly pictures, and promised not to share them, but I didn't think Helen would mind this one - it's doesn't show the full facial we had after!
Saturday, August 13, 2011
Burnaby Blues & Roots Festival
I went to the annual Burnaby Blues & Roots Festival for the first time - my mom, and both my sisters went as well. Holly was able to attend for free, so it was a girls' outing! It was really fun and the musicians were all really amazing and super talented.
This is Imelda May on stage - a quirky Irish singer. She tried to "jump the fence" - to see the lake - and likely ended up breaking her ankle! She was in a fair amount of pain, but sang anyway - and joked that while most people are trying to climb fences into concerts, she would be the only one trying to get OUT!
The headliner this year was k.d. lang! She was awesome to hear live, and sang some of our favourites, like Constant Craving and Hallelujah.
The weather cooperated and the moon made a great appearance, while k.d. was singing. I would definitely come back next year if we're in town!
This is Imelda May on stage - a quirky Irish singer. She tried to "jump the fence" - to see the lake - and likely ended up breaking her ankle! She was in a fair amount of pain, but sang anyway - and joked that while most people are trying to climb fences into concerts, she would be the only one trying to get OUT!
The headliner this year was k.d. lang! She was awesome to hear live, and sang some of our favourites, like Constant Craving and Hallelujah.
The weather cooperated and the moon made a great appearance, while k.d. was singing. I would definitely come back next year if we're in town!
Friday, August 12, 2011
Rocks, Stairs & Fame!
More progress:
Rocks over the backfilled sand.
New stairs!
Making and leaving her mark!
Rocks over the backfilled sand.
New stairs!
Making and leaving her mark!
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
Holly's cat
We had some anxious moments just before leaving for our trip - the night before we left, Mowgli didn't come home! Holly was worried and left a note for our neighbours in case they spotted her. She also left another note in our garage for Rick to find when he came over to pick up his tools.
On the drive down to Seattle, she started crying, saying she missed Mowgli!
Paul & I were pretty worried that she had run away, been run over, or been eaten! Luckily, my sister and mom found her at home when they came over the night we left! What a relief!
Anyway, she seems at home after just a week in our family as Holly's cat!
On the drive down to Seattle, she started crying, saying she missed Mowgli!
Paul & I were pretty worried that she had run away, been run over, or been eaten! Luckily, my sister and mom found her at home when they came over the night we left! What a relief!
Anyway, she seems at home after just a week in our family as Holly's cat!
Great Wolf
Paul and Holly coming down the River Canyon slide. . . this time Holly only cried on the Howlin' Tornado (which I have to admit, was a bit scary, even for me!!! Lots of screaming involved. . . ). Check out our photos from October 2009 - the last time we were here.
Holly really like the River Canyon run, which is only second longest to the Howlin' Tornado.
Holly really like the River Canyon run, which is only second longest to the Howlin' Tornado.
Monday, August 8, 2011
Museum of Flight
We stayed at a pretty inexpensive motel near the Seatac Airport. On our way to the hotel last night, we saw this museum . . . it's the called the Museum of Flight.
We decided to stop in before heading to Great Wolf Lodge. There is a lot about aviation history here, including a war planes collection, a section on air mail delivery, space and lunar exploration, as well as a cool air park, where you can actually board a Concorde plane (which we did) and one of the Air Force One jets!
Kids zone! Holly flying a helicopter . . .
. . . a couple of planes . . .
. . . and she's an astronaut, too! (Hence, the fuzzy photo - it was taken in space!)
This is SAM 970, which was the first Presidential jet plane - Presidents Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, and Nixon rode this plane, as well as VIPs such as Nikita Khrushchev and Henry Kissinger. After it was replaced, it remained in service, carrying the vice-president.
And an actual Concorde!
We decided to stop in before heading to Great Wolf Lodge. There is a lot about aviation history here, including a war planes collection, a section on air mail delivery, space and lunar exploration, as well as a cool air park, where you can actually board a Concorde plane (which we did) and one of the Air Force One jets!
Kids zone! Holly flying a helicopter . . .
. . . a couple of planes . . .
. . . and she's an astronaut, too! (Hence, the fuzzy photo - it was taken in space!)
This is SAM 970, which was the first Presidential jet plane - Presidents Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, and Nixon rode this plane, as well as VIPs such as Nikita Khrushchev and Henry Kissinger. After it was replaced, it remained in service, carrying the vice-president.
And an actual Concorde!
Sunday, August 7, 2011
Seattle
We decided to take a trip down to Great Wolf Lodge. Since the drive is pretty long (about 4.5 hours) and we wanted to make the most of our stay there, we thought it would be fun to break up the trip, stay for a night in Seattle, and do some exploring.
I found a few places we had never visited. This is one of them - it turned out to be quite a find! It's called Ballard Locks (or the Hiram M. Chittenden Locks) and it links Puget Sound with Lake Washington. It is quite amazing, considering it was built in 1911. Not only do the locks prevent the salt water from intruding into fresh water, and potentially killing the lake, but they also help move boats between the two differing levels of water.
On the way from the parking area, there is a beautiful little park - a great spot for lunch if you happen to work close by. There was even a band playing as we walked by.
There are two locks, allowing boats to travel in the two directions at the same time. Here you can see some of the boats tied into the lock - I believe the water was going up on this one.
After watching some of the locks (and having to wait while the gates open/close), we crossed to the other side to find this art structure, and have a look at the fish ladder - yes, fish can climb ladders, we saw it with our own eyes! The fish swim up the 21 "steps" to migrate from salt to fish water, making this ladder fairly unique. Most fish ladders are built entirely in fresh water to make it easier for the fish on their migration.
Crossing back to where we started, we saw these boats heading towards Puget Sound, so the water level was lowering in this shot.
I found a few places we had never visited. This is one of them - it turned out to be quite a find! It's called Ballard Locks (or the Hiram M. Chittenden Locks) and it links Puget Sound with Lake Washington. It is quite amazing, considering it was built in 1911. Not only do the locks prevent the salt water from intruding into fresh water, and potentially killing the lake, but they also help move boats between the two differing levels of water.
On the way from the parking area, there is a beautiful little park - a great spot for lunch if you happen to work close by. There was even a band playing as we walked by.
There are two locks, allowing boats to travel in the two directions at the same time. Here you can see some of the boats tied into the lock - I believe the water was going up on this one.
After watching some of the locks (and having to wait while the gates open/close), we crossed to the other side to find this art structure, and have a look at the fish ladder - yes, fish can climb ladders, we saw it with our own eyes! The fish swim up the 21 "steps" to migrate from salt to fish water, making this ladder fairly unique. Most fish ladders are built entirely in fresh water to make it easier for the fish on their migration.
Crossing back to where we started, we saw these boats heading towards Puget Sound, so the water level was lowering in this shot.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)