2 Weeks of Wonder
We have had a fantastic 2 weeks with Mark,Hayley and Ethan coming over to visit. The weather didn't always play along but it didn't matter too much as we found enough to do to keep Ethan in awe for the whole time. On the day of arrival it was into the garden for a bit of footie.
The sunshine was absent on day two and some heavy storms blew through, so we headed down to the Telus Spark, a science centre for kids (similar to Eureka in Halifax UK) where Ethan had a ball trying out all the strange things....so did we.
The sun returned the next day and after a little shopping trip we tested out the new bubble machine on the balcony and had a great fun day playing around though granny missed out as she was working.
When mum and dad went to the movies Sarah and I took Ethan to the little park close to the house where he ran everywhere and tried everything. He particularly loved the pretend cafe and the slide.
Once Sarah was free from work we took Ethan to the zoo on a beautiful sunny day. He was so excited to see all the animals but still loved the penguins most of all, though riding the merry-go-round came a close second I think.
More footie in the garden you say.......why not.....
We took a ride out to Banff National Park and rented a little fishing boat to tear about on Lake Minnewanka before heading into town for lunch. Whilst at the lake Ethan tried his best to capture a chipmunk and at the cafe tried in vain to capture a squirrel. We hiked a little bit around the lakeshore which is remarkably low right now in anticipation of meltwater and rainfall refilling it.
At home again in the evening we had a very exciting encounter with a young Moose behind the house which Ethan really enjoyed, he jabbered on and on about it for ages making sure we all understood that there was indeed a moose out there, and he had indeed come to see Ethan.
After exhausting the supply of shopping malls in Calgary we took a day trip to Heritage Park, well within the city but a real oasis. It is situated beside the Glenmore reservoir and is a 'living history museum'. There is a steam train, paddle steamer and historical village and farm as well as fairground attractions of the era and costumed staff keeping you informed as you go along. It is a great day out in the city and one I'm sure we'll be returning to.
Mark and I climbed a mountain too, you can see all the shots and commentary from that by clicking here it was fantastic to be out there with Mark and a real 'bucket list' moment for me, though I hope we have a few more before the bucket moment finally arrives.
Mark was keen to have a bit of fishing whilst here and though conditions weren't really suitable we headed out to Kananaskis lake for a picnic and sneaked the tackle along with us. We didn't see any trout but Ethan came close to catching a chipmunk under the picnic table. He also had a great time feeding it, a ground squirrel and a whiskey jack during the picnic.
Suddenly two wonderful weeks have passed by and Mark, Hayley and Ethan are heading back to the UK, as always we will miss them so much more in the following few days before settling back into our routine and remembering that we'll be home soon enough and the journey might just reach its destination at last.