A trip to the Zoo

Time to make the most of the great weather while it's still here, and also the last few days before the kids go back to school, so we decided to spend the day at Calgary Zoo. It's a vast place, and it's hard to believe that you're minutes away from Downtown while you're there. Most of the zoo is on an island in the Bow River, and there are different themed areas for the different continents. We had a wonderful day and all fell in love with the new baby gorilla. So cute!

Show and Shine

Last weekend we went to the Okotoks Show and Shine, an annual event where all the local petrol heads who own classic cars park along the main street in Olde Towne and let everyone admire their hours of hard work and beautifully restored vehicles. There were some fantastic cars, and Jake in particular was in his element, marvelling at how shiny their engines were. He found the hugest truck in a quiet shade of vivid yellow, a Ford F650 no less, and announced that THAT was the truck he wanted! We saw a couple of old DeLoreans, which looked much smaller and less impressive than I remember them when they were famous back in the 80's. I tried to explain how they were made cool by Back to the Future etc. but the kids were not impressed - 'it looks kinda ordinary mum!' said Jaz. She found a humongous pink 50's dream machine that she decided was for her, and I fell in love with more than a couple of 60's Mustangs. I never realised how much the locals love to tinker with their old cars, there were so many! Some owners loved to start them up and blow your eardrums out with their deafening roars. As we walked back to my somewhat ordinary Chrysler (in comparison) Jake was grinning from ear to ear, I think it made his day!

A trip to Heritage Park

Neil has been working so hard over the last few weeks, effectively doing two jobs at the same time, so we decided to have a family day last Wednesday. We recently bought annual passes to Heritage Park in Calgary, so we decided to use them!
Heritage Park is located close to the Glenmore reservoir and is Canada's largest living history museum. There are lots of attractions there including old fashioned fairground rides and a steamboat, as well as a traditional steam railway that circumnavigates the park. Everyone who works there is dressed in period costume, and all the buildings are faithful reproductions of original buildings from Calgary and the surrounding area from the late nineteenth and early twentieth century.
The weather was perfect, beautiful sunshine, with just a cool breeze to keep it comfortable. We had a wonderful day out, and didn't get to see everything, so there is plenty more to do next time.

July updates

Wow, it's been a while since I updated the blog so I'd better get busy and fill you all in on the last few weeks.
Firstly, my mum came out on a two week visit. It was a relief to see her looking so much better after she's been so poorly over the last few months. Although the sun didn't shine as much as we would have liked, and the weather was distinctly cool and wet for the time of year, she seemed to have a good time, and we were able to show her a few of the beautiful places we've grown to love over the few months we've been here. This time, the trip up to Lake Louise meant we saw water rather than a frozen lake, and we were lucky with the weather as the sun shone on a warm day. Unfortunately, Moraine Lake was less spectacular this time around as the rockpile walk was shut and this affords easily the best views out across the lake. We also took a trip out to Elbow Falls, and to Drumheller, as well as a trip into the city.
Neil has been very busy setting up his realtor business over the last few weeks, and has been making contacts and meeting with potential clients too. There seems to be so much to do, from sorting out office space at the CIR brokerage in town, to ordering his sale boards, buying office supplies and sorting out various forms of advertising. He's been a busy bee indeed, especially as he will continue to work at the video store until he makes his first sale.
I finished my job for the summer break at the end of June, and have been arranging other ways to make a living for the next 9 weeks until my new contract starts. I'm going to do a little tutoring over the summer, as well as a little work with Raya as she attends summer camps and sports clubs. I'm also looking forward to spending time with the children and sorting out the household chores, as well as getting out in the sunshine.
I've also found a course in Canadian Studies offered by the University of Calgary, so will be busy trying to sort out my studies during the next academic year, hopefully gaining my full certification to teach this time next year, and may start 'subbing' at local schools from Sept 2010.
We are continuing to build up a great network of new friends here, both Canadian and ex-pat Brits through our jobs and also in our local neighbourhood. We were marvelling the other day at how many wonderful people we've met since we arrived nearly 9 months ago, and what good friends they are becoming. People have been so warm and welcoming to us and it's certainly true that good friends really enrich our lives here in our new home.
We're beginning to sort out our landscaping around the house now, although it's a slow process. We've finally got our front lawn down, and it's looking very lush and green. The next step is our fence, and then the back lawn can be laid. I'm looking forward to landscaping the yard and finally putting some trees and shrubs in to make it feel more attractive.
The children finished school for the summer 3 weeks ago, receiving very good end of year reports, and are participating in a variety of summer camps to keep them from becoming too bored over the next 9 weeks. They are both keen to find out which teachers they will have next year, but don't find out until late August, just before they return to school. Jake will be entering his final year in elementary school - grade 6, while Jaz will be going into grade 4. This time next year Jake will be about to start junior high school - eek!

Fathers Day

We decided to head out to Kananaskis today, to the Sheep River falls, west of Turner Valley, to celebrate Father's Day with a picnic in the woods. The weather was less than great with rain showers and cloud covering most of the higher peaks, but nevertheless, it was a breathtaking spot. We kept a look out for wildlife after my 'moose' spotting last weekend, and sharp eyes spotted a fleeting glance of a wolf by the roadside. No bears, although a tomato that Neil dropped during lunch mysteriously disappeared from under the table at some point - so there must have been a little critter about the place!

Parade Day

Today was the annual Okotoks Parade. It all kicked off with a pancake breakfast on Elizabeth Street first thing (yum!) followed by a fabby parade of all things and people Okotokian down the main street. We decided to pitch a spot on the beer terrace outside 'The Willy' - a local pub just by the main intersection, and enjoyed a drink in the warm sun while we watched the various cars, floats and trucks drive by. A great morning!

Day out to South West Alberta

Today was my birthday, so we decided to take a day trip south and see more of our province. We started at 'Head Smashed In Buffalo Jump' (catchy name eh?) which does exactly what it says on the tin! It is a UNESCO world heritage site, which kind of puts it on a par with the Pyramids in terms of historical importance!

Thousands of years ago, the First Nations people of the Northern lands used to drive herds of Buffalo over the edge of this erratic escarpment to their deaths below. They would do this so that they could kill enough bison to last them through the long harsh winter. None of the buffalo was wasted, from the meat to the skin and bones, all was used in their daily lives, from making skins to cover their tipis, fat for cooking, and of course the meat. The drop was twice as deep thousands of years ago, but even now it is impressive. We marvelled at the views from the top, as well as enjoying the very impressive museum which has been cleverly built into the hillside. I was impressed with how much Jake and Jasmine already knew about the traditions of the Blackfoot tribal people. They've learnt loads at school, so were very interested in all the artefacts and exhibits.
We then headed west towards the mountains again, stopping for lunch by the Oldman River at Pincher Creek, which was very pretty. We decided to drive up towards the Crowsnest Pass and visit the Frank Slide museum, deep in the mining areas of Crowsnest. In 1903, almost the entire mining village of Frank was buried under a huge mountain slide as Turtle Mountain partly collapsed. We loved the interactive museum , and learnt loads about how and why the disaster occurred. The rubble has been largely left as it fell, and it was eery driving through the site and seeing the devastation - even though it happened 95 years ago!
We drove back through the foothills, along the Cowboy Trail, and saw our first moose! Cool!
A lovely memorable day for all of us