Our First CANADA DAY!!

Canada Day is on July 1st. I never knew when Canada's independence day took place or what they did to celebrate, so this was a fun first experience! We took part in the Burnaby celebrations, which were held at the Burnaby Heritage Village Museum at Deer Lake Park.

Kyra and Logan with miniature Canadian flags. Whee!

There were all sorts of fun games, like ring toss, bean-bag throwing, and a variety of other "old-fashioned" carnival games.

Kyra throwing softballs in a carnival game.

After the carnival games, we ate some lunch. The sign at the lunch stand said "Canada Day Souvlaki, Eh?" Oh, that good 'ole Canadian humor. Chicken Souvlaki is Greek food. We received two skewers of grilled chicken with spices on a bed of rice with some green salad. Even Logan loved it!

After lunch, we watched a sword fighting demonstration, and then saw a parade down the main street of the village.

Some of the Royal "Mounties" in the parade!

After the parade, we listened to the mayor and a few other local officials speak, and everyone sang the Canadian national anthem. We were the only ones there that didn't know the words...(we'll need to study for next year.)

And then it was finally time for the best event of all...Canada Day birthday cake!! The line took us over an hour, but the cake was really good.

The Canada Day cake tent.

Canada Day cake! (Strawberry short cake) Can you see the Canadian Flag in the top of the cake?

The kids loved the cake! (Even Logan ate a WHOLE piece!!)

After the cake, Kyra helped make an "eco-sculpture". It is a large shape, usually an animal, that is living with plants growing in designs all over the surface. We have seen many different ones around Vancouver, including eagles and salmon. This one was in the shape of a cow!

After the cake and eco-sculpture making, Kyra and Logan both rode on the carousel. It was a busy, fun day! Happy Birthday, Canada!!

Canada Has Awesome Parks!

Canada has awesome parks! We go to a different park almost every day, and they are all different. Some have wading pools and splash pads, some have giant climbing towers and tires, others have swinging saucers and minature chairs. Below are some pictures from our favorite parks:

This giant geometric climbing tower was at Taylor park, a beautiful hilltop park in the Edmonds area of Burnaby.

Logan swinging at Central Park.

Logan in the Splash Pad at Steveston Park in Richmond, near Daddy's work!

Kyra in the "flying saucer" below Taylor Park (notice the giant cement dining table and chairs in the background!)

Kyra climbing the giant tires at Sapperton Park.

Logan spins a wheel at Stanley Park.

Logan lounging at Central Park.

Logan and Kyra love these grates that they put up in most of the kid's climbing structures. (They are very safe in Canada, I've never seen these used at parks in the states.)

Stanley Park is the largest park we've been too and by far our favorite, so it deserves a page all to itself. Look for another blog on Stanley Park soon!

The Apartment

For the summer, we were given a choice of staying in an apartment or a house. We wanted the full "big city" living experience, something different...so we chose apartment! We already have a house and lawn to take care of back home. Let's go yardless for awhile! Here's Kyra, posing in front of our door:

What they found for us is a two-story apartment in a nice, new building. There is a pool around the corner from us, and the skytrain station is only about three blocks north. Although our immediate neighborhood is lacking some amenities, we are just a few minutes away from some pretty awesome parks and other local attractions.

Although things are more spread out than I was hoping and we do have to drive places sometimes, we are still able to walk or take public transit most of the time. I wish we were closer to downtown Vancouver or near the water, but we're finding that property is VERY expensive up here! Depending on traffic, even the farthest destinations are usually no more than an hour. So we've been exploring quite a few neighboorhoods and parks, look for more posts soon!

Haircuts!

Everyone was in need of a haircut! Kyra went first. She's been growing out her bangs (at her own request,) but the rest of her hair was too long and kept getting tangled. So we gave her a nice summer 'do! Here's the during:

And the cute after! Much better.

Next it was Daddy's turn. Manny the barber used quite a bit of gel in Tim's hair (at least it washes out!) but the haircut was good. Last was Logan. I hated to see his baby hair go, but it was getting shaggy around the ears and in the back. No mullet for my son! So here's his jolly before (he really enjoyed the apron and sitting on Dad's lap!):

And the clean-cut and dashing after:

He did great for his first cut! And with clippers and everything. Manny had to sing to him, "Yes, Manny likes you, you are Manny's favorite..." to get him to cooperate, but he did great!!

Getting Settled in Burnaby, BC

We arrived safe and sound on Wednesday afternoon in our new home (for now!) of Burnaby, British Columbia. Burnaby lies just east of Metro Vancouver in the Fraser Valley. So far, we have been on the Sky Train, found out that groceries are WAY more expensive north of the border, and unpacked most of our things. We are starting to get settled, and are looking forward to friends and family coming to visit! Hope to see you soon!

Fun at the Tacoma Zoo

On Tuesday, we met up with Liz and Bridget to explore the Tacoma Point Defiance Zoo and Aquarium. It was great!

Kyra pretending to be a sea anemone.

Kyra making friends with the roaming peacocks.

Logan enjoyed the zoo from the stroller...most of it while napping!

Kyra fed some of the birds.

And then rode on a camel! She loved it!

Bridget made it almost five hours at the zoo with us. What a trooper for a not-even two-week-old!! Thanks Derrick and Liz for a great time in Tacoma!

Heading Out on the Road!

On Monday, May 31st we headed out on our journey. Our first stop: Tacoma, to visit Kyra and Logan's new baby cousin, Bridget! Tim acted as main pilot for the journey, hauling a small trailer behind filled with lots of clothes and toys. Little did we know that the traffic was going to be terrible!

About ten miles outside of Cle Elum, we hit Memorial Day traffic. Apparently everyone (and their brothers) decided to come to the middle of the state and camp for the holiday! It took us almost 2 hours to get past Cle Elum. We expected an accident or a disabled vehicle at the least...but no, apparently just a ton of cars!

Finally, eight hours after leaving Spokane, we made it to Tacoma! Bridget is a beautiful baby girl. Although she is a big for her age, she feels tiny compared to our giant 8-month old (who is now tipping the scales at 26 pounds!!)