kokanne run

The Kokanee are spawning so we thought we'd head to Mission Creek Regional Park to see what we could see.  It turned out that all we could see was about ten small fish, but it was enough to put a little extra spring in Jacob's step.  And it was the most beautiful day; golden fall sun, warm with just a hint a chill in the air and a tinny smattering of yellow peaking through the canopy of leaves above. 

And then there was the playground.  Not just any old playground, but one taylor-made for little boys (and girls, of course) who love to climb!  I don't even know what you call one of these (?) but we haven't seen one since living in France.  Jake climbed his heart out and had Billy nervously hovering beneath warning him not to go too much higher.  Billy displaying any small signs of nervousness is a rare, rare occasion, so I was really torn between watching Jake and his climbing or Billy and his mother-hen-ing.

 We went back a few weeks later with a friend and her two girls and weren't so lucky with the fish spotting.  The kids would excitedly point at an upside-down, silver salmon, floating down stream and announce "fish" "look at the fish".  There are a lot of 'red-flags' here that a three-year-old and almost-three-year-old easily miss.  1) the fish shouldn't be upside-down; 2) they should be a vibrant red; 3) they are suppose to be swimming UP stream.  So we'd congratulate them on their spotting and cheerfully say "that fish didn't quite make it".  The morning turned into a nature walk/scavenger hunt instead and obviously ended-up at the playground.  

The funniest part of this entire thing was when Billy arrived home from work, Jake excitedly greeted him and when asked about his day he says - with the sincerest, most genuine enthusiasm - "Dad we saw SO many fish that didn't quite make it" and finished it off with a huge beaming smile.  Oh, to be three again.

bird hike

Last weekend we took a little stroll through the Sibell Maude-Roxby Bird Sanctuary.  It's right on the edge of the lake but it's a completely different world in there.  Lush and nestled under a canopy of trees.  A little raised footpath/bridge winds through the trees and bulrushes and over marshland.

  

It was completely lovely, except... 

we didn't end up seeing a single bird.  Jake kept saying "where's the wildlife guys?"  Ha!  But despite the lack of birds, it made for a nice little nature hike and a great family morning.

catch-up

Here is a peek at our last three weeks...

A calm, warm morning at Bertram Creek Park.  We had the entire park all to ourselves.  We walked the trails, played in the sand, dipped our toes in the cool lake, filled-up buckets of sand, threw rocks in the water and shared some chocolate cookies with an overly-friendly squirrel.  And then made it back home in time for Avery's morning nap.

Oh, how we love the weekend.    

The boys go camping and fishing at Red Lake!  

This adventure included; tents, cool nights, one night terror, head-lamp flashlights, camp fires, s'mores, fly fishing, digging-up worms, allergies, a little rain and throwing rocks into the water, of course.  All-in-all, a pretty good trip.  Especially for a first-timer like Jake.    

Jake had an unexpected allergy attack and was pretty frightened by the unsteady, rocking feeling in the boat (as shown in picture number two); but otherwise had a fun time.  He ran around with the big kids and enjoyed all the snack food in camp.  He even landed a few fish - Eastern Brook Trout - and was a proud little guy.  I overheard him telling my friend "it was a fighter!".

Meanwhile, Avery and I stayed home for a girls weekend.  I couldn't believe how quiet the house was and how much I could get done with only one child in tow.  Ha! 

And Jake joined soccer.

He wasn't too sure about it once we arrived at the first class but luckily we joined with a friend and that helped a lot.  The coaches are focusing on kicking with the inside of the foot, stopping the ball and dribbling but ALL Jacob is interested in is scoring goals.  He's not the most focused pupil out there but he's starting to participate more and more.

lately (again)

More of the same in terms of sunshine.  Sunglasses, sunhats and of course sunscreen -- check.  It seems to me like the perfect time to start thinking about picnics, so that will be on out to-do list next week.  Isn't this the prefect picnic bag?!

Magnolia blossoms could possibly be one of my very favourite things! 

This week we had such a good bunch of books.  The most requested turned out to be The Three Pigs, which had Jake in stitches.  So well done.  And the runner-up, The Further Tale of Peter Rabbit.

I've been trying to squeeze in more reading time and quickly finished Speaking from Among the Bones.  I think this series is so unique and charming.   Now, what to read next?

And, just as soon as Avery wakes from her nap, we're off to meet Billy downtown for coffee and snacks.  This will be the first time in a long while and we're excited to see that guy!    

library

We exchanged a few library books today.  Jake is a lunatic in the library; like a kid in a candy store.  He just races silently from shelf-to-shelf and cannot concentrate long enough to get through one book before he MUST check out another.  It's hilarious.  His behaviour would suggest he's at the playground.

After we checked-out our new books we walked over to Thomson Marsh to see the ducks and horses.  Jake was mostly interested in collecting rocks but it was such a beautiful day to be out.  It seems impossible to think it is tucked away in the middle of a city with it's tall grasses, bird calls and old barns.

kamloops

Kamloops couldn't have been better or busier.  We made the absolute most of our short visit.  My Dad even emailed out an itinerary before hand that included things such as "trip to the infamous Riverside Park so Jacob can go wild", "awake to the smell of press coffee", "Bill and Lins to run away for lunch".  The itinerary also included golf, an evening fish, the Wildlife Park, apple pie, some home improvements and we even found time to sneak away to the last Harry Potter movie - which by the way, is so good. 

We had perfect weather for Riverside Park and Jacob couldn't get enough of the Water park.  He was even brave enough to venture over to the big-kids side and did indeed "go wild"

Mom's homemade pies cannot be beat.  They picked-up the Transparents at an Orchard in Vernon and they made for the perfect apple pie. 

The Wildlife Park was another highlight.  They do a wonderful job of maintaining the animal habitats and a lot of the animals they keep have been rescued and rehabilitated.  We were wowed by the Birds of Prey show and watched the cougars feed.  We also saw bears, moose, owls and elk.  It was a nice afternoon.