BC Games

As we shared with our readers a couple days ago, our little community is pretty amazing. So in addition to all the wonderful amenities that we make sure to access on a regular basis, we have special events that we can attend occasionally. Today was a day like that. 

Every summer a community plays host to the BC Summer Games. This year our city was the host, and within a 10 minute walking distance there were a number of events that we could watch, each event was free admission, and a great opportunity for these children to get a little taste of the Olympic Fever that seems to be creeping it's way in again!

So we had a look at our options and the children unanimously decided the equestrian events would be the most enjoyable. So in true lower mainland fashion we ventured out in the rain with our lunchkits in tow and arrived at the Agriplex building. 

We quickly discovered that this horse event was not what we were expecting, there were no horses jumping like we thought (later, we discovered, that was in the building next door), but the children were very keen on watching the horse show. We had to be SUPER quiet, but the children, for the most part, got that from the atmosphere, because you could literally hear a pin drop.   

We stopped and had lunch in the big rodeo bowl, thinking the horse jumping was going to start anytime, it didn't, but we had the whole place to ourselves, which was pretty awesome... a WHOLE STADIUM TO OURSELVES!

So we got a little run on

On the way back we spotted a wasp's nest

And ran on the crest of the giant hill. It was pretty misty.

What a cool experience!

A Trip to the Past

I can't believe how busy our summer has been! This blog has certainly been neglected over the last little while, but we have been enjoying plenty! Today was no exception!

Our little community really has everything we need. Within a quick walk we can enjoy the library, plenty of parks, forests, streams, shopping markets, and a museum! Today we took in the museum for a little trip to the past. 

Checking out an early canoe carved right out of a tree!

A connection was made here: there is a mural of the early logging days on the wall in our grocery store. The children recognized this equipment right away.

Seeing a real totem pole was pretty neat. We had read about them in one of our story books.

Early wood working tools. 

Checking out some antique toys. They look a lot more inviting than the toys we have today... a steam train was especially interesting!

Our little community hosts a world famous rodeo on the May long weekend, so we had a look at what people wore to the rodeo in the past.

Our city has a skytrain that can take us all the way to Vancouver, so seeing a mini model was pretty neat.

Someone really enjoyed counting all the cars.

This is a special exhibit in the museum right now. The local lego club put together a large display with the theme of history and mythology. 

There were even displays on the bottom. I believe that one was of Poseidon's home

Egypt

Poseidon's throne

This was underneath Poseidon's throne. It had movable parts and everything!

Ancient Greece.

Trojan horse. It was at this point that some of the children discovered that I knew a tiny bit about what was in each scene and that they were stories. So from this point on, the children would go over to a display and ask me what the story was. I tried my best, but we soon discovered that there was an interactive computer that we could refer to. They were ENTHRALLED by these stories, so it's go me thinking now!

There was even a little space to create your own.

Zeus and Hera looking over ancient Greece.

King Midas

A little Hippodrome

The Roman Colosseum. Some of these displays were rather graphic, but the children just seemed to be interested more in the story behind it all. 

Ancient Rome

It was such a neat experience to go. The children were amazed/ inspired by the pieces that were created. It was exciting and entertaining to watch as the children became so interested in our past and the past of other nations. This trip to the museum has got me thinking that it would be fun for the children to experience a little bit of history themselves, so stay tuned....