Biking Around Lord Stanley's Park

With the sun shining brightly this morning, we headed straight for the bike rental shop right after breakfast and geared up for a day riding around Stanley Park (yes, dedicated to the same man who donated the Stanley Cup trophy).  Ava and Chris rode together on an adult/child trail-a-bike - or, as Ava calls it, a "twosie" bike.  After getting the initial kinks out, we had a smooth day cruising around the seawall.

Our first major stop was the Vancouver Aquarium.

In addition to viewing the usual displays of fish, crabs, and jellies, Ava enjoyed seeing the penguins, frogs, the beluga whale show, and the indoor rain forest.

Next up were the beautiful totem poles. 

We made plenty of stops and diversions along the way in order to take in the views of the city,

the Brockton Point Lighthouse, 

the Lions Gate Bridge, 

the free Kids Water Park,

and lunch at the Tea House on Ferguson Point.

The last major stop on our riding tour was Third Beach where we were able to explore the slippery reef due to the low tide.  Unfortunately, Chris slipped and ate it with Abby joining him moments later.  Both were scraped up but suffered no permanent damage (although the same can't be said of their camera). 

Ava enjoyed burrata and pizza for dinner and had an early-ish bedtime as we get ready for a late Canada Day night tomorrow.

It's Not Supposed to Rain in the Summer!

We started our first full day in Vancouver with a walk through Gastown to see the (world famous?) steam clock, do some window shopping, and visit the statue of Gassy Jack.

We also wandered through the Binners Market where people hawked random goods found by bindippers such as old VHS tapes and shoes without matching pairs.  We then walked by Rogers Arena and BC Place, the homes of the Vancouver Canucks, BC Lions, Vancouver Whitecaps, and the locale for a number of events in the 2010 Winter Olympics. 

Moving from the land to the water, we rode the bathtub sized Aquabus to Granville Island. 

On Granville Island, we met up with our friends Hutan and Erika.  Ironically, it was easier to travel 1,500 miles away to see friends who live just 150 miles away.  We strolled around the island, enjoying shops, donuts, and - specifically for Ava - the Kids' Market. 

For lunch we enjoyed a meal at the Granville Island Brewery.  Ava and Erika, however, had to abstain from tasting the beers. 

Leaving the island, we rode the bus (good thing we had change as the bus does not accept bills) to Queen Elizabeth Park.  

Queen Elizabeth Park (named after the Queen Mother - Queen Elizabeth II's mom) offers hilly and sunken gardens, and views overlooking the city.

As our sunny day turned overcast and gloomy, our views of the city were shrouded but we still saw cool plants and sculptures. 

The next thing we knew, however, we were caught in a torrential rain and we all got drenched. 

Escaping to the friendly confines of the 63 year old Nat Bailey Stadium, we ran into Bob Brown Bear, the mascot for the Vancouver Canadians.  Abby and Ava bought new shirts and tried to dry off as the sun came back out.

As it was family Sunday, Ava enjoyed her first ever root beer float for just $1 and got to meet A&W Root Bear. 

After a lengthy rain delay, single-A baseball was played in the warm sun.  We cheered the Canadians on to a big win featuring a homer, a triple, a close play at the plate, and a couple errors.

We ended our day with a trip on the SkyTrain (which went underground for our trip) back to downtown.  After experiencing drastic weather changes all day we are hoping for some consistent sun (or at least no rain) tomorrow. 

O Canada!

Just a few days after first grade ended, Ava hopped on a plane and left the country.  She wasn't fleeing the country.  Rather, she was starting her summer vacation with a trip to Vancouver, BC (that's British Columbia).

After a smooth flight, a chatty immigration officer, and a quick ride into the city, our late lunch consisted of gelato and a walk along the seawall.

After checking into our room, we went back out for another walk and found a sculpture called "Digital Orca."

And the cauldron from the 2010 Olympics.

We had real food for dinner at Cactus Club Cafe with a gorgeous view of the harbo(u)r.

After dinner, we had more gelato.  This time at Bella Gelateria one of the best gelaterias in North America (winner of the North American World Tour Championships and headed to Italy for the Gelato World Tour Finals).

Ava has plenty of space to spread out at our home for the next several nights as the couch in the living room converts into a bed.

The Return of Lucky the Lobster

As the school year wound down, Ava had the good fortune to spend another week with Lucky the Lobster.  Our guest blogger entry for the week comes from Ava's journal - written from Lucky's point of view:

On Friday night I went to Ava's recital.  I got to go back stage with Ava.

Then I got to watch the performance with Ava's Mom and Dad.  She was great!

On Saturday we played with Ava's grandparents.

Later on, we played Monopoly with Ava's Dad.  Ava's Dad won!

On Sunday, we went to the Dodgers game for Father's Day.  We saw the Dodgers mascot and a giant Tommy Lasorda bobblehead. 

The Dodgers lost but it was fun!

After the game we had Hawaiian food from Da Lu'au.  Yummy!

Today I went to Ava's swimming lesson at Waterworks.  Ava is very fast and she is a good swimmer. 

I went to Ava's Daisy to Brownie Bridging Ceremony.  

I got to walk across the bridge of hands.  After the ceremony we played at the park.

Spring Has Sprung

We are well into a sunny, SoCal spring and Ava has enjoyed every minute of it.  The great weather has allowed Ava to spend a lot of time outside including playing at the Exposition Park Rose Garden, the beach, and our back yard.

The pool where Ava takes lessons celebrated its 10th anniversary with a visit from Princess Elsa and the chance for Ava to climb aboard a fire truck.

Ava continues to love school and guided us around Miss Ferguson's class for open house.

Over Memorial Day weekend, we took a brief trip to San Diego where Ava walked across the Spruce Street Supsension Bridge,  toured the USS Midway, splashed around the new Waterfront Park, and visited Balboa Park where we stopped by the Botanical Building and ate at the Ethnic Food Fair with a stop at the House of Poland.

Most recently, Ava and Chris made the short trek to Brywood for their very first Brywood Dads Campout.  After dinner and an outdoor showing of the Lego Movie, they enjoyed six hours of sleep before the kids began playing again in the morning.  It was a tiring, but very fun, adventure.