Life in Thunder Bay has settled into a pleasant routine of non-routine activities for the family.
The weather has turned very nice indeed with spring now and summer just around the corner. I have been amazed at just how fast the vegetation springs back to life. Literally within days of some good sunshine the trees were fully leaved and within a week the the forest is so thick with undergrowth that you can hardly see through it in places. The front of our house has been revitalised too.
Canoeing is a must in Canada, and as we carried the canoes down to the water I realised that in Australia this particular style is known as a Canadian canoe - not surprisingly it was NOT name they had heard of here. Anyhow we managed a brief 1 hour lesson in strokes and control on the mcIntyre River that runs through Thunder Bay and into Lake Superior. The session was run by Boys and Girls Club (yes it is actually called that) and have another 2 hour session this week. Then we are off on a 2 night trip on one of the many lakes nearby with 2 other families - keep an eye on the blog for THOSE pictures!
The reason for all of this activity is of course because spring has sprung and summer is practically upon us. As these seasons are relatively short here, everything is packed into the small window of good weather time.
Paige has been very busy exploring the countryside around Boulevard Lake. This is an man-made lake in a suburb of the city and has plenty of walking/cycling track around it. Jill and paige go there many afternoons of the week to ride (Paige) and run (Jill). She has play dates with a friend and they explore the rivers and forests too.
Because school is nearing it's end for this year, excursions are common for both of the kids. Ash recently went on an excursion to a pioneer village, Jill and Paige tagged along and enjoyed themselves too. Megan wentto the Historical Fort William Park with a VERY small group from her class. The small group was because many parents kept their child home for the excursion as a small child was killed at the park only a couple of weeks before in a freak accident. Megan enjoyed her trip anyhow, although the horses and other animals were not to be seen.
We are certainly busy enough through the week with Ash playing soccer every Tuesday and Thursday evening, and Megan playing each Monday and Wednesday evening. Both are stars in their teams and recently Ian became his team coach for the final few weeks of the season. This happened when the original coaches (two schoolgirls getting their volunteer hours) rang him 20 minutes before a game to ask if he would be coach. While Ash plays well for his team partly because of his season of soccer already, Megan is a 'natural' and shocked her coaches when Jill told them it was the first time she had ever played.
Canoeing is a must in Canada, and as we carried the canoes down to the water I realised that in Australia this particular style is known as a Canadian canoe - not surprisingly it was NOT name they had heard of here. Anyhow we managed a brief 1 hour lesson in strokes and control on the mcIntyre River that runs through Thunder Bay and into Lake Superior. The session was run by Boys and Girls Club (yes it is actually called that) and have another 2 hour session this week. Then we are off on a 2 night trip on one of the many lakes nearby with 2 other families - keep an eye on the blog for THOSE pictures!
The reason for all of this activity is of course because spring has sprung and summer is practically upon us. As these seasons are relatively short here, everything is packed into the small window of good weather time. Paige has been very busy exploring the countryside around Boulevard Lake. This is an man-made lake in a suburb of the city and has plenty of walking/cycling track around it. Jill and paige go there many afternoons of the week to ride (Paige) and run (Jill). She has play dates with a friend and they explore the rivers and forests too.
School is almost over for the year in Canada, we don't return until early September which is a strange feeling and one that hasn't fully registered with us Aussies just yet. Ash and Megan have been experiencing the joy of North American school buses - the design of which has not changed since they were introduced. Recently I saw an obviously new model of the classic yellow school bus and it was exactly the same design!
These are a couple of pictures from Ash's excursion. Jill was amazed that the kids were allowed to touch, play and interact with practically everything in the museum exhibits. Ash tried morse code, pumped an old fashioned water pump and much more.
Paige played piano.
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