February 2017
More Snow than an Average Vancouver Winter
Walking to Work
In December I started at a new job
downtown. My goal was to bring my camera from time to time
and take photos of the walk in or the walk home. I'm not
going to bring a whole backpack full of lenses so sometimes you
have to make due with what you have. This is a seam together
of three images shot at twilight.
Other times, the weather makes the photo
for you. School was still running even though the roads were
mostly quiet. On our walk in, we watched a car with summer
tires try and fail to get out of a parking spot. I was
really glad I can walk to work because often the buses aren't
running and those that are are filled beyond capacity by the time
they get to my neighborhood.
Birds in the Cold
I don't know where this idea came from,
but I like the Richmond Nature park and I figured the kids could
play in the snow while I watch the birds at the feeders.
Helen supervised the kids and I tried to take portraits of the
birds close, but not on the bird feeders.
I was really struck by how big the birds were. First I
thought they had just overdone it at the bird feeder, but then I
realized these birds were puffing up their features to maintain
heat. Bird features are apparently quite good at keeping in
heat so the birds may not be experiencing the cold the same way my
naked fingers were.
The kids had enough time to make a snowman and I got some
peace. We toured the nature house and were on our way for a
bit of shopping in Richmond (Helen's turn for good times).
Chinese New Years at the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Garden
The Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Garden does a nice job
at a winter lantern festival near Chinese New Years. Some
years are crazy busy, but they have increased the suggested
donation and the crowds have gotten a little smaller.
Parking is crazy, but that's part of the fun.
The garden usually does a "Year of the (insert animal here)"
display. This year they had some cutout style characters
with lots of kids posing. I brought my flash this year
(Helen was surprised because I so rarely use it) and my tripod so
nothing was fast to shoot.
The more traditional elements of the garden make great elements
for photos, but the crowds can make it a bit of trick to get a
nice photo.
James's Birthday Party
James and his brother really like hockey - both the ice and floor
variety. My sister found a community center that would do a
floor hockey themed birthday and still have space for cake and
drinks after. Whiterock is a long way from our house so of
course we arrived earlier.
There optimum team size appears to be about 5 aside - more just led
to crazy balls of kids surrounding the ball. The gym organized
shifts and the kids really enjoyed both running and cheering.
It wasn't all floor hockey - the gym organized about 4 different
variations of tag which worked well with a larger crowd of kids.
Happy birthday James!
Skiing at Grouse
Over Christmas we had 5 ski days organized for the kids - Wake up
painfully early, get to grouse by 7:50, get the kids on the gondola
and ski until about lunchtime. On Claira's last day it was
cold - maybe -8°C at the top and apparently the heating had failed
in the kids lodge. We got to the top of the mountain and found
out the morning classes for Claira were canceled while the heated
the building up again. We booked an replacement day for
February.
February is
much different than December - the sun has risen by 7:30 am and the
crowds are way thinner. The temperature was hovering above 0
and it looked like it was only going to get warmer. I dropped
Claira off and decided to go out for a walk.
Grouse Mountain has a very well marked "snow shoeing" trail to
Dam Mountain - round trip of about 5km. There are some
steep sections, but I had not problem walking the whole route
wearing winter boots. There are a few nice viewpoints toward the
city and over to Cypress mountain.
I got back in time to pick up Claira. It was so warm (about
8°C) that she didn't need a jacket. After class we did a few
trips on the magic carpet, ate our snacks and then headed back to
home.
Claira has her stopping down and is getting better at turning.
Next year we might be able to do real skiing after she finishes her
classes!
Kick Bike and Scooter Ride
If it's not raining and we have some extra
time on the weekend, my go to activity is to go down to Granville
Island with the kids and just walk around. Our favorite run
is along the seawall out to Cambie street (passing two
playgrounds, a waterfall and lots of great views) but the seawall
is under construction right now so we limited our run to the
Island and back.
The kids always want to visit the waterpark
to use the flat surface bowls where the water sprinklers run in
the summer. The ground is fast there and the kids can run
about without worrying about cars or pedestrians. There have
been a few near misses as they cross paths, but so far no
collisions.
This trip we found a parade was on (Winteruption) and we watches
some dancing performances. We visited the boat yard and the
kids thought it was funny to pose under a water taxi.
Maybe stop for a treat at the market and then head home - kids are
a bit more tired and willing to draw or play quietly for an
hour. Good day for everyone!
Swimming Day
We take our kids to swimming class every
Monday night. It's not often that I bring a camera, but I
did this week. Near the end of the term is safety day where
the kids practice using life jackets and swimming in wavy
water.
Claira is still pretty junior so much of
the lesson is formed as play - chase the teacher or wet exit - to
build skills. She has a good time and she is getting better
at swimming.
Tags: Richmond Nature Park(7), snow(5), Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden(4), swimming(4), Vancouver(3), Grouse Mountain(3)
People: Claira(17), Nara(15), James(4), Marcus(3)
From: John Harvey Photo > Blogs for 2024 to 2005 > February 2017
Last Modified Saturday, January 21st, 2023 at 23:58:46 Edit
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