Saturday at the Museum

Busy weekend. Nicky with us which always makes for a fun and busy time as the gang of us make our way around the neighbourhood. During the past summer we'd bike to the beach every day; often with an extra child or two in tow. Mike would carry our small barbecue in his hand and our rag tag mob would weave our way down to Jericho. It was the summer of swimming as Mike and I enjoyed and exhilaration of swimming in the ocean (as the kids always do); the initial cold shock followed by the refreshing pleasure and trepidation of swimming in cold, deep water. We challenged ourselves with the distance we would swim out and, on a few occasions, swam late at night. It was memorable and fun and we are planning to repeat it this year when the weather has warmed up a little. That said, it's 12 degrees today and I think we swam in October in a similar temperature. Anyway, moving on to this weekend.

Bronwyn and bear - way back when

Playing drums

 On Saturday we made our way to UBC to visit the Museum of Anthropology. We even bought a family membership! We continue to live without a car; determined to do without for all kinds of reasons, so a short trip to UBC is easy to do on the bus. The kids enjoy MOA. My strategy with these kinds of things is to make the visit relatively short (Mike and I could spend hours in there) and keep it moving. Next time I suggest we go there, and I will, I want the kids to say "OK" and not think, "Oh no, a long boring trip to a museum!" We've been a few times over the years and I thought it would be fun to contrast this visit with a picture from a previous visit.

River - 2009 - interacting with exhibits!

The pout

Mike and I (and Bronwyn) are busy making paper mache heads. I have thought of working in paper mache for a while now and have dabbled here and there. But I really wanted to try making a paper mache and cloth figure or doll. Our original idea was to make monsters or strange creatures, that is still the plan - but I'm not sure what it will turn into now; and that is part of the fun. I am working on a couple of heads and Mike and Bronwyn are working on one each. Mike and I were especially interested in going to the MOA so that we could look at the vast array of masks and figures and, hopefully, get some inspiration and ideas. We were not disappointed.

Museum fatigue

 Towards the end of the visit the kids got tired and lolled about; various complaints of thirst and hunger and boredom began to surface and so we knew our time was up. But, hey, we got a membership, we can go back whenever!

Waiting for the bus - sitting on Mike's feet