Monday, May 2, 2011

Flying, Frocks and Fishies.....

this past week has been a busy busy one, not much gardening was done... it's still chilly and very unwelcoming to my peppers and tomatoes and down right killing to the 2 little cucumber plants that i bought... AND all are in my greenhouse with heat pads and lights... i can 'feel' them shivering in their pots... i managed to build a few barriers from Digger Dora and maybe even the bunnies and occasional deer that might wander closer to the house....

last Friday daughter and i got to go to a lecture for Autism and anxiety...Facing Your Fears: Group Therapy for Managing Anxiety in Children with High-Functioning Autism,  it was an an 8 hour day presentation for parents and professionals and then on saturday another 8 hour day for professionals only, put on by ACT ( Autism Community Training)  and the host speaker was Dr. Judy Reaven from the University of Colorado.. Dr. Reaven is Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Pediatrics,  Anschutz Medical Campus, School of Medicine and is the Director of the Autism and Developmental Disabilities Clinic of JFK Partners...some of the methods of dealing with anxiety are in the video on this link  it will give you an idea of some of the lecture... daughter bought the book set Facing Your Fears which includes a therapist manual, child's workbook and parents workbook... one of the first things we are going to work on... bees and wasps!!!
i'm glad i was invited along, was well worth it...

before getting the lecture we got to fly to Vancouver... on a small plane, a bit lumpy but fun...here's a view as we were leaving Nanaimo Harbour...

crossing Georgia Strait

Vancouver Harbour

the size plane we flew in

 on the return trip we took the ferry and i got some rather 'chilly' shots of some of the coastal mountains by Horseshoe Bay... rather reminds me of the Fiords of Norway perhaps... and yes.. unusual at this time of the year...

Vancouver Skyline

bye bye Vancouver..... i'm so not a city gal.....

well that was Friday... Saturday was a fun day.... eldest granddaughter's prom day.... so old... just seems like yesterday she was a baby toddling about.....


what fun... down to the waterfront pictures galore... sushi for dinner,  then off to the dance... then after parties....
ahhh to be young!!

Sunday..... new day to do things..... the weather was stellar still and so the other two grandkids and i went to the beach.....


i loaned them my camera and they took some great pictures
of one of the eels they found


they had great fun... the eldest found a bucket and they wandered the beach looking for critter treasures... rocks and shells overturned, crabs a plenty, some bullheads (sculpin) and a few starfish...
and this dead fish below... which we think is a Pacific Needlefish, scanning the internet i came up blank.. anyways if you know what it is.. please let me know... 


and now you know why so little gardening this week....

p.s.  thanks to queen of string who knew who this little guy is...   http://www.elasmodiver.com/Bay_Pipefish_Pictures.htm