Tuesday, May 29, 2012

Fun Run

Last Sunday Elise entered a fun run at Alice Lake that was done in conjunction with an adult event. It consisted of a single lap around Alice Lake on a pleasant, forested trail. Elise did great, and although she didn't win she was one of the few kids I saw who actually ran at a good, steady pace and used decent technique. Other kids were sprinting and stopping, getting carried by their parents and getting pulled along by hand. My guess it the run was about 1.5 kilometres long, a good length for their age. As each child ran across the finish line, they were handed a freezee - a fine prize for a job well done.




Lately, Elise has been documenting life around the house. Here are a few candid shots from her camera.

A self portrait in her bedroom. Always a popular subject.


Tia in the kitchen.


Her "science" table in our living room. This is where the future geologist keeps her collection of rocks and minerals.


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Pam cleaning Elise's room, for the 743rd time.


Finally, somebody's got a VERY loose tooth that has been dangling for weeks. In fact, it now sticks almost straight out of her mouth. We call it the "snaggle tooth". It's not pretty, but I needed to document it for future reference. Elise showing it off!

Thursday, May 24, 2012

More Artwork

I thought I'd upload the card that Elise made me for my birthday this year. It's a picture of me skiing, and it looks like I'm about to crash into a cactus, but Elise assures me it's just a tree. Either way, it looks like I had a close call!

Lately she's been drawing dolphins jumping out of the water. That's her new thing, and she's becoming quite skilled at it.



Also, Sharon Plumb gave me two postcards that her parents had saved from their time in Rossland. The first is of the official opening day on Red Mountain and if you look very closely you can actually a skier riding the chairlift. The second is a shot of Columbia Avenue (main street). For those of you that have spent time there, I thought you'd find them interesting.


Tuesday, May 22, 2012

Spring Stuff

We've been out enjoying the nice spring weather over the last couple of weeks. It's been truly beautiful and we've done our best to make the most of it. I finished my book project a couple of weeks ago and Pam is into the final leg of her school year, so things are winding down after an intense winter.

We had a good year skiing, and both Pam and I enjoyed heading up to the mountains with Elise and various friends. We have purchased a pass for next season and already signed Elise up for 15 weeks of lessons. She did well with her six lessons this year and enjoyed them, so we thought we'd experiment with a longer set next winter and see how it goes.

Here's Elise and I enjoying true spring (summer!) conditions on Blackcomb during the second weekend of May. It was so hot I was skiing in my T-shirt...comfortably. We had a nice time and Elise skied through the Superpipe (a giant half pipe) twice!



Next up was the Squamish Youth Triathlon. A friend of ours put together a team and needed a "swimmer" (the race is a relay), so they called for Elise. We spent a few weeks "training" for the swim, which consisted of two pool lengths (out and back). During these training sessions, we determined that Elise could, in fact, make it out and back, much to every one's relief. Technique was lacking, but her endurance was good.

The morning of the race. We lined up in the gym at the Brennan Park Leisure Centre to sign in.


Elise getting her number marked on her leg and arm.


The team from left to right: Elise, Hazel (the runner) and Aidan (the biker).


Elise waiting in the holding are outside the pool. We thought the volunteers did an amazing job of running so many kids through in such an organized manner.


On the pool deck with her group.


On goes the swim cap. She'd never worn one before.


Lining up in her lane. They sent five kids in each lane and staggered their starts. There was still a a fair number of mid-lane collisions, though. It was a tad chaotic, but I thought the kids managed well for their age. Elise was in the seven and under category, the youngest in the race.


Getting ready to start. Parents lined the side and end of the lanes. It was exciting! I'm sorry to say I don't have any pictures of the actual race, but this is because I was filming it. Elise did well, and actually used the front crawl for about half of the first length. She then tired and reverted to a combination of dog paddling and underwater gliding, her go-to technique.


The team with their medals. This was followed by a bouncy castle session and some face painting. A good time was had by all! Elise wore the medal and her shirt all day, and then again to school on Monday. She is very proud and was mentioned in her school newsletter. She was the only child from Stawamas Elementary (Pam and Elise's school) that entered.


Elise made her second official climb up the Chief's Apron the same weekend. This time we climbed Banana Peel (5.7). It was about seven pitches of low-angle slab climbing, and she did the entire route on her own except for a short, steep crack (about 10 feet). Here she is posing at the base with the rope, which she carried up the approach. It was a hot day!


Pam and Elise on the third pitch. Both are tied to the end of the rope. I go first, set an anchor, and then belay them from above as they climb up to my stance.


A week later, Elise led her first rock climb at Cheakamus Canyon (she pulled the rope behind her and clipped it into the protection points as she climbed). I went first and set all the protection points at close intervals, and then ascended a rope beside her while she climbed in case there was an emergency. She did fine, and was very comfortable on the climb since she'd done it many times before.



Relaxing after the ascent.


Finally, Elise has been getting more adventurous when it comes to writing. Here, she composed a short note to Pam and I. See if you can read it...


I think it reads: "Elise Josie, The wind tells me never give up". Priceless...

Marc