Kimler Adventure Pages (http://randsco.com)

The Edmonton Valley Zoo

Merry-go-Round: The highlight of Alex's trip to the zoo was a ride up & down, round-'n-round on the merry-go-round!

Got Fur? Alex is more concerned about appearances, than petting this very friendly goat, in the Children's Petting Zoo.

If one looks at the World through children's eyes, then all we saw at the Zoo yesterday were ... other kids. (That's not entirely true, but we did notice that Alex spent more time looking at the kids around her, than at the assortment of beasts from the 'Wild Kingdom'). We'd try to point out an animal, high in a tree (napping, no doubt, and so well camouflaged that you had to strain to see it) and all Alex could ogle at was the little girl standing beside her. Alex is a people person and the Zoo was a wonderful outing, although she would have been just as happy going to the mall. Mom and Dad were more impressed with the assemblage of animals at the Edmonton Valley Zoo, home to more than 100 exotic and endangered species, than Alex was.

Our first stop was the petting area, where Alex wasn't too sure about meeting goats, sheep and rabbits close up. We did coax her near a very friendly goat, though she was loath to reach out and actually touch it. The goat seemed very content to be near us and lounged happily. Alex twitched her nose appropriately at a rabbit, but only had eyes for the other, older kids that came to pet it. We thought for sure that Alex would like the baby lamb, but she was too worried about appearances, looking about to see if anyone noticed her wearing dapper sunglasses and a trendy hat.

The otters were swimming and playing in their small enclosure, doing back flips at the water's edge. So graceful are they in water and so comical on dry land, lumbering about. Alex spied a child's plastic toy in one part of the pen, which she thought would be fun to play with, while Mom and Dad spotted a tennis shoe. At first, we thought these were cast into the open enclosure by rowdy visitors, but we quickly realized that they were "toys", placed there for the raucous inhabitants. (There aren't too many otter-toys at PetSmart, so the zoo keepers must utilize the overflow from the 'lost and never found' box).

Taking in the Sights: Watching "Lucy" (one of two elephants) delicately scoop up alfalfa with her elongated probiscis.

The highlight of the day (for both Mom and Alex, I think) was the Merry-go-Round. Alex had a hoot, laughing and smiling while she went up and down, around and around. MUCH more fun than watching animals sleep, regardless of how big, colorful or strange they look!

Apparently, Alex knows all about the different kinds of animals, because she wasn't enthusiastic about any animal in particular. Many were sleeping and perhaps that's the reason. "What's the big deal Dad, these animals are just like Tuxedo ... they sleep all the time," she might have been thinking.

One Big Pussycat! "Kitty, kitty," said Alex, summing up her impressions of the Siberian tiger, "Meow".

Never before, has Alex seen so many different creatures: Dromidary camels, Guanaco llamas, Sezuan takin, emu, Goeldi's monkeys, snow leopards, a wolf, zebras, otter, big horn sheep ... the list went on and on. Her interest peaked, when we came to two Siberian tigers. She peered through the chain link fence and knowingly looked at these two large and ferocious carnivores. She spoke for the first time, as she had been quiet most of the morning.

"Meow," she said, thinking the two cats looked pretty much like large Tuxedos.

The Zoo was more fun for Mom and Dad, than it was for Alex (with the exception of the merry-go-round, perhaps). She did run up and down the grassy, open hills, ate graham crackers, stared at all the kids and by the time we left, was pretty knackered. Rachel has a final looming next week, but having recently completed a mid-term and a term-paper, she felt that she could take a breath and enjoy the long weekend. What better way to kick things off than a trip to the Zoo? It was a gloriously sunny afternoon. The sky contained a number of puffy white clouds, the kind your imagination can turn into frogs, planes and other mysterious shapes. It was the perfect day for a family outing.

"UP!" she says standing behind the newly constructed, knee-knocker pallet fence -or- "The Oop Containment Field". (The section she's standing behind is removable).

Finally, spring has sprung! It's raining today (sleeting, actually), but the past 5 or so days have just been beautiful. Glorious sunshine, warm(ish) temperatures and a snow-free ground to walk upon. We are happy.

It's been a great relief, to take Alex out-of-doors. She knows what 'going outside' means. She toddles down the steps (crawling backwards down them still) and into the mud room. She makes a valiant attempt to don her jacket or sweater and now knows to put on her 'sun hat'). Once outside, she heads down to the swing set, hoping that we get the hint and give her a push or two. Maybe a ride down the plastic slide, which has rapidly become one of her favorite 'thrills'! She'll climb on the glider and can even manage to get it rocking by herself. When she's not swinging, she's exploring. The problem with this is that she has no fear of anything and is more willing to expand her horizons than Mom & Dad are comfortable with. Combine this curiosity with a backyard that isn't fenced, too many cars going by, driven by people that are 5 minutes late for their very important date and you have the makings of a disaster.

So, Scott built a knee-high knocker fence that spans the width of the driveway. It's short enough for adults to step over, but tall enough to keep Alex confined to the backyard. Because we're in a rental home, we weren't too keen on dumping a pile of cash into the solution, so we ended up stealing liberating some wood pallets (though I mock, they were, indeed, destined for the trash). Busted apart and with the nails removed, the pallets provided the raw materials. Scott designed it with a pull-out section, so we can get the lawn mower and other large objects through.

Thus, the very first spring project: "The Oop Containment Field", has been completed.

Happy to be Outside: The Oop is very happy to be outside and models the back side of her new fence.

That's where we've been for the past few days ... outside, enjoying the sunshine and the warmth. We've thatched the back yard (getting 10-12 large trash-bags full of dead grass ... amazing). Built the fence (and painted it white). Pushed Alex about a million times on the swing and sent her down the slide, screaming with glee. Scott even managed to fly the $1 plastic helicopter a few times, before (idiot pilot that he is) crashed the thing into an electrical wire, breaking off a rotor. Until that time, Alex had great fun watching it fly and retrieving it. (Repairs have been attempted, but it is doubtful the thing will fly right again). We've raked up the garden, dusted off the deck chairs, had two BBQ dinners and gulped plenty of fresh air.

Ah... FINALLY, one of the mildest winters in Edmonton (but still the worst winter either of us have EVER experienced) is over! "You hear that snow? Stay AWAY!" we say.

Rachel even managed to avoid massive amounts of studying and joined in the family fun. This is her last week of classes and final exams are just around the corner. She's already bemoaning the effort that will be required over the next couple of weeks and the fact that she'll have only 5 days off before the madness begins again.

Unfortunately, during the building of the containment field, Scott (the old bugger that he is) managed to hurt his right knee. Probably nothing that time won't heal, but he's hobbling about, downing ibuprofen like candy and constantly complaining of pain. (Rachel can't wait for his knee to get better, as she is tired of him using it as an excuse to get out of tasks that involve kneeling - like diapering the Oop, bathing the Oop, putting the Oop's toys away.) Scott's worried that this acute knee pain just might become a chronic problem. ha ha

ENGINEERING SNAFU: Rachel pointed out a design flaw in the containment field, yesterday. She noticed that IF I hadn't placed the 4x4 post in the CENTER of the driveway, but instead, had placed it closer to the existing fence and made the whole middle section removable, we could get the Honda Accord (which is being stored) out of the garage. As it is now, we'll have to dismantle the fence when we move from here. (Of course, fixing it now would mean dismantling the fence, obtaining more lumber and rebuilding the majority of the fence). Hmmmm. The fence stays, but Scott is kicking himself for not thinking of this earlier! "D'oh!"

The Vancouver Sun newspaper ran a special article on Saturday, March 19th entitled "B.C. Heading for a Nursing Crisis". The upside, of course, is that Rachel will be graduating with a 4-year Nursing degree in little over a year. Job prospects in B.C. (and elsewhere) look good.

The article isn't available online, so I can't put up a link (I guess the Vancouver Sun wants you to actually PAY to read their paper ... go figure!). Some of the salient points are highlighted, below.

Read full story...

Decorator at work: Alex smiles, with 'egg-on-her-face', after having 'dropped the ball', er.. egg!.

Got Eggs? We got smart and put a bib on her! Alex inspects her finished product.

It seems fitting that the incongruous juxtaposition of a bunny rabbit and a chicken egg (symbols of the religious Easter holiday) should be explained by a landscaping website. For as much as chicken eggs have in common with rabbits, landscaping has with the resurrection of Christ.

What was revealed? Two things: First, the answer to the question that I seem to ask on an annual basis (but heretofore, have done nothing to resolve) and secondly, that foxglove (Digitalis) and monkshood (Aconitum) are poisonous to humans. If you too, wonder why rabbits are associated with chicken eggs, you might enjoy discovering WHY, in this landscaping article.

Enough, you say! Let's get on with what we really want to see: cute pictures of Alexandra Lynn, enjoying her first participatory Easter!

While those in Phoenix (and other points much further south than Edmonton) might enjoy a sunrise service and Easter egg hunt in the backyard, Easter was pretty much confined to the living room, in our house. There was a good six inches of snow blanketing the ground out front and in the back. Temps hovered just below the freezing mark, but it didn't dampen Alex's enthusiasm in her quest to find hidden eggs!

But, we're getting ahead of ourselves, because festivities really began the day before, with the decorating of hard-boiled eggs. It was really Scott's idea, as Alex had no clue or expectation regarding Easter. Scott has enjoyed being a kid again and egg decorating was no exception. A dozen fresh eggs were boiled alive, sacrificing their soft-side for the hard reality of Easter. A few cracked under the pressure, yielding only 9 satisfactory conscripts. (Of those nine, Alex broke two in the decorating ... so, in the end, only 7 eggs made it to 'the hiding', as it is called.)

Blue Hands: Alex wonders, for the first time: "Why are my hands turning blue?"

Mad Artist: Not confining her canvas to merely egg shells, we caught Alex 'experimenting' with color mixology on the dining room table!

THE OLD WAY: When Scott was a kid, colored liquid dyes were used, in bowls. Eggs were dunked and allowed to sit (the longer they sat, the more vivid the color). This yielded many plaid-like eggs, though wax crayons could be artistically employed to counter the "plaid look".

THE NEW WAY: The kit Rachel brought home contained tiny sponges and packets of pre-mixed, concentrated dye. The object was to DAB the egg with the sponge, which resulted in a speckled appearance. The plaid look, apparently, is passe. Instead of a wax crayon, clear stickers (in a variety of shapes) were employed to keep the dabbed dye off of the egg.

Which is better? Well, it must be said that speckled eggs look much nicer than plaid ones, but ... the stickers don't do a very good job (the dye gets under them) and the speckled eggs end up quite STICKY, even after they have dried. The mess, however (and fortunately for us), cleaned up completely in a snap.

Alex 'got into' the whole egg decorating thing, as you can plainly see. The fragility of the eggs and the complexity of the design process may not have been high on her list, but COLOR she understands well! So it was that she colored her eggs, ... her hands, ... her face and even the table (because after we were done, we forgot to throw away the unused portions of dye that remained in the packets and while Rachel and Scott were resting (decorating eggs with a toddler can wear a middle-aged parent out), Alex had discovered the remaining colors and was proceeding to finger paint her newest design right onto the kitchen table!) Thankfully, we caught her before her 'artwork' spread to the cushions, ... the floor or ... the walls! *sigh*

Eggs now decorated, we awaited morning for the hunt. Alex, of course, had no clue what was about to ensue. (So "the hiding" was mostly done in plain sight, though Scott did hide many of the small, chocolate eggs in more obtuse places - within Rachel's office. This was done to provide incentive to Rachel's late-night studying, but in the end, it backfired. So enamored with small chocolate candies is Rachel, that all homework ceased until the very last, well-hidden "incentive" was discovered and consumed. Shhhh... don't tell her, but I know for a fact that a handful remain. If she finds out, I'm afraid that she'll tear the place apart and all studying will cease!)

Got One! Chin covered with green drool, from a candy egg, Alex expresses joy over having "found" a dyed egg!

CHEEP-CHEEP: Alex eats a "peep" (marshmellow chick). It's true what they say about consuming sugar, kids really DO bounce off the walls.

Like mother, like daughter. It was discovered that Alex too, has a sweet tooth and this, more than the finding of hand-decorated eggs, spurred her in her quest. We hid "robin's eggs" (which are candy and chocolate-covered, malted-milk balls, shaped & colored like eggs). They are one of Scott's favorites and although Rachel purchased them with Scott in mind (bless her heart), I don't think he ended up consuming very many! Alex, it seems, got the lion's share. And, of course, they're just a tad big for her tiny mouth, which resulted in very colorful drool ... on her chin, her hands, the furniture and her clothes. But hey, she was having FUN!

She dutifully collected the decorated, hard-boiled eggs and placed them into a wicker basket. The robin's eggs were consumed the moment each was found, save for a few that Dad put into a clear plastic container, along with some blocks, which had a screw-top lid. If it weren't for that screw-top lid, there wouldn't have been any robin's eggs left for the following day. Alex was so sated with chocolate, that those eggs in the plastic container weren't much of a draw on Sunday. Come Monday, however, motivated by the plainly visible candy within, Alex set upon the task of opening the container. Fruitlessly she banged, tugged and tried to pry off the lid (she hasn't grasped the "righty-tighty, lefty-loosey" concept, yet). She is frustrated quite easily, but made her intentions very clear, by taking the container to Dad, plopping it in his lap, saying, "Thank you!" (As if the opening and her consumption of the candy within was a foregone conclusion). Unfortunately, Dad is so smitten by his begotten creature (and for her part, Alex CAN be quite cute), that he did his child's bidding, opened the container and gave her an egg. He did, however, have the foresight to extract only one and then closed it up again, thus saving the last piece until later in the evening, when the whole "Thank you" cuteness was repeated.

And with the final consumption of candy, our relatively non-religious, high-caloric celebration of the spring solstice, Christ's resurrection and the pagan God of Fertility, came to a close. Someone please tell the snow hares that frequent the front yard and the local weathermen that we are now officially into the spring season, because outside still pretty much looks like winter here!