The Show Must Go On

 Excited about the prospect of Stampeding, the kids don western gear.

 I always love the ag buildings and the horses.

 The kids tried their hand at milking Bessie.

We learned a surprising amount of information about draft horses and early farming.

Bowmont Park

 My little bears.

Changed watersheds

The TransCanada was washed out in the floods near Canmore and the watersheds in Kananaskis are forever changed by the deluge.

 Patrick took a helicopter tour of the mountains.

 We enjoyed the stories and photos afterwards.

Playground

 The kids give Kona a drink of water after our walk.

 Silly and fun.

Vancouver

 I was able to go visit a dear friend in Vancouver for a few days and commune with the sea.

 We saw ghost cars in chalk and walked in the forests and on the beach at low tide.

Perhaps it was chalk - this youngster enjoyed scooping handfuls of the white substance and flinging it into the air.

 I appreciated the mandala design on an absent sunbather's towel.

 And the sunflower umbrella made for an interesting bloom.

We had lunch at the art museum and I snapped one of my favourite photos of a nearby fountain, looking for all the world like the unmanned bike is about to attempt the ascent.

Winging my way back to Calgary.

Moose in our back corridor

 It was finally warm enough to wear swimsuits and break out the inflatable kiddie pool.

I watched perplexed as a large moose wandered through the back corridor in the evening. We came out on the deck and it stopped to gaze at us. It meandered towards the pathway and I saw a bike rider approaching around the corner. Sadly, I did not see what happened but I can only assume moose and rider were equally surprised.

Our little community garden made a valiant attempt to grow. The local rabbits clearly liked our sprouts so we had to put up the functional but aesthetically questionable fence.

Canada Day

 Calgary rallied and showed spirit and helped clean up in time to celebrate Canada Day. We headed down to Fort Calgary using a slightly circuitous route, ensuring the roads were opened.

 The kids enjoyed a pony ride.

 We spoke to a man and his grandson who had lovingly restored a Ford from the early 1900's over many years. Kaya was permitted to sit carefully inside.

 Ah - remembering back to the Dukes of Hazard and the days of the General Lee.