Friday-Tuesday (if I can)

He's napping but his been down for almost an hour, so I don't know how much time I'll have.

Friday-The last day of our swimming lessons, and Dad slept in. Ella had told me he had had a lot of milk so we risked not having breakfast and rushed to swimming. The traffic light gods were smiling on us and we were only a few minutes late. Once again we were the only ones in the class. I'm glad we went though otherwise we would have missed out on getting his report card. He got two of them. One, an official looking document that we hand in every new set of lessons that will see him progress and one that the instructor in training had cut out of cardboard to look like a fish, with her comments written on it. He was told he was great at jumping in the pool, but had to practice his back float. I have to admit I am really quite proud of the little guy. We are off to Victoria tonight to tag along on Ella's work trip, and the place we are staying has a pool so we'll be able to practice some more.
Friday also marked Ella and my 5th anniversary. We went out for a nice meal at the Salmon House on the Hill which has great views of the city. It was a clear evening and you could see right across to Vancouver Island. We had a wonderful meal, they cook the salmon on alder planks and you can smell the smoke on you when you leave. Uncle Ben and Auntie Jen and Jen's sister Hanna babysat for us. By all accounts the little one was as good as gold, going to bed with no fuss.
Saturday morning saw Ella go shopping for supplies for her children's book party that she was hosting Sunday, and I went for my run. In the afternoon we went down to Cates Park to take in the local first nations cultural day. There were a few booths set up selling art and crafts, salmon barbecue and native dancing(which when we strolled by included the Squamish Nations Hawaiian Dance Troupe, very odd). Saturday evening saw my Mum and Dad stop by for a drink and a chat to wish us a happy anniversary and after they left we settled in to watch Narnia on DVD.
Sunday-The day of the big book party. "What is a book party?" I hear you ask. Similar to a tupperware party, candle party or an Anne Summers party but without the sexy underwear. People turn up, order these children books not available in shops, and as hostess Ella gets X number of books based on the sales generated by her guests. Unknowingly, Ella had planned her party the same day as Deep Cove Days which is a party down at the park, with local merchant booths, beer garden, entertainment etc. This had it's advantages and disadvantages. It was great because it provided Husband and children an outlet while Mum drank tea and ate biscuits, scones, etc. and oh yes spent money. The down side is the fair rides take up the parking spaces and by two o'clock in the afternoon there was no parking to be had and the traffic was pretty bad. Still a good time was had by all. Fin enjoyed watching the older kids play on the playground and down on the beach. The highlight of the day for me was watching the cardboard boat race. Teams built these canoe/kayak shaped boats out of cardboard and packing tape and one person from each team paddled these boats out past the swimming raft and back. A few made it and in impressive times. A couple capsized, but the crowd favorite was the one that just the tips were above the surface, I think the paddlers lifejacket had more to do with him floating then his boat building skills but there you go. Hopefully the BC Ferry we are about to catch is more water proof. Will try to fill you in on the rest later.