June 8, 2013

My life feels like it's been a whirlwind for the past month and a half. With that, lots of things get put on the back burner! First off the to-do list becomes my blog! It easily gets put aside, but I eventually like to get it updated because it is a good overview of what we have been up to! An online diary of sorts...with nothing private included!

The month of May introduced us to my cousin's daughter Anja! She stayed with us for 5 weeks and went to school with Taylor on an exchange program [of sorts] with her school - in Geneva, Switzerland! We quickly fell in love with her and her easy manner and found it tough to say goodbyes! While she was here we tried to show her some of the highlights that Alberta offers! Drumheller, Muttart, Banff and wildlife were some things we fit into our schedule! Taylor toured her around with his friends as well and they took in West Edmonton Mall, school play, Whyte Ave. in the evening! It was a busy month of entertaining!

The last week of May, my friend Connie and I headed to Bull River, British Columbia for a week of hummingbird photography! We had signed up with the Gerlach Workshop over a year in advance and were excited to finally see it as a "to-do" on on our calendars! Having been to Bull River Guest Ranch before we knew the accommodations and food would be wonderful...the rest wast to unfold!

Once we got settled in, we were greeting by the Gerlachs and got to meet the rest of the group that we would share our week with, 11 photographers and 2 spouses. We quickly became a pretty close knit group considering the short time we spent together. Having a common interest is an instant way of bridging gaps!

The week flew by with thousands of photo opportunities and lessons learned! Several "ah-ha" moments will make my photography skills better for years to come! The Gerlach's have a great, relaxed way of explaining concepts so they are easily understood!

One event of the week which should not go unmentioned was the opportunity to spend time with Susanne, the Hummingbird Bander! She travels to different locations and literally bands hummingbird legs so they can be tracked. She collects data, such as weight, fatty deposits, lengths, etc... All of this helps to determine migratory information, mating  & nesting information...it's really a labour of love. Her work is all done voluntarily, and is fascinating to watch!

All of this led up to Taylor's grade twelve graduation ceremonies on June 1st, 2013...which will be shared in a separate blog post!

Signing off for tonight!