One last Olympic hurrah

We ventured downtown this afternoon for a final bit of Olympic fun before the Winter Games close tomorrow. After visiting Robson Square to watch some skating, we paid our final respects to the Olympic flame. We also managed to catch the last rock thrown in the men's curling final through a restaurant window and cheered Canada's latest gold medal with others on the street. A passerby commented to us, "Another gold medal? That's three for you today. Congratulations." He can't speak for Mama or Gwendolyn, but Daddy sure felt good to be Canadian at that moment.

Three today, and thirteen in total. Maybe there will be another golden moment from our men's hockey team tomorrow? And we can expect some more great performances from our Paralympians in a couple of week's time.

Go Canada Go, indeed.

Back from a short time away

The Ronaghans took an Olympic break this week and headed to the west coast of Vancouver Island. You may remember our trip there last year, when we visited Tofino. This time it was down the road to Ucluelet, where we found a lovely cabin to rent for a few nights. The weather was a bit soggy, but we still managed a fair amount of beach combing and sightseeing.

The Olympics weren't too far away -- we were able to cheer the Canadian team on via computer and television. Now we're back in the thick of it for the last few days... Go Canada Go!

February photo album

Here's a small collection of additional photos from the past week or so:

• Working on her next masterpiece
• Mastering the art of the straw
• Catching up on the news
• Some quality time with Zoey and Mama
• Getting cozy with the stuffy gang

Presenting Torch Girl!

Witnessing the torch relay has clearly been the Olympic highlight for Gwendolyn. It's one of her favourite current subjects, both in conversation and for imaginative play.

Here we have a photo of our "torch girl" with her Duplo torch -- complete with flame block at the top -- as well as a movie of one of our many recent torch relay reenactments.

BTW, we kept Gwendolyn up way past her bedtime last night (with no complaints from her) so that we could walk to False Creek and witness the nightly fireworks display. Now she knows what all the racket is about!

More Olympic adventures

The family took advantage of the sun's appearance and wandered downtown to see the Olympic flame -- also known as "the Olympic fire", if you're Gwendolyn -- this morning.

Yes, its behind a big chain link fence, but given the recent nonsense happening here recently (and with the promise of more to come, unfortunately) we were not all that surprised.

Even though you couldn't get close to it, seeing the flame in person was still a very impressive experience, and brought home the fact that yes, the Olympics really are happening here, in our city.

It was also very strange to see so many people in that part of the downtown core on a Sunday; typically, the area is as quiet as a tomb once office hours end on Friday evening.

Another highlight of the day was a person in a big old bear costume walking around the sidewalk, greeting passers by -- and high-fiving Gwendolyn, of course. Sorry, no pictures though -- Daddy was holding G. and the camera at the time.

Hugs and Kisses

This little "cutey-patootey" wishes you all a happy Valentine's Day!

It's feeling very Olympic around here...

Whether you agree with them or not, it's hard to avoid getting caught up in the energy surrounding the 2010 Winter Olympics/Paralympic Games, which our city hosts starting tomorrow. We won't be attending any of the sporting events, but we'll try to soak up some of that energy as visitors from all over the world converge here over the next month.

This evening, we trekked out to see a leg of the Olympic torch relay -- a quick dose of Olympic spirit, and a bit of history to boot. Here are a few photos:

• Mama with our little Canadian
• Daddy holding Gwendolyn en route (in case you're wondering, G. is holding her official RBC Torch Relay tambourine)
• "Our" torch bearer prior to receiving the flame
  
• The flame passes us on its way to downtown Vancouver
  

It was all over in a matter of minutes, but we're glad we took it in. Gwendolyn was very impressed by the "lady with the fire" and the police officers on bicycles which lined the route.

Go Canada Go...