Dino Day

Day 6
Kilometers travelled: 300

Toady was a BIG day for the Boate team and I do mean BIG. Today was Dino day. We bundled two very excited boys into the car and headed to Drumheller. I do remember the Badlands being one of my favourite spots on my teenage cross Canada trip and they did not disappoint. The deep ruts and multi coloured soil are an impressive site. As we got closer to Drumheller the boys were looking for dinosaurs at every turn. Their excitement was palpable and infectious. I could almost see the huge lizards lumbering through the rugged terrain. As we approached the museum they could no longer contain themselves. Nate practically sprinted to the door, except when he was distracted by the model triceratops family along the path, "Mommy there are baby dinosaurs!" he cried was stood starring at the collection.

The moment arrived, we paid for our tickets and headed into the galleries. Nate was not prepared for what awaited him. The eerie lighting and life size models made him very unsure. Will immediately stated looking at everything in the display and asking a thousand questions but Nate was paralyzed. These dinos were more than he had bargained for. Ken picked him up and assured him that he was only looking at models and that he was safe, I'm not sure that Nate bought it. Luckily, the next section of the museum was very interactive with no giant lizards in sight. There were exhibits about the beginning of time and evolution, although they were not scary they also were not terribly exciting for a three and five year old! We moved on to the big hall that holds black beauty, the T-Rex. Again, Will couldn't see enough and was constantly moving from display to display wanting to know everything about the bones. Nate however, hovered at the door. I went over to him, "Do you want to hold me hand?" I asked, Nate replied with, "Will he eat me?" I assured him that he would not be food for the T-Rex that day but he wasn't buying it. "But Mommy, will he eat me?" At this point, I took the scientific route and explained that they were only bones and that dinosaurs have not lived on this planet for millions of years. Only then did Nate believe that what he was looking at was a pre-historic fossil. From that point on Nate was unstoppable. He was curious, adventurous and was constantly saying, "Mommy, follow me" or "William, you have got to see this!" We entered the pass port through time which took us from the Cambrian era to the ice age. Turns out, Will's favourite part of the whole day was walking through the iridescent blue tube that represented Earth before there was life! Next came this amazing room simulated to look like the underwater Cambrian sea. There was a Plexiglas floor with replicas of ancient creatures. Will took a photo with each step he took. His five year old eyes thought that this was the best thing they had ever seen. We completed our journey through time, had lunch and then hiked through the bad lands. On our way back to the museum Ken and I were walking behind the boys. The boys were climbing up a red rocky hill and there was a massive expanse of blue sky beyond the hill. We were surrounded by ancient volcanic ash deposits and land forms. I stopped and thought, life may never be this good again. We are in this stunning place with two little boys who are inhaling every last drop of experience.

We had signed the boys up for a 'Dino Discovery Hour'. This consisted of an hour with a museum teacher who thought lots of things I didn't even know. They also got to make Paleontologist visors and do a little archaeological dig (which was very 'Dig It' for any HCCers who may be reading this blog!) Will and Nate dove into each and every activity and Nate had an answer for every question the teacher asked. He also didn't buy all her 'facts' but with a little convincing he finally understood that dinosaurs only live on land. They do not swim or fly. When the program was over we ushered two exhausted but very happy little boys back to the car. As we were leaving Will said, "when I'm 18 or 19 I can come back and work here!" He hasn't taken off his paleontologist visor since and he fell asleep with his new dinosaur and dinosaur book in his hand!

When we arrived back at Lisa and Don's house, Lisa had arranged and family dinner so that I could visit with my cousin Gord and his two boys along with my Godparent's other son, Tom and his family. It had been many years since I had seen most of these people and it was so good to see them.

I can now admit that I was very apprehensive about how this trip would go but I wouldn't change it for anything. The brilliant thing about travelling with a 3 and 5 year old is that there is no,"Mom, I'm bored". They are interested and enthusiastic about everything. Tomorrow is our last day in Calgary. We have a big surprise in store for our big train lover!