Thar she blows

Today we went on a whale boat tour with O'Brien's Whale and Bird Tours. We were quite excited to see Puffins and humpback whales. The Atlantic Puffin is the official bird of Newfoundland and Labrador. Atlantic Puffins are pigeon sized seabirds with a characteristic orange beak, that nest in colonies on small, rugged islands. It was at one of these small islands, Gull Island, that we saw thousands of these birds. It was quite the sight to see; tons of black and white birds with bright beaks sitting along the edge of the island. They were often in groups. They were also flying around in the sky and it was like when you see bats flying out of a cave on tv, there were that many. There were also seagulls and muirs (sp? could also be merr, murre or mur). Muirs look like minature penguins in colour and posture. They were so cute.

The boat

On the boat

Puffins hanging out on side of island. The holes in the island are their little homes with 2 compartments - 1 where they lay the eggs and 1 where they go to the washrooom.

Close-up of Puffins

Tons and tons of Muirs on the side of the island. The Muir seem to stay on the rocky part and the Puffin stays on the grassy part.

Close-up of Muirs (with 1 taking flight)

Birds flying around the island

After slowly coasting by Gull Island we went out into the water some more to look for humpback whales. Luckily we spotted 2, although we only kept up with 1. For the longest time all I (Bambie) could see was the water being sprayed from the blowhole, and then finally I saw the back and tail. WOW! It was beautiful. A couple times the whale would dive and we'd sit around for what seemed like eternity (probably 6 minutes) waiting for it to resurface. I never saw the head, and it didn't jump, but many times as we'd see the water spray from the blowhole we'd also see the back and top fin and beginnings of the tail. At one point the whale was quite close to our boat and right in front of us, and gave us a beautiful, close look at it's huge tail as it did 1 final dive before we left. Unfortunately I didn't get the full tail in it's glory, but I will post a picture of what it looked like. It was exhilarating to be that close to a whale. While I was hoping we'd see a pod, I would definately go whale watching again. The whole trip was breathtaking.

Back fin of whale. You can see the mist from the blowhole to the right of the picture.

Whale diving and tail just coming out of the water.

This is what the sequence looked like (not a picture I took).

Just as an aside, I brought Gravol incase 1 of us got seasick and it turns out it was a good thing I brought it too. Not for us as we were fine, but a man on the boat was seasick and I gave him a couple tablets. Why didn't more people think to bring Gravol though? *shrug* Oh well!

I got a new job!!!!!

Yep, without looking I got a waaaaay better job than I currently have. Chris was looking at jobs and saw one looking for a Clinical Research Assistant so I applied on a whim. 12 hours later I got a call for an interview. I had the interview that morning and received the offer of employment that afternoon. As a Clinical Research Assistant I will be doing data entry of the findings from drug studies (patients stats, side effects, etc...), filing, and regulatory duties (acting as a liason between our company, the sponsors which I am assuming are the pharmaceutical companies, and the ethics board). I actually am the only one given the regulatory duties as the VP was doing them and no longer wants to as she has other things she needs to concentrate on. Yep, that's right, I'm doing 1 of the jobs of the VP! So I will be making more money (score!), getting full benefits (score!), and this will look awesome on my resume and could lead to some great opportunities (score!). As well, the company is expanding and the VP told me the possibilities are endless for someone with my science background (she's already talking about me completely running Phase 1 trials). Only downside is it's in Newfoundland and we don't plan on being here forever. But at least it's a step in the right direction and closer to my education and what I'd like to do in the future than what I currently am doing.
I will still be working at the doctors' office 1-2 evenings per week - it's only 3 hours per evening clinic and since it's within walking distance of our home I'd be silly not to do it. It's extra money in our pocket.

Happy Anniversary to us!!!

June 10, 2009 marked our 3 year wedding anniversary. I can't believe it's been 3 years already. For our celebration we're going to see Cirque de Soleil but they're not in St. John's yet so we can't go until June 28. However, on the day of our anniversary we had a nice (meaning expensive) dinner at The Keg. It was delicious!!!

We've come to the realization that every anniversary has been spent in a different city; year 1 was in Paris, year 2 was in Toronto, and now year 3 in St. John's. We're hoping to spend our 4th anniversary in London, England.

So to commemorate the occassion I thought I'd post our wedding vows, a wedding photo, and a photo from this anniversary. Our vows still say perfectly how I feel about Chris.

I love you! You are my best friend, my love, and my future. I pledge to be true and loyal to you, to support your dreams, and offer you courage through all your endeavors. I promise all my heart's devotion and a hand to hold in yours through each tomorrow. You are my hope, my strength and my inspiration, and I promise to be yours. From this day forward, you shall never walk alone. My heart will be your shelter, and my arms will be your home.

Toronto trip

I finally was able to go back to Toronto to visit my family and friends from May 30-June 7/09. That meant that I got to celebrate my birthday with them, which was an added bonus. That also meant I got to go to my favourite restaurant for my birthday, which is a long-standing tradition. The trip was great, it was awesome to see everyone again. With my friends it was like I never left, it was great! I sure missed joking around with them. I loved spending time with my family, and seeing how much my niece (Maya) and nephews (Zachary and Oliver) had grown. Maya is turning into a beautiful girl who loves ballet (she kept asking me to make movies of it), Oliver is huge compared to when I last saw him (he's now almost 1 years old), and Zachary talks up a storm. I missed talking with everyone, and just enjoying their company. As if spending oodles and oodles of time with my friends and family wasn't enough, Soula's baby decided to enter the world 2 weeks early so I could meet him! He is such a sweetie, and so very adorable!! Thanks Milan for arriving early so Auntie Bambie could meet you when you were 2 days old. I also got to meet Milan's 6 week old cousin, Maria. That family definitely has good genes because both babies are soooo cute!! My trip was definitely the boost I needed to keep me going. Hopefully it's not long before I go back, and hopefully then it's for good!
Birthday dinner with the best friends ever!


When did they get so big? (Zachary, Oliver, and Maya)


Zachary very proud of himself for wearing Aunt Bambie's shoes


Family photo (missing a few key members)


Me holding Milan at 2 days old - I think a baby looks good on me.

Same cause, different city

On May 24 we will be participating in the MS Walk. It's our 2nd year participating, and we intend on participating every year until there is no longer a need. This is a cause that's close to our hearts because Chris' mom suffers from MS. Your generous donations can help find a cure! To donate online simply go to one (or both) of our websites:

Chris: https://msofs.mssociety.ca/2009walk/Sponsor.aspx?PID=1064094&L=2
Bambie: https://msofs.mssociety.ca/2009walk/Sponsor.aspx?PID=1064626&L=2

Thank you for your support!

Really???

It is the middle of April.

Yesterday was 8°C.

Today I woke up to snow on the car. What is going on????? There's nothing on the ground so it's not much, but it's still snow!!! Just plain gross!

Iceberg straight ahead!

We saw our 1st iceberg!! It was really cool. I get emails that tell me where icebergs have been sighted, and finally there was 1 close enough for us to drive and see. So last night after work we headed north, along the coast and spotted one. It seemed so close to the shore; it was right behind people's houses. Could you imagine if that was the view out your window everyday. It was truly beautiful. We hope to see many more!