Victoria

I was away for a second weekend in a row. The timing was not great, but teacher professional days are set the year before and the province wide one is a big one. So, Lesley and I decided to go to the primary teacher's conference in Victoria. We left on Thursday already so that we wouldn't have to take a ferry the morning of the conference. The weather on Thursday was beautiful and the ferry ride was amazing because of the views, but also the colours of fall and the sunset. The conference was at The Empress and the attached conference center. What a beautiful venue. And so close to everything. So in our free time we were able to walk and explore downtown Victoria. 

The conference itself was actually really good. Unfortunately I have been to a lot of terrible professional days where I learn nothing. This was definitely one of the better ones. Of course it helped a lot that we made a weekend of it and were also able to enjoy the pool and sauna in the hotel. But still, I took notes, I learned some new things and I got a lot of ideas for things I will implement into my classroom. 

Since we stayed until Saturday, which was a completely free day, we were able to have a lazy morning, go for brunch and do some shopping. Arriving home on the 5pm ferry and passing Tsawwassen Mills was just too great a temptation, so we made a "quick" stop. All in all, it was one of the best professional days ever.

Women's Retreat

Recently, I had a fabulous time at my third Christ City women's retreat. In the past I have often eschewed women's events because they are often corny and full of awful icebreaker games and singing Kumbaya and holding hands. Well, that last part might be an exaggeration, but you get the idea. I don't know why some people think that women prefer Chicken Soup For The Soul over solid Bible teaching, but that seems to often be the case. But not at Christ City and especially not this time. We had a great Bible teacher who went through Ephesians with us. She made us think and discuss and pray and it was meaningful and deep. I have often said that my measure of a good lecture or sermon is whether it challenges me and makes me think. Well, I am still pondering over the messages from the retreat two weeks later.  

The retreat was at Rockridge in Princeton and the drive there sucked. Sally my roommate and I regretted signing up for the retreat at all. It was dark and rainy and we had worked all day. But, when we finally got to the retreat, we immediately changed our minds. We saw friends, our room was great, the resort was beautiful and had lots of lounging areas. There was lots of time to hang around, walk, eat, read and drink tea. I was able to catch up with friends and get to know some new people. Even though there were about 150 women at the retreat, there was ample space and lots of different areas for chilling, so it never felt crowded or like there were too many people.

I came away from the retreat refreshed and happy. 

San Francisco

I spent last weekend in San Francisco with my friend Lesley and her two daughters. It was such fun. We walked a lot. We took in some sights. We shopped. We ate great food. We read books. We sat by the pool. The hotel we stayed at was right in Fisherman's Wharf, so there was lots to see just by walking down the block.