HAPPY BIRTHDAY DADDY!

You're the best daddy (jungle gym) in the whole world. I Love You!

Playing In the Water

On Tuesday, we all went to Shawnigan Lake to play in the water. Even Daddy got to come with us because he had a day off when it was sunny! He took some great pictures of me in the water. But I have come to understand it is very hard to take a bad picture of ME!

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Slide Shows by Daddy

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Red Pandas

Zookeepers across the continent are celebrating the birth of two extremely rare red pandas at Edmonton's Valley Zoo.

The cubs, which were born at 3:26 a.m. Tuesday, are part of a very small population of red pandas in the world. It's estimated that there are fewer than 2,500 red pandas alive in the wild because the animals' natural habitat in China, India and Nepal is being destroyed.

SNAKE!

This afternoon while I was playing in my playpen in the house, a little snake climbed up the hydrangea plant and said hello to me at the window. Mom took some pictures of him. He was very curious about me!

Talking dogs

Re-using Plastic Water Bottles

While people may think they're doing a good deed for the environment when they reuse water bottles for anything from orange juice in a bagged lunch to a week's worth of water refills from the office water cooler, researchers say they could be risking their health. Dangerous bacteria and potentially toxic plastic compounds have been found in the types of water bottles typically reused in classrooms and workplaces countrywide.

A study conducted in the United States suggests the kind of thorough washing that could kill bacteria might make the bottles unsafe in another way. Frequent washing might accelerate the break-down of the plastic, potentially causing chemicals to leach into the water, the study found. Preliminary research conducted by a graduate student at the University of Idaho found that with repeated use, toxic chemical compounds can migrate out of the bottles into the liquid inside. Although plastics experts contend the bottles are safe, the study ultimately concluded little is known about what happens when the bottles are used over and over again.

The Canadian Bottled Water Association advises against reusing the containers altogether. It says the containers are made for single use and should be recycled afterward, not reused. People would be unable to properly sterilize the bottles at home, and the industry doesn't evaluate the safety of the bottles for multiple uses, said Elizabeth Griswold, executive director of the Canadian Bottled Water Association. "I would assume a study done on reuse would be redundant, because that's not their purpose," she said. But while it is for different reasons, Griswold agrees with researchers that it isn't a good idea to use the same bottle repeatedly. "All I would be able to say is that it's not something we recommend."

Daddy's New Grill

My Grandpa Peterson gave my daddy a new barbecue for his Birthday (which by the way is August 25th), and I had my first taste of a steak bone. It was delicious, and I didn't want to give it up! But Mom made me have a bath right after because I had a very messy face.