What, are you all following me around?

This was very exciting news, of course.

It should come as no surprise that my family and I are, like many others, eager for the snow to melt and to get on with the oh-so-suburban task of getting our lawns green, lustrous, and healthy.

Our daughter, on the other hand, is eager to ride her bike around.

Either way, we have similar goals in mind, and are all rooting for the same thing: for the sun to melt the snow and that somehow, the tide of accumulated water will stay out of our basement.

(OK, that last one was more my wife and I, but I'm sure Gabrielle supports us there also.)

We spent a great deal of our time clearing off some of the accumulated snow off the back deck in order to get to the barbecue. Over two days, my wife chipped, and I scooped some 10,000 pounds of snow off the deck. The table and two chairs out there are now uncovered, and you can actually walk back there. All after only eight hours of shovelling time over Saturday and Sunday.

So, with sunny skies, a warm afternoon and some time on our hands for the first time in months, my wife, daughter and I co-ordinated with my sister-in-law, her two kids, her daughter's friend and other family members to plan a visit to the Ecomuseum in Ste. Anne de Bellevue. What could be better? Nice weather, go see the animals, get some fresh air, and relax just a bit. Sounds great, right?

Except everybody else had the same idea.

Without exaggeration, I can safely say that every person on the face of the earth was there, without exception.

The Ecomuseum parking lot was a free-for-all, and with an already-narrow driveway and the snow (yes, it's hanging in there) butting up against the road, it leaves little room for both people and cars on the approach to the entrance.

(Word to the wise, if you're headed out that way next weekend: drop the kids at the front with a parent and go park. It's a lot easier on the nerves.)

The Ecomuseum itself was a blast, as always. My daughter and I could watch the otters all day. Along with the wolves, bears and caribou, they’re one of the more spectator-friendly attractions at the Ecomuseum. Often, spectators at zoos or other animal observatories are at the mercy of the animals' relative shyness. There are animals at Granby Zoo I've still never seen, because they hide most of the day in the recesses of their pens.

Not these otters. These guys are about as shy as Lindsay Lohan. They swim slowly in front of the spectator window to let the kids watching get the full view as they flip and swoop through the water, showing off the whole time, not to mention their pandering to the cameras held by adults in the elevated viewing area about six feet above their pool.