bestees

this is the daniels family.  they are the best.

this is lincoln.  he's three.  and says things like "as well".

this is myla.  she's smiley.  except when she's not.  then she's really not. 

these are some of the best people i know. 

i love this family.

days 5-7-ish

aah, the prairies.  they have been good to us.

aside from a few run-ins with trees, keys locked in the car and the incessant bugs (6 bites in two days and counting), our time on the prairies has been quite enjoyable.

we've gotten to see old friends from cliff's panic squad days, old friends from our college days

a pleasant surprise, 

old friends from cliff's camp days, old friends from my work with mbmsi

…lots of reconnecting.  and memories!  having been a student on campus 13 years ago to be returning alumni with three kids in tow…that's a trip.  is it just me, or do college students look like 10 year olds these days?  was i ever that young?  we even returned to the spot of our first kiss and reenacted for old times sake.

one thing that has continually blessed me at every stop along the way has been my kids' flexibility.  they are so sweet (a little extra napping in the car has helped) 

and ready to engage with nearly every person we have encountered.  there have also been SO many treats along the way…older kids who wanted to play with them, random pets (chinchillas included) they've gotten to cuddle, amazing new toys at every house (including mariokart with lloyd & benj), even the rest stop along the highway offered an open field for a little soccer, wrestling and kd (i wasn't joking about the food, people).

and the  weather!  oh my word, the weather.  better than we could have even imagined.  sun everyday.  tank tops.  shorts.  flip flops.  the best.

thank you prairies!  we're going to miss you.

day four

started a little discouraging.  rain.  slow getting out of calgary.  kids had to say good-bye to their new best friend, "linca".  4 hours of driving to get to a place 2 hours away.  broken tail light (or so we thought).

so when we arrived at southern alberta bible camp to VERY friendly faces, it was such a welcome sight.  steve and leigh ann were staff at circle square ranch in ontario where cliff worked for a few years in high school.   we've only seen them a couple of times in the past 10 years, but they are so warm, that it was easy to feel right at home.  and the kids could run (though they chose to ride in strollers instead)!

we saw our first real wildlife...

the kids tried tether ball for the first time (an accident waiting to happen)...

and we had great visits and got more needed rest.

don't worry.  we did.

day three...

...goodness.  we remembered one of the reasons we took this trip in the first place.  to connect as a family and with friends.  oh, and to rest.  and this day had it all.

one of my dearest friends, jules, and her family live in calgary.  we were only planning a quick stop with them, but after changing our route, we realized we had more time.  and it was so needed.  after doing so much driving, we just needed to slow down for a bit.  hence, why it took me a couple days to pound out the blog.  because we were actually having fun!

jules and i may have had a bit of a reputation in college...let's just say we were "edgy".  thrift store clothing (before it was cool to shop at thrift stores - we're talking 13 years ago, people), brightly colored hair, we changed the words of 80s raps and used them to ask out boys, loud (when we wanted to be), quiet (when we were trying to appear mysterious)...you know, "those girls".  i love this woman and even though we rarely get to see each other, it is so rich when we do.

and now we both have families and guess what?  our kids get along!!  hallelujah.

lincoln is the sweetest most generous and kind little boy you will ever meet.  myla almost always has a smile to offer and is going to be a stunner like her mom.  and her husband rod is a pretty stand up guy.  and he has an accent, so he and cliff hit it off right away.

day two...

....is so long gone, but i figure i better blog about it lest the memories be lost forever.

day two was hard.  a lot of driving, super snotty kids (as in mucous), parents with very little sleep under their belts = a recipe for disaster.

thankfully, we were driving through the mountains.  it was impossible not to have the psalms running through my head...drinking in the incredible and vast beauty of creation.  pretty impossible to deny there is a God.

most notable thing about day two?  golden.  for those of you who know our history, you know why golden is a big part of it.  golden is where cliff and i had our first DTR.  it's a crazy long story, but we were driving back to bc from briercrest with three other girls, got into a car accident which broke our axle, had to spend a night in a hotel room and left golden as an "official" couple.  it was kind of funny driving in, seeing the Husky where we had coffee (classy, i know).  the funniest thing was that the stop sign which we had driven over which broke the axle...was on the ground as someone else had made the same mistake.













we also arrived in alberta.  the day was so crisp and clear, i wished i could be riding bike through banff.  and i don't ride bike, so that's just how amazing it was.

all in all, looking back, day two was actually okay.  and british columbia?  in case you ever doubt it, you are beautiful.  seriously.

here are the stats of our day:
2nd stop: calgary
host: rod and jules daniels
second meal: greek chicken pitas, pasta salad and couscous (note: i totally didn't make this meal)

one stat i forgot to include on my first list:
# of prangs sick = 2
# of prangs sick as of day 2 = 5.  oh yeah.

good-bye rockies!  tomorrow's gonna be good.

day one

so.  today we set out as a family on a grand adventure.  abbotsford to ottawa and back.  in a 29 foot rv.  so many stops along the way, so many people and sites to see, lots of bonding to do.

this was day one.
first stop: revelstoke
first supper meal: kraft dinner, farmer sausage and green beans
first host: koa
josiah's favorite thing about today: the campground park

notes:  never, ever stay in the revelstoke koa.  josiah's favorite thing is ironic as this park is seriously ghetto.  missing key parts of safety equipment, rusted beyond recognition and parts that are still attached are sharp.  like knives.
as far as the meal goes, i may stop posting that...as i imagine this may be as gourmet as it gets.

that's it for today...i leave you with a picture of us at our departure from my parents' place this morning (and a few from the road).  excuse the bedhead...again, that might be as good as it's gonna get.

and my first photo in a series i like to call "canada rearview"