The kids and I had an opportunity to head west with Dana and Cara to help move Cara out to College. Although it was just at the beginning of "our life will soon by chaos with outfitting season", Steve sent us off with his blessings. Imagine travelling 30 hours with 3 children (4 years, 2 years, and 1 year)....the kids did better than I thought they would but also worse than I thought. I'm sure that Dana was happy to be back home in the end :)
We took three days to get out there - 2 days in Abbotsford - and then 2 days to get back. Along the way out we stopped at different little "touristy spots" for the kids to stretch their legs. First stop was "The Enchanted Forest".
Of course, once we got to Sicamous we had to stop at the famous dairy and have some of their famous ice cream and check out the calves.
We spent the second night in Salmon Arm. The next morning, before we headed off, we stopped at a Go Cart place. The boys were sooo excited! I'm so glad that we took them on this special treat.
We stayed with my best friend and her family. Uncle Matt and Auntie Sarah are sooo great with our children! It really is a blessing to have friends that will invest themselves into your children. This was also such a treat as it was the first time to truly visit and spend time with them since they became parents (which sadly enough was 10 months ago) - they are amazing parents. Sullivan is such a fun, quiet, loving little boy. He wasn't too sure of the Parkinson circus when things got loud but overall everyone did just fine :)
Sarah and I loaded the kids up and took them to Stanley Park for lunch and the Vancouver Aquarium for an afternoon play time. Good fun!
Ezra waited ALL DAY for the shark tank. From the moment we got there he was asking to see it - just happened to be the last thing we saw - and it didn't disappoint!
One afternoon we headed to a park to burn some energy.
It was Matt's busiest time of year, but Ezra was still able to get some Uncle Matt time in.
The day that we were to leave, I took the boys to the Apple Barn to burn as much energy off of them as I could. Sarah stayed back with Sullivan and Mckenzie so naps could take place. It was a great time for the boys and I to have some quality time together. If you are ever in the Abbotsford area and looking for something cheap to do with your children (or no children even!) the Apple Barn is the spot. Very. Cool. Place!
We also took the kids to the outdoor splash park. The kids loved it!
Ezra HATED the dunk bucket - Ryder LOVED it :)
On our travels back, we stayed at the Jasper Park Lodge - beautiful! Probably one of the most beautiful places I have ever been too. It was such a nice treat to be there - lots to do outside and run the kids loose as well :). Dana mentioned how Dale use to take her places like this - it was such an honour to be able to be there with her as she reflected back on those memories and also to allow her time to reflect.
We live in such a beautiful Province!
We covered two provinces in 6 days with three young children and Dana and I still have our sanity :). It was nice to get away - but also very nice to get home to Steve!
