NUMBER 50!!!! We made it! Deon, Aunica, Sidda, Dimitri, Finn, and I have all officially been to all 50 United States! Quite a feat! Today, more driving. And some celebrating at the international border. Check out that clear cut border. And the bears! I lost count! Black and grizzly. And Deon saw a moose’s behind, but I didn’t, so it doesn’t count.And, on a side note, Finn is complaining about not having fun on his birthday. I think I’m going…
We have a freshly minted 6 year old in the house! Happy birthday to Finn! Crepes for breakfast were in order. It was a strange Sunday because, for the first time, there really weren’t any meeting houses close enough for us to attend. We started out the day in Watson Lake. I was particularly excited about the Signpost Forest. I didn’t find San Luis Obispo, but I did find Morro Bay and Paso Robles. And a geocache.Breakfast burritos and burgers for…
Guess what we did today? Drive! And drive, and drive… The views are captivating though. Deon says he is never bored driving here. And it’s wildflower season, so that is a special treat. And, bears! Lots! Our sightseeing spot for today was Liard Hot Springs. It absolutely did not disappoint. By far the best hot springs we have ever been. There are 2 big, natural pools, one considerably warmer than the other. The kids could splash and play all they…
We made it to the Beginning of the Alcan today! Which is *very* funny, because we sure have driven a long way to only be at the beginning! The Alcan begins in Dawson Creek. It is celebrating its 75th birthday this year. It was a collaborative effort between Canada and the USA to protect the west coast from Japanese invasion in WWII. It was an amazing feat, completed in just 9 months. Dawson Creek was a bit of a letdown,…
Today we got an early start, then stopped in Grand Prairie for the middle of the day. Deon still needed to get some work in, so we parked in a Walmart parking lot and I ventured out with the kids. Luckily we were walking distance to a couple of fun excursions. First stop was the Grand Prairie visitors center. We enjoyed the staff, and headed downstairs to the museum. Scavenger hunts, dinosaurs, Canadian history. The kids had a blast. Then…
After a few days of good hiking, we needed a break today. Plus laundry and a work day for Deon. We were able to find a parking spot near downtown easily this morning. I packed the laundry into the stroller (chuckled to myself all day about taking my laundry for a walk), and walked to the laundromat, dropping the kids off at a park along the way. And I thought to myself “people really live here? I wonder if they…
Today was one of those perfect days, even though it wasn’t. We didn’t get an early start. We rarely do, and this light late nights are really throwing us for a loop. We started from the Lake Louise overflow and drove as far as Golden, BC. Trouble afoot. Deon, stop the car! Turns out Deon had missed a turn about 10 minutes into our hour long drive. It was a beautiful drive though, and he had a great attitude about…
We have been to Banff before, and I love it here, but apparently so does the rest of Canada! It’s easy to see why, but it makes for lots of crowds on the trails, especially on this holiday weekend. Conveniently, the shuttle to LakeLouise picks up in the very parking lot we are staying. My little kids were sooo excited to ride a school bus. I remember Aunica being the same way. Lake Louise is incredibly beautiful. The immediate lakeshore…
Today was a bit of s recovery day, after finally falling into bed at 2am last night! We went to 11am church, which was uneventful. Lunch, then Costco to print pictures. 30 minutes later got a phone call that there wasn’t enough time to print the pics before closing time. Frustrating waste of time! Then we drove. We were headed for Banff National Park, one of my favorite places on earth (although I liked jasper better). The views in the…
I worked hard in my plans to be in Canada today, to celebrate it’s 150th birthday! We got a late start, but headed over to Fort Calgary. There were booths with giveaways (check out all those body stickers), a petting zoo, and music. We had a very nice picnic by the river. I was so proud of Sidda, as there was a Girl Guides booth and she jumped right in. She joined in their service of applying body stickers…