Alberta Holiday

We had a lovely week away in Alberta. Lots of driving, beautiful scenery, and catching up with friends. The weather was warm and sunny (not many clouds). Since being back in Vancouver it's been cooler unfortunately. Hopeful it warms up again soon.

You can see some pictures from our trip here.They have captions, so I won't repeat myself too much here on the blog. Here's a quick rundown.

Day 1: Flew into Edmonton. Ate lunch straight away, but Daniel's stomache must have still been flying, cos he brought his lunch back up (conveniently caught in his scoop bib). Daniel's carseat and playpen did not arrive with our luggage, so the airline loaned us a seat, and the hotel had a playpen available. Rented a car. Our real luggage did not arrive til 9.30 that night.
Day 2: Drove south via Red deer and Calgary to Banff. Lots of construction, so it was a long day. Had to pay a fee just to drive into Banff park (we didn't know about this). Found our hotel. Had a quick drive through the main strip of Banff and had dinner at a nice Greek Restaurant.
Day 3:Went to Bow Falls lookout (not really falls, just rapids), took the Gondola at Banff Springs to get a great vantage point of the area. Enjoyed a Corona, potato chips & a book on the balcony while Daniel napped. Went for a short walk around the Cave & Basin, a hot spring. Couldn't do too much because of Grizzly sightings. Nathan went to get Chinese, and Daniel projectile vomited over me, the floor, one of the beds. After that he felt fine.
Day 5: Drove to Lake Louise. Mareesa misnavigated and we ended up driving into British Columbia. Realised our mistake (added 90 mins to our trip), turned around, headed North to a truck stop and then East to Rocky Mountain House. The most beautiful scenery of our trip. Mareesa also forgot to write down our next address, so we had to ask a hotel for their internet use, but couldn't get in contact with Daniel and Tyler. Still forgot to write down their phone numbers. Stopped at a MacDonalds for a snack, and a stretch, but not wifi. Daniel met some friendly horses. Drove around the streets looking for unprotected internet signals and called to find our next address (bout 6pm by this time). Finally arrived at Danielle & Tyler's lovely house. Daniel had his own room (yay for us).
Day 6: Danielle & Tyler took us on a drive around Edmonton, and to the West Edmonton mall (I think the biggest in North America). It has a water theme park, rollercoaster park, ice-skating, golf, sea lion show etc. Had pizza at Danielle's parents for dinner. Daniel loved their dogs.
Day 7: We went to Ford Edmonton Park, a historical village. It is huge, and has four different streets, each a different time during Edmonton's history (late 1700's trading post, mid 1800's, late 1800's and 1920. There are actors in costume, doing normal things. Kids can even go to a school for the morning as if it were in the 1800's. We loved it! We had a BBQ at their house. 5 firetrucks turned up at a nearby residence for no particular reason. Went for a walk around the local area and Nathan & Tyler played some soccer at the nearby park.
Day 8: Said goodbye to Danielle & Tyler, drove to Mathew's parent's house at Spruce Grove, west of Edmonton via a mall. Darlene & Brian were very kind to let us stay during preparations for their eldest daughter Tania's wedding. Had our first 'weiner roast' in the backyard.
Day 9: Went to Telus World of Science to see the travelling Da Vinci exhibit. Really interesting! He was one smart guy.
Day 10: Drove back to the airport, and flew home to Vancouver. No missing luggage this time. Glad to be home in our own place again.

Ready for a break

Wednesday we are headed to Edmonton and Banff for a holiday! We've got some time by ourselves, and we're also spending time with some Regent friends.
Some places on our list to visit:

• The Rockies
• Banff hot springs
• Parliament House
• West Edmonton Mall
• Fort Edmonton

Today we were interviewed as part of a project to help prospective students as they consider Regent College. It is inspired by the New York Times 1-in-8-million project. It was good to reflect on the past 3 years, and they way God has lead us and provided for us, and we pray that God can use us to encourage others.

In other news, I did not get the teaching job I interview for 2 weeks ago. So we'll see what else God has planned.

Pirate ships and pick-up trucks

Sometimes it feels like my day is a neverending game of hide-and-seek or peek-a-boo. And it's a lot of fun! Daniel is growing up, communicating more and finding life enthralling.
Yesterday he discovered a run-down, abandoned black ute (pick-up truck) behind our house. One of the wheels was broken, but we made do. When I drove it over to him he was so excited and cruised around it, sat in it, smiled non-stop and made appropriate driving noises. This morning it was parked outside our front path and his huge grin brought me such joy! We also played with our 3yr old neighbour Rick, who was very patient and sharing with Daniel. I'm spending much more time outdoors with Daniel, and he thrives in the big, wide (sunny) world. Here are some pics below.