Our 28 hour summer vacation - Day 2

We spent the night at a Super 8 in Fernie, which was quite an adventure in and of itself.  I don't know about other families, but when you get us six in a hotel room, there are really only two options for Andy and I.  One is to laugh, the other is to cry.  So we chose laughing. And the reason for that would be because trying to get four excited children to sleep (two in one of the queen beds, one in a pack and play and one on a fold up mattress we took from home) is really quite a ridiculous and non-relaxing occupation. Especially when there's a tv in the room, and the air conditioning isn't working (which the hotel receptionist graciously came in to fix for us), making the room just as warm as it was outside, approx. 35 degrees celsius.  Every time Andy and I thought the kids were sleeping and we'd gingerly turn on the tv to watch some news (!!!)  one little head would pop right up and that would be that.  Finally after 10:30 pm we gave up and all fell asleep.
I like to laughingly remind myself and my dear hubby that although we might like to think that the word 'vacation' means 'relaxation', the actual definition is "an extended period of recreation, especially one spent away from home or in traveling".  So here we were, doing exactly that, having a period of recreation spent away from home, and it's not relaxing, but that's ok, 'cuz we are enjoying it anyways with all these cute faces and spunky personalities God has given us to care for. :)  It's totally worth it.

But back to the topic.  Super 8 has amazing breakfasts, and we make sure we always get our moneys worth with all the waffles devoured!
We found a place called Island Lake Lodge that advertised family friendly hiking so that was our destination.  It was beautiful, and we did a 4 km hike thru brush and bush, around a lake, right thru the mountains.   Considering the lack of sleep the kids were troopers!  BC forests are simply gorgeous. The forest we walked thru boasted of 800 year old Fir trees.  You can see on the pictures below there were some massive trees there.   We were warned of bears and so naturally wanted to see one, but when we passed two spots of fresh-ish poop on the trail Andy and I got a little nervous and figured bear bells would be purchased for future hikes. Considering all the chatter our little group made, I am quite positive that they were far enough away for safety. But... we don't want to take any chances.

We tried taking a family shot with the self timer - "tried" being the key word.

Finally some other hikers came by so we asked them to take it for us:)

Hiking makes everyone hungry so we had a picnic lunch then headed for home. On the way we stopped at Bellevue Underground Mine where we could go for a tour. It's an old coal mine that is now abandoned. During it's time it was a very productive mine and large! There is much more coal in the mine which could be taken out if needed but for now it is closed.  Seth and Tristan love rocks and minerals, which made this a good learning experience as well. It was very interesting for us all!

Getting ready to head into the mine.  Helmets on and lights ready!

Rowan was pretty pleased with the light on his head!

The temperature inside the mine was 2 degrees.  We were really cold by the end:)

...and a fun trip was had by all!

Our 28 hour summer vacation - Day 1

Sounds strange right? 28 hours of summer vacation?
But it's true, due to circumstances out of our control {the previously mentioned facts that the birds got shipped later then planned} we had to cancel our cabin that was booked in West Glacier Montana, much to our sorrow.   Andy and I worked from sun up til sun down to try get everything finished on time so that we could still go away somewhere {anywhere!!} this summer.  The next time the birds are out will be first week of September - summer over.
We managed to find a window of 28 hours that we could leave so we booked a hotel from Hotwire for one night in Fernie BC and hit the road. And I gotta say did we ever make it worth while:) We like to joke that between the two of us, we can get alot done in a really short amount of time, and I really think we did see alot, do alot and enjoy alot. ;)
The trip to Fernie is just one road which goes straight from the highway by our place, (the Crowsnest highway) thru the Crowsnest Pass, which takes you thru the mountains in southern Alberta thru to British Columbia.
I had never been that route before and it was nicer then we thought it was going to be.  We saw so many neat little places to stop and explore and walk around at.
First stop was at a place called Lundbreck Falls.  Just a nice little place to camp and go for a walk.  We enjoyed the falls and dipping our feet in the cold water.  I'd go back and camp there, it was quiet and calm, with nice trails and close to many day trips.

 Only a few minutes further down the road was Turtle mountain and the Frank Slide.  We were there at 5 pm, one hour before closing but we still went inside the museum and took a look around.  It would be hard for me to do justice to this fascinating place, but in short, the mountain moved (fell down) on the mining town of Frank one early morning in 1903, covering a part of town with enormous boulders and rubble. Needless to say, it was devastating, and the town never got cleared of the rock.  I'd love to take you there someday, if you'd care to go with us:)  We didn't have time to do the walk in the rubble, so it's another place on our "to return" list.

Overlooking the mountain rubble.

Always watching out for each other:)

The interpretive center was enjoyed by all.

Next stop: Sparwood BC!  Seth was pretty thrilled to be in another province.  Made it feel like we were pretty far from home, even though it was only a couple hours.  In Sparwood we only stopped to see the worlds biggest truck. Yes, a mining truck. Pretty much all the industry around the area was from mines, mostly coal.

Canola kids

If you ever see a picture of kids or a family standing in a field of canola... they must be from Alberta.
It seems to be the thing to do.
And I always vowed I wouldn't do it for that reason alone. (I'm not like that am I??) 
But then... a field of canola started blooming right across the road from my living room window and the intense colour of the yellow blossoms made me happy. I found my self hauling out the cell phone every time we drove by a blooming field so I could snap a quick picture of the blue skies with the yellow fields. And then... I broke down and dressed up the kids and walked next door for some pictures in the field of rippling golden happiness.

I am officially acting like a true Albertan now.  I know all you in Ontario are laughing at me, but hey, I'm far enough away I can't even hear it;)

Cousin playdate

We were lucky to have Asher and his parents here for a few days at the beginning of July.  It's so cute to see the babies reaction to each other. Well, Abby had more of a reaction to Asher then he did with her, but still... She thought he was super cute and that he will turn into a great playmate when they are both a little older.  I'm pretty sure she was wondering what all the brown stuff on his head was too, but didn't seem to be too offended when we told her she should really get on the job of growing herself some hair!
And when company comes it's always a good excuse to make time to relax a bit and enjoy each others company as well as nature if possible. Red Rock Canyon was our destination of choice, not too strenuous for the hot weather and not too long for all the young ones.  On a hot day there's nothing better then glacier water to cool off in, right along with an ice cream cone from a little shop in Waterton.  Ahhh summer.

First hike of the summer - Rowan wasn't too fond of the work out and needed many breaks;)

The canyon was a long way down!

Love this family!

{Sisters with their babies}

With kids, off the beaten path always seems to be the best path!

The reason it's called 'Red Rock Canyon'.

Abby is just along for the ride...;)

June - the month of crazy

"Enjoy the little things in life, because one day you may look back and realize

 they were the big things..."

Well, it's July 1st, Canada day, 2015, and I'm sorting thru pictures from June trying to organize what we all did, for fun and otherwise.
It seems every month is flying past but June really seems to have been a month of extremes, highs and lows, good and bad, sun and cloud.
Trying to capture this month is making me think about life. About humans and their fickle conditions.  About emotional swings and trying to find God's will.  About being thirty and still feeling once in a while like a kid, insecure and not sure if I'm coming or going.  Is this the way life is? What if I wasn't a Christian?  Where would my anchor be?  Some days are beautiful, the sun is shining, kids are happy and healthy, husband loves his job and the grass is a gorgeous shade a green.
Then the sun gets too hot, kids squabble, sleep isn't great 'cuz the baby won't stop eating all night long, and the birds in the barn contract an illness.  Never mind the gophers eating the garden and the endless list of errands to run.  Sometimes I wonder am I the only one running this rat race? Constantly cleaning only to have to redo once someone touches it, making meals only have them devoured in ten minutes... Then at four in the afternoon realize that the baby's romper is on backwards, and has been since morning, and the only person who could have dressed her in a flurry would be myself.

But then I remember that I must sit down and really look around me.  It's so easy to always be looking into the future that the day you are in gets ignored.  And I want to enjoy these days. I really truly do. I have to tell myself to smarten up.  Abby is 6 months old already, and Seth is past my waist in height.  So I try take a deep breath and daily pause to enjoy the mud and sweaty boy hugs I get from my sweet and vibrant three year old.  I try to stay awake when Tristan cries in the middle of the night from all his growing pains and all I can do is rub his legs till he falls back asleep. I know one day that will be over and I might just miss it.  I packed away more of Abby's little clothing as well as her cradle from my bedroom and I realize it makes me so sad to do, I can't get enough cuddles and smiles from my soft skinned little Miss (how I love my babies!!).
And when the sun shines bright and the barns are too hot for big chickens, it's good to get reminders that God is in control and sees it all, even in the bad and hard, and frustrating. It's good to remember and reflect on all the blessings we have here in Canada, in this little part of our world here Alberta, and to remember that God didn't promise that life would be easy, always smiling, with no trials or tears, but only that He would be with us, every step of the way.

Happy 30th Birthday to me!  Full hands, full heart!

These kids got spoiled at the beginning of summer... new bikes and tramp.

Pool is filled!  And warming up rapidly.

No, she doesn't swim, but the bathing suit was just too cute, so it's for show;)

Lots of love going on here this past Fathers Day.

A silly picture of Rowan, photographed at his request.

Beppe came again! Just for a weekend this time while she was passing thru...

...she was with Oom Gooitzen and Tante Nieske on a holiday.

This little stinker - 6 months old! We are so thankful for her.

I'm trying to teach her young how to take selfies;)  I was running errands in Lethbridge and she was crying so loudly in the car I stopped and took her out thinking she was starving, only to find out she's social.

Friends took Andy and the boys tubing and waterskiing locally.  What a hoot!

Tristan was a bit scared - but that's ok:)

The top line there says "outside temp" (this is the barn thermostat). More then once it read +40.

There was a problem at the plant the weekend the birds were supposed to ship so we were stuck with the chickens here for an extra 3 days. And they were HOT days, so we had to take drastic measures to keep the barns cool.  Being the cool farmers wife ;) , I helped blow cold water into the air inlets to cool down the attic.  The heat was suffocating.

After such an exhausting weekend with the chickens, I hauled out my new "coloring book for adults."  It was truly relaxing and I think we've found a new hobby!