West Bank - Five Star Camping

Can we really call it camping???  I like to think of it as Beverly Hills camping because there is not much that I have to do to get our "camp" site set up . . . basically we pull in and unload our stuff and we are good to go.  Personal shower, nachos baked in an oven, satellite t.v., are just some of the conveniences that we must endure when we go to the trailer . . . I might need to take a break from blogging because my vanilla latte is almost ready!!

"Papa trailer . . . Grammy trailer"

Lets just say that I lost the battle for the chair . . . "My chair, I relax"

It was great watching their confidence grow as we spent each day by the water.

Emma started out the week scared of the waves . . . she soon was scaring us as she ventured further out into the lake.  Lets just say that the life jacket calmed our nerves.

Ahhhhhh, me Tarzan.

We fit so nicely together.  Hey, I made the blog!

The myth about the Ogopogo brought with it many interesting questions

Hanging out at the Kelowna park for the day.

 One of the highlights of the trip was going to H2O, which is an indoor water park with water slides, a mini wave pool, spray zone, river run, and the Flow Rider.  The Flow Rider is an ocean wave surf simulator.  The boys tried boogie boarding on it which surprised me as I thought they would be a little scared.  They both did a great job dropping in, riding the waves and having fun . . . a definite must visit for the next time we return to this area.

We had to do a little bribe to get them to take this picture . . . there is a reason for their excitement . . .

I think Emma's face says it all.  Apparently, a medium frosted malt was a little large according to Michelle . . . come on, we are on holidays.

West Bank With Our Cousins

We managed to plan it so that we could be up at "Papa's Trailer" while their cousins were here, which was a nice treat for all of us.  The kids had their older cousins to play with and we had full time babysitters at a great rate.  Their older cousins, once again, were amazing with our kids . . . they were water taxis taking them out to the floating dock, helping them play pool (poor Jamie could barely see over the table top), introducing playground dodgeball, and of course sharing the latest in toilet humour.  Michelle especially enjoyed the boys "pressing ham" on the shower window, thanks guys and sorry Grammy!!!  (There might have even been a sighting of a "squished lizard" - boys you may have to do a little explaining to Grammy the next time you see her).

Freedom on the water

"I go skateboarding"

My little surfer girl

Jumping off the floating dock

My little surfer boy

As Emma would say, "My boys".

More snuggles or human jungle gym?

We look forward to the next holiday together.  The boys were really sad to see them leave. 

Horseback Riding

For the past few years we have taken the kids down to the Richmond Nature Park to ride some horses.  Although the ride is quite short the kids enjoy it all the same . . . just another summer time activity for the kids.

"I ride Wheeeeeli"  AKA Willie

Fiona

Apache

Maritime Festival

We rode our bikes up to the Maritime Festival which was held at the old Britannia Shipyards for some face painting, wandering into the many buildings, and of course doing some crafts.  You guys made some prints, wooden boats and a fish kite.  All of the crafts only took a few minutes, but the one that Michelle happened to volunteer me for was the fish kite.  Generally, I am the one jumping into the cold lakes, trying to figure out something mechanical, or putting together an object that requires directions . . . so lets just say that the fish kite is right up Michelle's alley.  Crafting wood, white glue, coloured tissue paper and best of all you walk away with an end product . . . all signs point to the perfect family craft assisted by Michelle.  Somehow, I managed to walk into the Kite tent and 60 minutes later we walk out with two completed fish kites . . . meanwhile, I see Michelle walking around with free samples of Coke Zero and Vitamin Water while we baked in the crafting tent . . . there was no love for the boys!!!

Fishing

Jamie and Josh have been bugging me to take them fishing, real fishing and not just casting a plastic fish and reeling it in over and over again.  So I decided to break out my fishing gear from when I was a kid and head out to the docks in Steveston.  I am beginning to realise that my boys are growing up as they didn't want my help in casting their rods or baiting their hooks.  We decided that we would try some shrimp, bits of a hot dog wiener, and some blueberries as bait.  Jamie thought that the fish would love the blueberries and that we would catch a big sturgeon or a shark.  Although we did not catch a sturgeon, we did catch a bunch of bullheads on the second day, which was very exciting.  The boys loved reeling them in and then tossing them back into the water.

I was surprised by their patience as we fished for about two hours.

10 Years

Ten years, a decade, 3 650 days since our wedding, which seems like a long time ago . . . but then again it doesn't.  We have managed to accomplish a lot in the ten years together, but what I am most proud of is our family.  Holding hands, the hugs, kisses and the many little snuggles that we share daily are the only reminders that I need of the amazing ride that we are on.  Don't get me wrong, we have our challenges, obstacles, highlights and low-lights, but as Jamie often says, "I want to be on your team".   Togetherness and having the opportunity to share in our many experiences is what I hold close to my heart . . . so what better way to spend our anniversary than to head out on a bike trip to Granville Island.

Hmmm what trouble can I get into now??

A little water fight at the water park.

Josh was brave enough to ride the waves.

Luckily, our babysitter was in town and was available to babysit the kids so that we could go out for dinner and enjoy a nice evening together.  So, off we went to our favourite restaurant, The Banana Leaf, and then we went for some lattes and a nice walk along Kits Beach. 

A beautiful sunset allowed Michelle to attempt a second silhouette jump at Kits.  Now lets make something clear that I am taking these photos with a basic point and shoot camera with limited ability to modify the settings . . . but I must say that I did as good as job as I could do . . . especially given the limited hang time and skill level of my subject.

The Talk

I must say that I have had the talk with Josh and Jamie and I know that they are pretty young, but I thought I could share my expertise in this area . . . my conversations with them went something like this, "Boys, I hate to break this to you, but you are probably going to be one of the smallest kids at school, on your teams, and with your friends".  The reason why I am sharing this is because this has been a LITTLE bit of a break through summer for us as Jamie was finally tall enough to go on the tube rides at the Great Wolf Lodge and he was able to go on the Log Ride at Playland.  I can still remember how cool I felt when I was finally taller than my mom . . . now I am only 5'3' with my platform shoes and to put things into perspective . . . when standing I can put my chin on top of my mom's head . . . so, lets just say that I didn't have far to go.  I just want you to enjoy your journey in life, appreciate the LITTLE things, and soar to whatever HEIGHTS your interests and strengths may take you.