Oh Canada Part Three: Reunion Time
Part three of our trip to Canada (the final episode. I swear.) was a family reunion for Greg’s Great Grandpa on down. I’ve always really enjoyed hanging out with Greg’s family. They’re all pretty easygoing and fun loving. There’s always somebody up for a game…especially a card game…especially ROOK. And they’re not competitive AT ALL.
I mean, check out this game face on Aunt Jean. Lawn games are serious business!
Greg’s Dad talking a little trash.
Greg showcasing his patented throwing technique, and Adam trying to imitate. :)
Their gallery.
We all had a good time even though the kids were a little grumpy, and really clingy. You could definitely tell they weren’t feeling super hot. Thankfully their Grandma and Papa were more than willing to snuggle and hang with them.
Eve walks very well now, and thinks she’s big enough to do whatever she wants. Miss Sassy Pants is 14 months going on 14 years.
It’s hard to beat a pinata full of Canadian candy…cuz you’re blindfolded! Bah dum CH! Get it? Beat? The pinata? :) I know. I only make myself laugh, but that’s all that really matters. Anyways, did you know that Canada is a junk food paradise? Canadian Smarties are the freakin bomb!
The boys loved the tractors they won in the silent auction.
Brenden’s favorite pass time was riding in the wagon behind Uncle Rod’s motorized wheelchair. When he wasn’t in the wagon, he could usually be found…
…on the water slide.
The campground we stayed at had built this hillbilly water slide that was pretty much the sweetest slip and slide EVER.
I have visions of having one of these in my yard one day. It’d be every kid’s dream come true.
Every big kid’s too. I think the “kids” Greg and I’s age may have had the most fun with the slide. It was all about speed. I made a little slide show of one of my runs. I’m in the front on my stomach, trying to be aerodynamic, with Missy and Lara behind me on their knees, trying to give us some speed. *I’m wearing workout pants, because I had to barrow a swimsuit that didn’t really fit my bum so well.
I love how we end with Lara (in the very back) and I laughing our guts out while Missy (middle) is in agony. She had to walk with a cane afterward. whoops. We were all pretty beat up with all the running, jumping, diving, ect. It was totally worth the body sacrifice though. Hilarious!
Here’s a shot of how my poor battered hips looked when we got home. Nice, eh?!
Such a fun trip. I love my family…my own and my inlaws.
And finally…may I present: EveEE’s hair at Sunset.
The End
Oh Canada Part Two: Waterton, Eh!
After the gastronomic fireworks during the drive up to Canada, we were understandably a bit hesitant to put the kids in the car again. Luckily the boys started perking up a bit, because it’d be a crying shame to be in Southern Alberta, and not visit Waterton. A CRYING SHAME I tell ya! A little piece of heaven is what that place is. Love it. Love it! The kids seemed to feel pretty good all day, and the short drive was thankfully uneventful. As we were driving into the park (it’s like a national park…it’s the Canadian side of Glacier National Park actually) Greg asked me what I wanted to do first. We decided to head up to Red Rock Canyon. I had never been, and Greg always talks about how he loved it as a kid. It’s funny because it didn’t really live up to Greg’s memory, but I thought it was awesome.
It was possibly a little disappointing for Greg because he was majorly distracted. Just minutes after this picture was taken, he accidentally locked the keys in the car. ah SUCK! We were able to get a hold of help pretty quickly though, and the kids and I got to play while we waited.
This canyon is awesome. The stones are so colorful, smooth, and beautiful. I couldn’t help walking the boys down to play in the water even though we weren’t dressed for it at all. It was so fun! I can’t wait to come back, and hike around it more. It was totally worth the little detour and locksmith ordeal to see it.
Here is Waterton for me though. I didn’t feel like we were there until I saw this iconic vista:
All you can see are mountains, and lakes, and trees, and then…at the top of a hill…the Prince of Wales Hotel. It’s ridiculously romantic. I fell head over heels for this place the first time I saw it.
This is me standing behind the hotel. The view from high above the lake is breathtaking.
It was WINDY on the cliff edge. I suspect it always is. We had fun pretending we were flying. An “I’m the king of the world!” kinda moment. :)
The first time I came to Waterton, it was February 2001. Greg and I were dating, and I came up with him for his cousin’s wedding. Waterton was a winter wonderland. We drove down into the little town, then hiked to the top a stunningly beautiful, frozen waterfall.
This waterfall…but frozen. Everything was frozen. It was freaking February in Canada! And it was awesome. The world stood as still water droplets as Greg dropped to one knee in the snow, and pulled out a ring. Well done Greg! I’ll never forget that place.
It was even better being there with three kids wrapped around our legs.
Tell you what, saying yes and marrying this man in the temple, is the best decision I’ve made. I can’t imagine my life without him.
We finished off the day with a stop at the Big Scoop. Perfect. You can tell that Miles hasn’t had a ton of experience with ice cream cones. HA! Where’d that kid learn how to eat?! My flavor was pistachio almond. NEW FAVORITE!
Until next time, Waterton. Take care of the little piece of my heart I left behind.
Love, (me)
(To be continued)
Oh Canada Part One: Great Grandpa and Grandma’s House
It’s been a while since we’ve been able to spend a little quality time with Greg’s Grandparents. Too long! So we were really excited to get to Canada a few days early, and visit with them. We had pumped the kids up to go see them, and they were dying to get out of town and go. However, after all the time we spent traveling (and puking), I don’t think they would have cared where we stopped as long as they didn’t have to buckle in for a while. :) Just kidding. We all really enjoyed our time there. Grandpa kept us entertained with his stories and weather watching. Grandma kept our bellies full of yummy homemade bread. Fresh tomatoes were picked, and eaten on the spot. And of coarse we played ROOK. It wouldn’t be Canada without card games.
Eve was all about rocks this trip. Everywhere we went, she was sorting rocks, sucking on rocks, throwing rocks…you get the picture.
(To be continued)
Hat trick
*This post, peppered with hockey terminology, is brought to you by: “eh!“.
There’s a term used by hockey fans to describe when you team scores three goals. It’s called a hat trick. I don’t get it. What does scoring three goals have to do with hats? And why three? Maybe third time’s a charm. Who knows when it comes to hockey fans. These are the same people who throw octopi onto the ice to rally the team. I don’t know about you, but to me, nothing says “GO TEAM” like a boiled octopus flying through the air.
All I know is last night we experienced our own little hat trick. Eve rounded out our puke-in-car trifecta about 20 minutes before we pulled into home. I knew the moment she woke up that morning that she wasn’t feeling so well. Poor girl slept nearly the whole 12 (or something) hours on the way home, but as we hit the homestrech, she couldn’t hold it in any longer. I’m so over traveling. So’s the rest of the family.
We have about 4 million pictures from Canada to sift through. (I’m only barely exaggerating.) When we get back into the swing of things, I’ll show you the fun we had between being sick.
abc food
On our way to Canada on Tuesday, Greg posed this question to Miles:
What do you want to eat for lunch, Miles?
Miles: Uhhhh…A CORN DOG!
Greg: What if I can’t find a place with a corn dog? What’s your second choice?
Miles: Uhhhh… Corn dogs have a choice. Hmmmm…Corn dogs taste. Corn dogs…
Greg: Miles. Focus. What else sounds good to you?
Miles: DAD! Stop! I’m telling a story! …………..hmmmm… Corn dogs …. are… good!
If only I could type the inflextion in that kid’s voice. Anything that comes out of his mouth is hilarious just because of the way he says it.
We found a corn dog for Miles, and he tells me that it did taste good. The first time he tasted it anyways. He got a second crack at it when he puked it up just before the border. Not so yummy the second go round. Miles and B have been taking turns throwing up this whole trip. Beyond awesome. Somehow we’re still having fun despite the flu. Hopefully we don’t pass it along. Our big Hough reunion starts today. The only real tricky thing is Miles’ B.G. numbers have been crazy. We’ve had a heck of a time keeping him above 100. Every other time he’s been sick, his numbers have sky rocketed. It’s making mea little nervous to be in Canada experiencing this for the first time, but I feel better now that Greg’s cousin that has type one is here now too.
On a happier note, we took the family to Waterton yesterday. That’s where Greg proposed to me a little over eight years ago. It was good to smooch him back were it all began. It was kinda funny to have three kids wrapped around our legs this time though.
just (me)linda 
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