For the very first time, in the history of our family road trips, we left the morning of our first leg, and didn't have to return a gazillion times to retrieve something that we (I) forgot to pack, lock the front door, close the garage door, etc. We left, and.. we left. The rest of the day went just as planned, surprisingly. We stopped when we needed, we ate when we needed, we arrived in to Calgary with our sanity intake, all 3 children present and accounted for. I was shocked. Phew. What a relief. I kept referring back to our trip last summer, with the frequent poopy diaper changes, bib changes, bottle warmings, blech. Much easier to toss a granola bar and a pack of raisins into the back seat and just let him make a mess. He was happy, the girls were happy, we were happy.
We spent 3 days in Calgary. Day 1 was spent lounging, a run, a bit of shopping and driving around. Jackson slept like a pro. Perfect. Day 2 was spent out at Bergen with my mother and significant other. A bit chilly, a bit of rain, but overall a campin' good time. That night Auntie Leah and I drove Isabella out to her father's in Calgary to spend the night and following Canada day. Day 3 was another lounge day, a run, and a walk downtown. We had a BBQ in celebration of Canada's big day, and I packed up all our crap again, for the second leg of our journey the following day.
We slept in, of course, and got a bit of a later start than we had hoped. This travel day was.. erm.. not as pleasant as the first?? The girls did fine (always do) watching their movies, reading, eating snacks. But Jackson.. well. He was less than thrilled to be stuck in his car seat again for such a loooong trip through the Rockies and beyond. Relief to get into Vancouver, relief to be at Nana's, where I knew we would be NOT traveling again for a few weeks.
The next 2 weeks, to be honest, aren't exactly that fresh in my memory anymore. We did alot. We went to the beach (Kits beach downtown, and Centennial), twice. We had a wonderful BBQ at the cousin's again, they are always so gracious having us all over once a year for a great visit. We did play-land. We did Steveston a number of times, including the splash-park for the kids. We went to the malls.
We ate food, good Lord did we eat food, Jackson had his first real dining experience (it went as well as expected) and Chris and I got our Fatburger. We walked Robson, once with the kids. Chris and I hiked up a mountain, oh yes we did. We ran on the dyke. We went to a movie. We visited Nana'ssisters. We swam in the pool. Isabella diving and doing Cannonball's, Sydney in her water-wings, Jackson jumping off the edge of the pool into my arms. It was hot, but not too hot. Only the last night, when I was repacking, was it terribly hot and uncomfortable.
We left Nana's as early as we could, some of us shedding a few tears. I had low, low expectations for our 2 day drive back home. We made it to Hope and had breakfast at McDonald's. We whizzed through Kamloops without hitting a red light. We hit Clearwater and Valemont, and ate Pizza on the fly in Jasper.
We made it to Grande Cache by 9pm impressed with ourselves. We stayed with Mimi and Papa overnight, enjoyed a super breakfast the next morning, and took off about 11, leaving Isabella there for the week. By the time we made Grande Prairie (a mere hour and 45 minutes away) I knew this travel day would not go as smoothly as the previous. Jackson was.. just not that into it. After a quick stop at the sports store, we took off for the longest 5 hours of Jackson's life, and most likely mine as well. He had just had enough of sitting in his car seat.
I have never been so glad to see High Level in my life. Ever. We arrived home in the nick of time. Last stop before Crazyland. Nutso lane. Wacko Cul de sac. You get the picture. As my husband so wisely always says... It's good to get home.. where ever home may be.
