Aqua, Average, Anne

I enjoyed every single day of my road trip thoroughly. I loved driving through all the different provinces and some states and seeing everything around me. I loved visiting friends and connecting with them. I loved seeing my friends' new children that I had not yet met.

My final day of visiting was one of my favorite though. I knew that saving Anne for last would be a great idea, because we always seem to have a great time.

It began with the simple desire to go for sushi. And for sushi we went. And we ate far too much. But it was delicious.

And then the day turned into a water tour. What's a water tour you might ask? Well, it's where you think of anything that has water, cram it all into one day and make a tour out of it. And thus the Aqua Tour of 2011 began at a sushi restaurant in Hamilton while drinking water.

The water tour involved waterfalls, rivers, lakes, pools, drinking water, drinking beverage that originally must have had some water used to make them, rain and umbrellas.

I laughed the entire day. I took in some of the beautiful places we went to visit. Do you ever have those days that reach the epic list in life as some of your favorite days? This would be one of them.

Good friends, good food, a lot of laughs. If time permitted, I would share more photos, but these will give you an idea of the fun that was had.

And the day even ended with a bee getting stuck in my bathing suit and stinging my bum three times. Lovely.

Creatures, Cross-Canada, Calgary

As I write this I have an incredible view Duluth, Minnesota and Lake Superior in the background. The main reason I decided to stay in Duluth on my journey (other than the fact that it was about halfway between two of my destinations), was because I knew it as a city from a board game I play, called Ticket to Ride. The city does not disappoint. It is beautiful with its brick buildings, brick roads and the views of the lake from every point.


The trip across Canada has been marvelous so far. I have seen moose, cows, bison... well, maybe they were a bit too large to actually be real, but those are the kind I like, because they don't run in front of your vehicle.


The first four nights were spent in Canada with stops along the way in Castlegar, Calgary, Regina and Winnipeg. My friend Lindie joined e as a wonderful roadtrip companion for that part of the journey. Then my mom few to Winnipeg and we drove down to North Dakota to visit some relatives near Bismark. Yesterday I headed to Duluth and today I will drive through Wisconsin and Michigan on my way back to Canada.

I have been able to connect with so many people on the way and I am reminded of how incredibly blessed I am. And how many incredible people there are in the world. And that I am priveleged to know a few along the way.

Now I'm by myself and the one thing that makes me sad is that I wish I had someone to share this part with. Because the drive is beautiful. So much to see. And funny signs. And funny things I think of and tell myself (and boy do I laugh heartily).

The one downfall (besides being alone), is my indigestion issues seemed to have sprung up again. Not so fun on a roadtrip... so if you think of it, please pray for me about that. Oh, and also, if you'd like to be on my prayer email list, let me know your email and I will add you!

So for now I say good-bye to Duluth and look forward to visiting two new states that I have yet to see and hopefully I will find some more larger than life community moments along the way (those large pointless things that seem to have no purpose but to give people like me immeasurable joy).

Happy Trails!

Transition, Tuned, Thoughts

So much has been going on, that my mind is overwhelmed when I think about blogging about it.

What could I blog about?

I could blog about the end of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, getting stuck downtown and watching everything happen and the feelings of sadness and shock that permeated the next few days.

I could blog about packing up the remainder of my house, locking the doors and driving away from the place I have called home for the last three years.

I could blog about my last couple weeks in BC and all the activities and gatherings that have been keeping me busy.

I could blog about how incredibly blessed I am with amazing family and friends who love me and care for me. Friends and family who I will dearly miss and am sad to leave.

I could blog about what's coming and the excitement related with my two week road trip across Canada and what awaits me upon arriving in Quebec.

Instead, I just wanted to say hello. I'm still alive. And preparing to have every single aspect of my life change. Maybe I will blog about all the things above, maybe I never will. Time will tell.

For now, you may not see me for awhile. Or perhaps I will randomly post photos from my road trip from my phone. Maybe I will keep blogging, maybe I won't.

For now I'm leaving time to think and reflect and be.

So you may see me soon, you may not. So stay tuned.

Birthday, Blessing, Beautiful

June 21st is a special day for many reasons. First off, it's the official beginning of summer, also it is the longest day of the year as far as sun exposure goes. But even more importantly, it's my mom's birthday!

So today we shall celebrate life with her! She is an amazing woman that is such an incredible blessing in my life. She is a blessing to her children and grandchildren and to all she meets.


{I absolutely love this picture of my mom and I... I took it as a quick snapshot in the bathroom and then realized the background wasn't good, so we took some in the room.. but I loved the bathroom shot the best. Makes it even more candid! And oh the wonderful lighting that a bathroom offers!}

I'm thankful I have a mother who loves to travel, because we have so much fun traveling together, but also because I know she will come out to visit me a lot once I move!

So, HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my mom!!

Donkeys, Darlings, Down

Every time my mom babysits the wee ones, they walk to see the sheep and the donkeys. I get the chance to come along every so often and love it. They are precious. And how wonderful to have our own little petting zoo down the road.


The donkeys are "ee aw's" and when you give them grass they go "chomp chomp" (at least according to the little one).


And we like to wave at the people on the way. And stomp in the puddles.


I find it amazing that I walk I could do to the mailbox would take five minutes, but when you do it through the eyes of a child, you can take 40 minutes. And enjoy those 40 minutes more immensely than you ever could the quick, rushed 5 minute walk.


A good reminder to see through the eyes of a child and enjoy every moment. :)

Also, today we are celebrating the little man's birthday as well. So HAPPY BIRTHDAY to him!