Getaway Collection | Sahin Designs

For August's creative gallery, I chose the Getaway Collection. 

It was the perfect collection to document our most recent camping adventure. 

Because of Covid this year, and initial restrictions on camping, we kind of blindly picked campsites that were available.  I wasn't able to get onto the reservation site for at least the first week, due to volume overload. Once I could get on the site, none of our usual places were available, we had to decide how long we'd be willing to drive to get to the campground. We decided 2 1/2 hours was our max. 

On the bright side, it did give us the opportunity go to campgrounds we've never been to. That's how we ended up at Cottonwood at Old Man Dam. 

The campground is about 15 minutes from Pincher Creek. We went from driving up along the ridge of the Old Man River, and made our way down into the valley that houses the campground. It was actually very secluded and private, it was a nice surprise. We went from windy up top, to not windy down below. 

We also happened to be there during a heat wave. Temperatures were in the mid 30º celsius. It was hot. So thankful we decided to bring our set up sun shade at the last minute. It made all the difference in the world. 

Here's the layout I created for this camping trip:

There's a lot of information photos on this layout. I used the photo template to add pictures. I wanted to include lots of our happenings. We spent quite a bit of time walking down to the waters edge. We skipped rocks, cooled our feet. Madelyn kept finding snakes... She caught 3 out of 4 that she saw. I have to remain calm and unfazed by it, or I'm sure she'd chase me with it... 

We played games. We had campfires and s'mores. We all breathed a sigh of relief at about 9:45 when the sun finally was low enough, that we cooled down a bit. 

We attempted to find the Neowise Comet, but didn't have any luck. However, the stars were amazing, and we could see the milky way. 

We had a great get away, glad we were all able to make it. 

The following Sahin Designs products were used: 

https://sahindesigns.com/products/getaway-elements/

https://sahindesigns.com/products/getaway-papers/

https://sahindesigns.com/products/getaway-cards/

Weekend Camping & PL2018 - Week 23

We just got back home from an impromptu camping trip. 

Since we've had our little trailer, we've booked or reserved sites on-line. Most campgrounds we've been to, are full to capacity. Not a chance of getting in. If you haven't planned in advance, forget about it.

25 years ago, you could decide you wanted to go camping on a wednesday for an upcoming weekend. You could head out after work on Friday and have no problem finding a spot. Those days seem to be far behind us. If you've driven on any highway and watched the steady stream of RV's driving by, you see what I'm talking about.  

So, for us to decide to camp last minute, and then have it work out, was most pleasant. 

For the most part, we had great weather, three of us and the dog got caught in a down pour, but we all lived to tell the tale. 

This little campground had no services, and only outhouses. We camped with my parents and my brother, who all have RV's larger than ours. M&D were kind enough to let us use their RV for the occasional bathroom break. A hot mug of coffee handed to me first thing each morning, was awesome. 

I think my other favourite thing about the weekend was there was no cell service. So we were completely unplugged for 3 days. That doesn't happen very often these days. I'm surprised at how nice it was to get away from everything for a few days. 

Here are a few photos from the weekend: 

On to week 23 of my project life album: 

• We may have underestimated how long it would take us to get the girl to school, but she asked if she could do, 'Ride your Bike to School Day' and I said yes. 15 km for her, and 30 for me...
• Field trip downtown. Such a nice day. [Though I did misplace my group of kids for a bit... Much less stressful when they're grade 7 and not seven years old]
• Mad was part of the choir that sung a few songs for volunteer appreciation night. 
• We're seeing so many little baby goslings on our thursday walks. The baby's are cute, the parents are pretty cranky.  

The following Sahlin Studio products were used:

Calendar Card Stamps - http://the-lilypad.com/store/2018-Calendar-Cards-Stamps.html

You Are Here Kit - http://the-lilypad.com/store/you-are-here-kit.html

You Are Here Journal Cards - http://the-lilypad.com/store/you-are-here-journal-cards.html

PL2017 - Week 29 & My Summer Highlight

We started week 29 off by camping in Bow Valley Provincial Park. When we started camping last year, we went Sunday to Wednesday. It worked out really well, because the weekends are generally busier and more in demand. We're lucky Barry is flexible, and he can also do a little bit of 'remote working' as long as he has cellular coverage. 

When we arrived Sunday, it was super smokey. Ash was actually raining down on us, our vehicle, trailer and picnic table were filthy. We had a spot right down by the Bow River, which made Madelyn's trip even more awesome. Lots of time spent 'frogging'. 

This week had one of my most memorable experiences of the summer. 

On the 22nd of July we went to a presentation of Milky Way Nights put on by the Rothney Astrophysical Observatory [U of C] The observatory was open to the public for night sky viewing. [There were many telescopes set up by numerous excited astronomers, volunteering their time] I had found out this was happening by reading about it in Calgary's Avenue magazine. I was absolutely keen to do this. Thankfully, so were Barry and the kids. Gates opened at 10 pm. We arrived at 9:40 pm, and were at least half way down the dirt road, waiting in line. At 10 pm, the gates opened, and we made our way up to the parking lot. 

The night couldn't have been more perfect. It was absolutely still. It was warm. And most importantly, totally bug-less. We observed Jupiter and Saturn through high powered telescopes. [I actually saw the rings of Saturn!] I was totally nerding out, and lined up to have another peak at saturn on numerous occasions. We waited in a very long line, to have the opportunity to look into the night sky through the large telescope. The hope was we would get to look at a nebula, but they were having a hard time locating one. Instead, we got to see Arcturus. It's an orange giant star which is about 37 light years from earth. It's part of the Bootes constellation. It's visible to the naked eye in both the norther and southern hemisphere. It's the 4th brightest star in our sky. It looked like a huge shiny diamond in the sky. [Told you I totally nerd out about this stuff...] It was very cool. 

After that, we went back to a grassy area, and found a place to sit down. [My only regret was not having a blanket to sit on the ground on] By this time, there were many, many other people. It was dark, with no moon [not very easy to see ones way around] We watched as the sun set deeper on the horizon, and the milky way came into view. It. Was. Awesome.  Around 11:00, they began a talk on the night sky. The man doing the talking pointed out various constellations with a laser pointer [making sure there were no planes in his path] Told us stories of different constellations. We saw the ISS [International Space Station] fly overhead. I saw the little dipper, turns out what I've been calling the little dipper my entire life is actually not the little dipper at all. 

The milky way though... Wow. It was amazing. Even the guy giving the talk couldn't believe what a great view we were getting of it. 

We finally left at about 11:45, Barry felt the talk was 'wrapping up', and there was still a steady stream of people flowing in. As we left and made our way back to the highway, people were literally streaming up to the observatory. There were cars parked all along both side of the highway. It was totally dangerous.

We were so lucky to get there when we did. We got a spot to park. We got the chance to look through telescopes. We got to listen to a fantastic talk. I got to see the rings of Saturn! With my own eyes! 

My hope is that all the people that were flowing in, were donating money to the observatory, as 100% of the proceeds go to educational programs. At the time, the suggested donation was $20 a carload. Since then, as of September 15th, 2017 the donation has gone up to $30 per carload. For our little family, it was absolutely money well spent. 

I was giddy the entire ride home. It was absolutely a highlight of the summer for me. [I included a tiny photo of what Saturn looked like for me on my journal card]

Here is week 29 [though I've touched on everything but the movie Spider-Man: Homecoming]:

• We took Mason to see Spiderman. Seeing a few movies that aren't cartoons have been such a treat for me. Madelyn was invited to join us, but chose to have a sleep over and A&B's instead.

The following Sahlin Studio product was used: 

Number Journal Cards

Photo Round Days

July Template Freebie

This months template, is such a cool design. 

I have come to love clean lines and a minimalistic approach. I laugh at how my likes have changed over the years. This template can be found by clicking here, through the month of July only, get it while you can.

I love the short bullet-like descriptions. This was the perfect layout to document a weekend camping trip we'd taken to Two Jack Lake in Banff National Park. 

This trip just ended up being the 3 of us. Barry, Mason and myself. Madelyn decided at the last minute to attend the last Girl Guide camp of the season. It was nice to spend quality time alone with Mace. We obviously don't get the chance to spend one-on-one time with our kids very often. 

We booked this campsite back in January. When I booked, this was the only weekend available, with two nights in a row. I'm not even kidding. Booking a campsite for June, in January. Who knows what you're going to get weather wise. 

As it turned out, we couldn't have been more lucky with the weather. Someone was obviously looking down on us kindly. 

I'd heard many things about Two Jack Lake. Seen so many pictures posted on different forms of social media. The location and lake itself, is absolutely stunning. How can it not be really, with the mountains in the background of every picture. 

The campground however... Well, it was like camping in a parking lot. Been there, done that.  We don't need to camp there again. I'm glad we went, but once is enough. 

The following Sahlin Studio Product was used: 

Sahlin Studio July Template of the month

Viewpoint Elements

Viewpoint Papers

The Story of our New Trailer

In early June, we bought a second hand tent trailer.

It all stemmed from our camping experience last summer. A friend of mine invited me and the kids out for a few days of camping in Kananaskis.

On the way out, Madelyn had said to me, "Mummy, we're going to have so much fun, you're going to want to go camping All. The. Time." And I thought to myself, "No little girl. I will not."

But I did have a great time. So, when I got home I began to glance through Kijiji, looking for our new inexpensive, second-hand trailer.

I never found it. Summer came and went. Fall came and went. Winter came and went. I never found our trailer.

I continued browsing through Kijiji, every so often, still looking.

Me and the kids were invited again, by my friend, to join them camping this coming summer. We'd passed the test, and were all compatible. The kids were beyond thrilled. And very vocal that this time we needed to go for longer, FOR A WHOLE WEEK.

So I began to look at used trailers again with more interest.

During this time, Barry happened to mention to his brother, that I was on the quest for a tent trailer. He happened to have one for sale...

All the stars aligned, and we happen to be the proud new owners of a tent trailer.

To say that we are excited, is an understatement... Or  at least, to say I am excited might be more accurate.

The boys love camping. The Scouts tent camp 2-3 times a year [even in the winter!] I am however, no longer a fan of tent camping. I'm past laying on the hard/damp ground. I want to be up off the ground. The tent trailer gives us that. It's similar to tenting, but more comfortable sleeping arrangements. We are still what I would consider 'roughing it', but we're roughing it with electricity. It's absolutely dreamy to plug in a kettle and make a hot beverage first thing in the morning.
If the weather is not conducive to being outside, we can hang out inside, play cards, read, play games, colour [or let's be honest... NAP] We can get out of the weather.

I would definitely not say we are glamping. No electronics. No TV's or video games. No large fridge to keep items cold. [Though, we just might bring our ice maker with us the next time we go] There's no bathroom, and we won't hook up  water. No, it's definitely what I consider roughing it.

So yes, I'm excited. Because I love being in the mountains. Am I afraid of bears? Good heavens, YES. But there are enough people out and about, that I actually feel easier about it now. That and the fact that we have Madelyn with us certainly helps. First, she rarely stops talking. Second, she's a loud talker.

The down-side to camping so far, is registration for camping opened in February. We picked up our trailer in June. Every weekend is booked. Which means we've needed to be a little bit more creative. We've booked our dates through the week. So far, it's worked out for us. 

Here is a layout I created from out first camping trip. Our 1st Adventure:

The layout above, is Sahlin Studio's free template available for the month of July only, get it before it's too late! 

Looking forward to more adventures this summer.
 
Sahlin Studio Product Used:

http://the-lilypad.com/store/Highs-and-Lows-Journal-Cards.html

http://the-lilypad.com/store/Highs-and-Lows-Elements.html

http://the-lilypad.com/store/Highs-and-Lows-Papers.html

http://sahlinstudio.com/free-digital-scrapbooking-template-sketch-july-2016/