Busy Weekend

We had a busy weekend. One of those weekends, where you have something lined up, for pretty much every hour of the day. We haven't had many of those this summer, and I'm glad we have a few days off before school starts, so we can catch our breath.

My favourite part of the weekend, was spending Saturday out in Kananaskis with some friends. They have a cabin there, and we were invited to come out and spend the day. The weather was amazing, it was a little windy, but thankfully the wind was warm. The thing that strikes me the most is how utterly quiet it is in the forest. Well, except for Madelyn's constant chatter that is. When she wasn't talking, for a moment here or there boy, was it quiet.

At the lake, there is a sheltered little area, that we tried our hand at paddling a canoe. We've never done that before, and Mason absolutely loved it. In fact, it was hard to keep him out of the canoe. He loved paddling, and both Barry and I took turns taking the kids around and around. Barry and I both paddled until our shoulders burned. [Let's face it, that didn't take too long for me!] And still Mason wanted to go again. Here are some pictures of our day:

Madelyn walking down the path to the beach below the cabin. You definitely wanted to navigate this carefully. We figured it's about a 30 metre elevation drop in about 100 steps... Eeks.

Getting their bearings, it a little pond, before venturing into the big lake. The current was pretty strong, and with the wind blowing, you had to paddle pretty good to get to your destination.

Mason and Barry were a good team. Mason just loved paddling. [Madelyn is talking, if you're wondering]

Madelyn, still talking...

Guess who was also there! Me! To be honest, I was quite content to just sit and watch. Then Madelyn decided she was starving, and Barry took her back up to the cabin for a bite to eat. [We were taking turns going back and forth, because if you have kids you KNOW you go back and forth multiple times, and did you read about the elevation? Seriously, when you get to the top, and your heart is beating in your temples, you need to take turns] So Macy begged me to go in the canoe with him. And so...

There I am. Right here I just splashed Mason with water from the paddle... Who could resist? Seriously. We paddled, and paddled. We went back and forth. Not getting too awfully far from shore. Mace and I paddled around the little island, and on the far side we did encounter waves... But we calmly navigate them without tipping over.

We came back, got Madelyn and went back to the little island, which we explored with bug catchers and nets.

Here, my shoulders were definitely staring to burn...

Back out with Dad again.

I just love that Mason had so much fun. Maybe there will be more canoeing in our future.

Then some splashing and fun, in the ice cold mountain water. [We decided the temperature was similar to the temperature of Mara Lake at the beginning of July]

The view from the deck at the cabin.

Madelyn and Kayley. I have to say I have forgotten how much work a 1 year old can be... Especially somewhere not especially child-friendly. It made me glad my kids are 6 and 9.

We had a great day, we couldn't have asked for nicer weather. We were all pooped from the paddling and fresh air.

Happy Anniversary to Us

This weekend, we celebrated our 12th wedding anniversary. Wow. Married for 12 years, in a row. Sometimes it feels like we've been together a lifetime. Other times it feels like just yesterday. [Though, in all honesty, when I look at those baby faces in those wedding pictures, it's quite clear it wasn't just yesterday...]

This weekend, we were lucky enough to get invited to a beautiful wedding in Lake Louise. I have to say, we took full advantage. We went up a day early, so were were able to have some time just the 2 of us together. We got a 'night out' in the hotel pub, and took full advantage of a) not paying a babysitter $8/hour [Thanks Mum & Dad] and b) not having to get up with kids first thing Saturday morning. We got to connect just the two of us, and I can tell you this, we don't do it often enough.

1998 was indeed a popular year for weddings. I think we went to 5 weddings throughout the spring/summer and then had our own in the fall. After that, things slowed down quite a bit. We've only been to a handful of weddings over the years, so this wedding, on our very anniversary weekend, was the perfect way to celebrate.

I love going to weddings. I love the actual ceremony part. Listening to 2 people who love each other, recite their vows, and promise themselves to one another. I love hearing what the minister or Justice of the Peace have to say. I love hearing about the symbol of eternal love that the wedding ring stands for.

Another bonus about the wedding, was it being held at Lake Louise. Holy breath-taking Batman. I'm embarrassed to admit, that I've lived my entire life in Calgary, and I had never before seen the Chateau or lake at Lake Louise. [The Lake Louise ski resort has always been my favorite, and I've skied there tons over the years] I've just never ventured up the other side of the mountain, until this weekend.

Saturday morning, we went for a little walk, and surprise, surprise, I took some pictures. I brought our tripod with us, so we could have a few shots of us together. And you know what, yes, I did feel like a dork setting up my tripod, then setting the self-timer, then running back to stand with Barry. But guess what... I have pictures of us together... So there.







The day started off cloudy, but then the sun began to burn the clouds off, and believe it or not, under all those clouds, was blue ski and the sun... Who knew... The wedding itself in the afternoon, ended up being outside. It was perfect. I didn't bring my camera to the wedding, which I was okay with. Some friends of ours got a picture of Barry and I dressed up all fancy. I'm hoping they send us a copy. We ate great food, drank great drinks, and partied until we shut the place down. It was a fabulous weekend.

Girls Weekend Get Away

I had the most fabulous weekend, with the most fantastic girls. We had so much fun! It turned out better than any of us could have imagined, under the circumstances. A little background information... Every spring, a group of us do a scrapbooking retreat, there's usually quite a few of us, between 10 - 14. This year, our group slowly dwindled down to 6. There are too many unforeseen circumstances that can come up when you're a Mom to little ones! Four nights before we were to leave, I got the phone call, that the place we were heading to, had been double booked... That she was terribly sorry, but wasn't able to accommodate our group of 6. Talk about disappointing. We were even planning to go an extra day this year, something we'd never done in the past. With a few phone calls, and a scurry of activity, one of my BFF's booked this place. I'm still not sure how we managed to score so great on such short notice, but we did, and it was FABULOUS! In the end, 5 of us ended going. We ate, we joked, we laughed, we scrapped, we cried, we watched movies, we laughed more, we ate more. It couldn't have been more fun. There is NOTHING like the feeling of going to bed with a sore belly from laughing as hard as we did. We even managed to sneak an hour massage into the equation, all 5 of us! Talk about dreamy.

I am sorry to report however, that even with our extra added day, time STILL went by too quickly. Now we're thinking Fairmont might be our yearly outing, and who knows, maybe we could swing a week next time? LOL! I don't imagine too many of our hubby's would go for that one! But maybe we'll try and sneak even one extra day next time!


I just can't believe how unbelievably lucky I am, to have these women in my life. I can't imagine not having people like this to share my life with. I am very blessed indeed.

Aren't we all so fancy in our jeans and black tops, almost as though we co-ordinated this! The picture also indicates the weather was pleasant, and it was, but as we drove back to Calgary, we drove through rain, snow, sleet, hail... The conditions just got worse and worse, and at times we were driving in almost white-out conditions. I'm happy to say we made it back safely, and big glass of red wine was consumed once I got home.

I HAD to take this picture yesterday. Madelyn picked some dandelions, and how these little buggers grow, I don't know, since there is STILL snow on the ground. But she came across them, picked them and insisted they be put in a little vase. When I came back into the kitchen, she'd lined up these toys in front of the sink, because as she said, "they're all gathered to look at the most beautiful flowers". To have the army guys AND her MLP (my little ponies) is exactly who she is! Priceless!