Popping back to summer, Canada! This year the Wheeler family had another epic family reunion. We love choosing different beautiful destinations where we gather, This year was an extra special treat as we made our way to Vancouver Island.
Please pardon me if the text itself is brief. At this point, this blog is primarily a photo repository. Besides, aside from a quirky anonymous fellow, I'm not all that certain anyone reads this thing. (With a wink to a few other family members who stop by occasionally, plus to Talia on her mission.)
So, Canada is north, meaning that we drove through Idaho on our way there. No better time to stop and see Grandma Hansen in Rupert. Happy birthday, Grandma! Norma turned 101 on October 30th.
Instead of driving straight through, we found a unique AirBnB in Burlington, Washington. I do believe this was my first time sleeping in a motorhome.
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The set-up was cute, but definitely very cozy. Personally, I liked getting outside to enjoy the firepit.
Plus, the cows were awesome.
The next day was not only the Fourth of July, but our nation's 250th birthday! We celebrated with some amazing breakfast fare at Billy's Cafe.
While it's hard to feel atriotic during a presidency that's as divisive and demeaning as Trump's, I still feel hope when I see my kids smile. They are the ones that actually make America great.
After some outrageously large servings of biscuits and gravy, french toast, and cheese blintzes, we'd decided we'd had enough of the United States and skipped over to Canada for the rest of the Fourth of July. Here we are enjoying the view of the city as we stroll through Stanley Park.
While we didn't visit the Vancoooooouver aquarium to see
Helen the white-sided dolphin (she passed years ago), we did enjoy the totem poles. By way of explanation, after Annika met Helen, she was so enamored that she would pray for her in "Vancooooouver" every night
She's not as little as she used to be, but she still loves animals, even dead crab claws.
From Stanley Park we raced to buy groceries, pick up Lance and Austin, and make it to the ferry in time. It was a tight fit, but per usual our mini-van packed in more than seemed possible.
Only one casualty. When we opened the trunk, our watermelon rolled out and split on the ferry floor, hiding beneath another vehicle before we contained it to a bag where it oozed copious amounts of watermelon juice. I can only imagine what the passengers on the lower decks must have thought as we dumped the reddish juice overboard.
Above deck, all was well and drama-free.
We met up with Christy, Ben, Grandma Susie, and Grandpa Charles for the ferry ride across. As you might expect, they brought pastries! :)
I love the water.
Austin's lookin' and Jason's leapin'.
A clear sign we are in Canadian waters.
After landing in Nanaimo, we drove a short distance to the beautiful home we'd rented in Lantzville. (Lantzville, Lanceville--ha ha!) While we knew the place would be pretty, the views were even more spectacular in real life.
Don't get me wrong--I like our home. However, I think I'd like doing dishes even more if I could look out the kitchen sink every day and see this.
Ah, but it's really not the place--it's the people. After missing Brooklyn for so long on her mission, getting to spend time with her always feels like a treat. Hermana Talia, the days and weeks go slow but the months go fast. Before you know it, we will be pinching ourselves and so grateful that you are home too!
Prepping for our Fourth of July dinner.
Savoring the sunset by the fire.
Sunday morning breakfast delights.
Here we are at Cathedral grove, a magnificent old growth forest.
Any chance she gets, Annika climbs.
Yeah, pretty sure this is against transplant rules, but at least she's cute.
Our other mischievous minions.
Meanwhile, back in Lantzville the kids were relishing the indoor playground.
Big kid entertainment as well.
The next day we headed over to Englishman River Falls. Dramatic!
The best part, however, was the frigid swimming hole. A few of the truly intrepid were brave enough to jump in.
As our resident cold-plunger, Ben led the way.
At some point I'll have to go back and upload some videos of Austin and Jason and Justin hopping in as well. It took Annika a while, but she eventually got there too.
Hi Christy!
Hiking out.
Of course Annika caught another frog. Did you know I've started a file on my desktop wiht all the photos of Annika doing all the things she's not supposed to?
Next stop, Coombs, home of the Goats on the Roof.
Austin seems intrigued.
Also, it's not everywhere you can get a Nanaimo bar donut. Yum!
Afterward, we explored a lovely beach front right in Lantzville. The property belonged to the parents of the family whose home we were renting. They were super kind and invited us to borrow their beach toys, including kayaks. Brooklyn and I even saw an otter while out exploring! At first I thought it was a sea otter because, well, we were out in the ocean, but apparently they have a river otter living in the area too.
No question about this creation--definitely a starfish!
Here we are hiking the trails near Lantzville the following morning.
We hadn't seen anyone for the entire trail when all of a sudden Justin comes charging up the mountain on the opposite side and meets up with us. If there's a merit badge for bushwacking, he earned it. Eli had fun keeping up with his uncle for the run back down, even if he did drop his phone and crack the screen. (By the way, Eli was pretty proud when took his iphone apart and fixed it himself.)
Next adventure: Pipers lagoon park.
Fantastic as they are, I don't know why I don't have more pictures of Ruby and Violet. They are both growing up too fast!
Practically Robinson Crusoe.
We found a crab in a tiny puddle and moved it to a larger tide pool so that it wouldn't dry out. Little did we realize the other tide pool already had a crab living there--we are really hoping they didn't battle.
Ruby and her cute crab claw.
A great photo of Granpa Charles.
Inside the lagoon, we discovered that if you stood still long enough, teeny tiny crabs would gather to exfoliate the skin on your legs and feet. Talk about having your toes tickled!
Christy's laughs were the best.
Gathering back at the homestead for some cousin time. Annika, Ruby looks like she might need some more personal space. :)
Of course, the couch does look pretty full. Must be naptime.
Later in the afternoon a group of us headed out for a Nanaimo bar crawl. Finding as many places as possible to eat chocolate-coated carbs? Yes, please. We made it to this bakery literally one minute before it closed.
While in town, we decided to check out coastal Nanaimo itself.
The best part about summer is that the daylight lasts forever. We arrived home with plenty of time left for reading, playing, and games.
Hey Brooklyn! Didn't know you were in there. By the way, you are a fantastic oldest cousin.
Steak for dinner? We felt so spoiled!
Like I said, this blog is a brilliant photo repository, and I apologize for nothing...
...especially when homemade pie is involved.
That evening we enjoyed a fantastic powerpoint celebrating Charles and Susie's 50th wedding anniversary. Each child contributed ten slides of favorite memories--it was a highlight of the trip.
Our last morning at this stunning Lantzville home. You can see why they often host weddings here.
Pausing for a nature break during our drive down to Victoria.
Butchart Gardens--Charles and Susie took their family here right around thirty years ago. It was fun to relive the memories from when Jason was 16.
The last time I was here, Brooklyn was a month shy of being born,
The sunken garden is still my favorite.
Happy anniversary, Susie and Charles! 50 years of marriage has never looked better.
As Violet demonstrated, the lawn was just perfect for tumbling.
Meanwhile Ruby and Annika looked on like mature old souls.
In the rose garden, we all looked for roses that were planted in our birth year.
Recreating a family photo. I'll have to see if I can find the original.
Looks like the family has grown.
Love you, amor.
Can you believe how beautiful and grown-up our daughters are? (Eli's pretty handsome too.)
Wish I had a magic mirror to see what a family visit might look like the next time we are here.
For dinner it was fish and chips or chowder at Bob's Finest at Sea food truck. Great place for some tasty halibut!
From there we walked over to the colorful Fisherman's Wharf where wsome of the homes actually float on the water.
Touring downtown Victoria.
No matter what the country, ice cream is always a great choice. Right, Talia?
I kind of liked the transplant lunch box we saw, but it felt a bit too on the nose to purchase.
Violet and Justin hanging out.
One last photo of Brooklyn and Ruby before parting ways.
Very early the next morning we caught the ferry from Victoria back to Vancouver.
Since we don't do morning coffee, hot chocolate had to suffice.
Rest up! From Vancouver we still had a fifteen hour drive back to Salt Lake, making for a very long travel day but we finally made it safely home. Challenging? Yes. But for the time to connect with family, the trip was absolutey worth it.
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