Having Dad in Calgary

Dad never guessed that our little weekend trip down to Utah over Labor Day weekend would result in him coming back with us to Calgary.

Jaren pushed and I pulled him out the door and off we went at 5:00am for a 14 hour drive up the I-15.

He did very well and seemed to enjoy the road trip. And once we got into Calgary he found a bed and collapsed.

We kept busy doing kid things and school things and shopping things, but mostly he just wanted to sit in a chair or sleep or make special eating requests.

The highlight came on the weekend when we went to Banff. Our first stop was Lake Louise. I never get tired of visiting this lake.

Then we saw Lake Moraine. It was quite chilly that day.

Dad had lots of fun on the drive, but once again when we got home he found a bed and collapsed.

ONE short week away from home was about all he could take. He felt very homesick and wanted the comforts of his own bed and bathroom.

We had lots of fun while he was here and would welcome him back gladly.

Summer vacation 2010

We had just moved into our new house and the unpacking was coming to a dead end. All the nooks and crannies were filling up and there was no more room for all our stuff. So I determined we'd have to leave the rest for later. School went until the end of June and we were all ready for a family vacation.

This time we were heading WEST unlike so many other times when the destination was

South (Utah). Colin had vacation time and we were headed for British Columbia.

Our first stop was at the picturesque lake of Shuswap. We stayed at a cabin on the lake owned by some of Colin's friends parents. They were there and we had a great time. Then after two days we drove to the Vancouver area and caught the car ferry from Tsawwasen to Nanaimo. We had a great time the next day in Parksville looking for sea creatures at low tide and flying kites on the beach. Reina was the best at collecting sand dollars.

Then next day we drove across the island to the West side to a town called Tofino which is on the border of a temperate rain forest.

It was absolutely stunning. We

were all amazed at the beauty of the ocean and forests.

The Pacific Rim National Forest feels like it's a thousand years old. We were able to explore winding boardwalk trails, take a boat to watch whales and soak in steaming hot springs.

It was so much fun and a very relaxing place to be in so much nature.

Here is a very bad picture of the grey whales we saw- I'll never make it as a national geographic photographer. But you can see the whale "blow" and see a bit of the tale of another whale.

After four days we left to see another beautiful spot on the island. The Buchart Gardens. It was well worth the day detour and the kids loved the orderliness of the beautiful flower beds.

After seeing so much greenery it was time to get back to my desert roots. We took the ferry back and crossed the US border near Seattle (a very busy crossing!! 1 hour and 40 minute wait). Then we took two days to drive to Utah where we stayed with my Dad for a week. We had a great time seeing our Utah families but were ready to head for home at the end of the week.

A small miracle..

Alek's preschool.

Was it a coincidence or by divine design that I dropped Alek off late at his preschool today? I had been trying for weeks to get a specific present for a lady I’m assigned to visit in our ward. She just had a baby and I needed to get to the baby store way up North and back before Alek’s preschool started. I knew I would be cutting it close for time but decided it was worth being a little late so I could get the gift I thought would be perfect for her.

As expected, I was running about 7 minutes late as I approached the school. But what I didn’t expect was seeing a little 3-4 year old boy running down the sidewalk and in front of my car. I quickly stepped on the brakes and scanned the area looking for an adult or anyone... no one was there.

Before he passed my car and could cross the big road I quickly jumped out of my car and grabbed his arm asking him where he was going. In a crying voice he told me he was looking for his mommy and couldn’t find her. I told him to wait on the grass next to the sidewalk while I parked my car. I was blocking the right hand turn lane. After I parked, I got Alek out of the car an asked him if this little boy was in his class. He nodded his head yes. Only partially believing him, because he’s 4, I decided there was no other option and we walked to the preschool and brought him with us. When we arrived the teacher looked at our stray boy a little quizzically but ushered him in the room. She was probably wondering how come I had brought him in.... again. When I told her where I had found him she was greatly relieved and astonished that he could have slipped out so easily (probably during the confusion when the other mom’s were dropping off their kids).

As I reflected on this situation I marveled that I crossed paths with this boy at the exact right time and place. And that only I could have known where to bring him. There were a few other drivers that could have helped this boy instead of me but there is no way they could have figured out from that boy where his school was. The preschool is quite hidden and if you don’t have a child there you wouldn’t know it existed.

I’m sure that God is watching over his children and we are all instruments if we allow ourselves to be. Miracles have not ceased and we can witness them if we do what is right and endeavor to keep the commandments.

Top of the mountain in Utah at 'Brighton' ski resort.

Lake Chaparral in the Winter

Ice Skating at the lake in our community. There are many paths to take or you can just stay on the perimeter. Alek skated for a little then just wanted to be pulled on the toboggan.

This is the ice rink next to the lake if you want a more tame experience. Both are connected by a rubber path so you can go from one to the other. Kelsey and Mom just walked in shoes but by the end of the day I was thinking I might just break down and buy myself a pair of skates too.