Over the river and through the woods

In our case we have to travel over the highway and through the mountain range to get to Grandma’s house. Chuck and I took the kids to Grandma’s house for snuggles, kisses and smooches American Thanksgiving. This post is quite late since Thanksgiving feels like an eternity ago but as soon as we got home have been busy with homeschool and December activities. I am trying to make all of our gifts for friends and family this year. I’m going to write more about that later. For now I want to share pictures of my kids putting up Grandma’s Christmas tree with their cousins. Traditionally, the tree is hoisted into place the day after Thanksgiving.

All of the kids were able to join in the decorating and they loved it. Even Laurelyn got in on the action.

The boys got bored and quickly found something else to do with the decorations. An imaginative child never ceases to inspire me.

I didn’t manage my time very effectively while we were back in Washington. There was so much that I wanted to do and see and I didn’t get to half of what I was hoping to do. One of those things was spending more time with the Martie and Dee who came up from North Bend to see us. Thanks for coming up guys and I promise to take more advantage of the time next time we’re in town.

These next pictures are from a day trip Chuck and I took to Victoria Island so we could scout the place out. We have been thinking about moving there once our house is worth more than we spent on it. (Good luck, right?) Victoria is closer to my parents, warmer and milder than Alberta and we still get to keep our healthcare. It’s a win-win from our point of view. Speaking of views, the views from the ferry ride were amazing! Chuck and I spent the extra $10 to sit in the Lounge which has larger and more comfortable seats as well as complimentary snacks, tea and requires quiet voices so no one is disturbed while they’re sipping their tea! It felt so indulgent! The Lounge looked right onto the deck and the only downside was that I could watch all the people walking around outside. There was a man out there who was wearing backpack, wringing his hands, checking his watch, talking to himself and tapping on the one-way glass to the Lounge. I was starting to think this guy was going to blow a hole in the ferry with the contents in his backpack but he eventually got too cold and went inside. He still could have blown up the ferry from wherever he went but atleast I wasn’t sitting there watching him. Freaky!

Looking at neighborhoods online Chuck and I loved the idea of being in Oak Bay so that was our first stop. We immediately wished that we had brought the kids because we were there on their annual Light Up Festival. There were carolers, musicians, games, free food and sampler tables from some of the shops. It was so much fun and the kids would have loved it.

Oak Bay Library. We couldn’t get over how beautiful the buildings were!

This is the library lion that stands in the kids’ section where the children can climb up and sit like one of the characters from The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe.

Giant Checkers.

Giant Four Square.

We have a slight love for used book stores in our family. There’s something magical about finding an old book that has been loved and I can’t help but wonder where the book has traveled. What brought this book here to this store and into my hands? There’s a smell to used bookstores that I can’t get enough of. It’s gotten worse since we started homeschooling because now we’re always on the lookout for books about all sorts of subjects. We found a used bookstore in Oak Bay called Grafton’s Books. It was perfect. It even had the floor to ceiling bookcases and the wrap around track with the sliding ladder! I had so much fun. This was our first stop so we didn’t stay long but I could have been in there for our entire trip!

We stumbled onto this war memorial that looks out onto the ocean. Isn’t it beautiful?

My favorite part of going home is to see a relationship strengthen between my kids and my parents. It’s one thing to talk on the phone and to see pictures but it’s all together different to be together every day, all day for more than a week. My favorite was to see how attached Laurelyn got to her Grandpa. She loves her Grandpa and I am glad that my parents are coming here in February so I can get more pictures like these.

The day that we left my kids got Christmas presents from Grandma and Grandpa. Everyone loved what tey got and the now had toys to play with on the long trip home. I can’t wait to move to Victoria so we can be only a ferry ride away!