) Day 5~ finding inner peace

Amy was up and feeling pretty good (minus the cold) but we hit the streets bright and early of downtown and I should of taken more pictures of downtown! Our first stop was a brand new bakery in town... Red’s. They had a good selection and recommended their cheese biscuit or custard tart. I almost went for the custard tart but behold my wandering eyes beheld the most delicious looking meatballs. And they were!!! I got 2 lovely spicy pork meatballs ❤️. Not a usual bakery purchase but they were outta this world good! Amy, however, opted for the recommended cheese biscuit, even though she didn’t have a pleasant experience yesterday with a different biscuit.

We took ourselves across the street to a well established bakery to pick up Nanaimo’s “best” Nanaimo bar and my wandering eyes struck again and we left with an additional pecan bar and a couple Macrons for Amy. And a short stroll later found us at the other end of the harbour that we didn’t get to yesterday! I felt as excited as all the little boys we past that had their faces glued to the big boats!  I have to say, the harbour in March is a real treat. The weather has been fabulously warm (especially compared to the weather we’ve had an Alberta)! The harbour walking paths were empty except for the occasional elderly couple walking their dog or families with kids enjoying the warm weather and the ocean breeze. It was so laid back and relaxing.

We found our spot next to the water so we could watch the boats and planes come in and out to enjoy our treats from the bakery. Amy gave it to huge thumbs up to red’s cheese biscuit she said it was sweet and peppery and moist with a good crust! great biscuit!

I had bites from all my treats and they were amazing. The pecan bar was incredibly good and sometimes they can be was over the top sweet and while it was very sweet it was not overly sweet for a pecan bar! And the Nanaimo bar 😳 the custard in it is the real winner- light and creamy all at the same time!

 

The view from our picnic bench also included the walking dock. On the dock this morning there were a couple of groups crabbing. After eating her treats we took a gander down the dock and couldn’t believe the size of the crabs that they were pulling in! They were enormous!

After our stroll back we took a little drive into the north part of Nanaimo and went to this great little park called Piper Lagoon Park. The houses along this park are dreamy. 

In the background amidst the clouds are the mountains ⛰ ❤️




At the end of Pipers Lagoon is this tiny island filled with fishing shacks. 

 And there were soooooo many tiny swirly shells and birds and the trails were perfectly imperfect. And all the tiny row boats just made my heart so perfectly happy to know a place like this exists in the world. Plus apparently this is the 👌🏻 clam digging place!! You can’t eat them because of a bad algae bloom last year but clams love it in this little lagoon. We went a low tide and there were soooo many clam holes. 

After our walk we headed back into the downtown where we went to Pirates. As you can tell it was over the top fun, filled full of interesting things to look at! The batter was good and Delish and the coleslaw was on point. Plus the put vindicates in a spare bottle -ingenious!! 

Now we are back at home resting up for part 2 of day 5!

Part 2

After a tiny rest and to catch up on some basketball we were off again. We took a drive down Nanaimo’s river road and found all sorts of treasures. Farms with lambs and lots of little artisan shops. And at the end of the road we found this cool little bridge 

We go outta the car and attempted a walk until 2 massive dogs unfriendly met us 😂

We headed back to the Dam/dog park and let the dogs out for a little jaunt. We came back to Amy’s and found a movie to watch (Book Club) and ordered takeout- small luxuries that you don’t get when you live outta town. We ordered Thai food and it was incredible. Like so good. I also finished up my most delicious Nanaimo bar and then headed to bed!

Day 4 ~in search of the deep blue~

We got up and headed out to Coombs market. It was filled with treasurers. Cheap rugs, cute mermaid 🧜‍♀️ hooks, and a bakery! It was lovely! 

We then drove just a hop down the road and found another little shop filled with the softest muslin! Amy ended up picked up the most beautiful baby blanket. So dreamy. 

We then headed to Rathtrevor beach and it was amazing. I wish my boots and feet were getting along. I wore my birks and they sufficed but I could of spent forever there but March is still a little chilly for bare feet and wet sand!! There were so many tiny sand dollars! But the other highlight was all the bunnies!! So cute. There was brambles and briars and so many bunnies.

We came home to have a bit of a nap. Amy felt terrible all day. And when she woke up she still felt horrible. So we took it slow but the doggies needed to go out for a walk so we took them down to the harbour.


It was so blue and so lovely. And it was such a beautiful day!!

That is the biggest boat I have ever seen!! So so so huge. And there were so many float planes landing and taking off.

But the smell was terrible! It smelt like sea and fish and diesel.

We came home and I inflicted many episodes of Father Brown onto Amy and we ordered some Mambos pizza and just vegged!

Day 3 Moms break from Alberta’s Winter

I was up early again. Still on Alberta kid time. It gave me time to enjoy the quiet still morning. And the smell. Amy’s house always smells like Earth. In  my room it smells of enchanted forests. Kyle got up and made delicious breakfast- eggs scrambled with veggies and slides pan fried potatoes. Morsels is deliciousness. 

As I was getting dressed I spotted this little guy out my window. {and can I also point out all the lovely flowers emerging everywhere }

We headed out to pick up a few things to paint her bedrooms and she wanted to show my the ultimate Heath food grocery store and it was AMAZING! I wish I had taken a pic. 

We also had to make a quick pit stop at Costco {like for real I love Costco- I could do a Canada tour of Costco } I needed to pick up Heluva Dip - which apparently Nanaimoians eat for less dip than Lethbridgeians.... because they had none! Not even a spot for it 😳

So after striking out there we went to the Nanaimo Confections and bakery- picked up a delicious gluten free double chocolate cookie that was AMAZING and a long John filled with cream and some cheddar/onions buns and a gluten free loaf. We headed home and took a wee nap. 

After a brief stop we were on and up again- thought I would bust out the boots again and try again! So I duct taped my ankles and hoped that my luck and tape would hold and headed to Amy’s favourite spot on earth.

The above are picture from their DOG park!! It was amazing. So many mossy water viewed trails! It was splendid! {aside from Kyles wipe out and my blisters}

We came back and Kyle cooked us dinner-

Bacon cheddar burgers on the best gluten free bread served with jalapeño mayo and beet/carrot/potato/sweet potatoe fries. So good!

We played some quirkle and listened to Lucy and Ellie practice their speeches and called it a night!

(Temporary Backup) Hello Spring

Winter at home has been brutally cold and the snow just wants to stay. No a chinook in sight. Amy has been wanting us to come out and so we all planned on coming but between winter and animals, our plans got changed from all to me going. 

I jumped on a plane at Lethbridge (which was SO convienant !!) (and cheaper than leaving from Calgary). The flight to Calgary was uneventful and I was so glad Dusty convinced me to download a few shows on my phone!! Landed in Calagary for a wee layover. The waiting room was pretty sweet. Comfy chairs, good wifi, lots of room. After that I jumped on another plane to Nanaimo! And my best luck- no one sat beside me!!

Check out that view heading over the Rockies 👆🏻

And flying over the channel 😍

I love the ocean. Some people over open spaces and dancing wheat fields or hay or forests or mountains.... I will take the ocean!

I landed in good time. Walked through the longest outdoor walkway- and marveled at the warmth! Turned the corner into the building and bam 💥 there she was! It was so good to see her (and to not be busy bearding bodies that I could actually just enjoy that moment).

We took off for her house and it’s adorable and perfect. My room and is huge and comfy. We dropped my stuff and went out grocery shopping. Ate a Costco hotdog for lunch and then headed to go out for a walk.... and I got blisters. Dang boots and flat lander feet! But look at how amazing the walk was (not wonder why I just kept pushing  past the point of no return)

We headed home where Amy tried to torture me by taking off my boots - they finally came off 😬

We chilled out for a bit and then went hunting for quirkle and dinner. We went to the Firehouse and I had garlic butter prawns on Cesar salad and it was Delish!!! I could barely keep my eyes open when we got home and I passed out at 8pm!!

I was up at 5am and spent a lovely morning puttering around my room. I only changed 4 times before we left for Victoria. I really needed to take more pictures. The drive was beautiful, filled with rock walks and moss and running water. 

We got into Victoria and it was stunning with all the old buildings. We parked right by a harbour and took off walking! First few blocks were China town- and it was vibrant and colourful 

And the alleys were all decorated and most had these tiny stores in them! We headed for lunch but not before passing the most amazing smelling Italian bakery and so many colourful buildings. 

We finally found our lunch destination- Ferris’ Oyster Bar


I ordered 3 baked oysters and a bowl of Cioppino (filled to the brim with clams, oysters, prawns, salmon, and other delicious bits. Super good. Amy had the show set which she said was amazing and Kyle got something I can’t pernounce. 

All good!

We took off for more sights and found ourselves down by the water. The cherry trees and dafdosills are all out in full force! We walked by the Empress Hotel and meandered back up the street. We passed a few tiny 7-11’s and a McDonald’s that had full time security on it! A huge homeless population. We also stopped into the oldest church in Canada. It was a prespraterian church and the guy was a lovely chatty old Scottish fellow and he talked out ears off but the build fb was amazing. I love the smell of old churches. We escaped and headed back for the car, passing that tiny Italian bakery...... only this time we had to go in!

It was this little place called La Tana and it was amazing. They had sweet and savoury delights and the baker spoke Italian. Amy ordered a ton of things- a birocci (orange pastry filled with Nutella- it looked like an icing powder bun), and small cookies, and big flat cookies and then I got the most delicious super chewy almond flour cookie and it was amazing. We happily returned to the car and took a scenic drive around a park and the ocean route and checked out all the amazing houses!

We got home and I made Hawaiian haystacks and then had a little downtime. I came out and Amy and Kyle were ordering burritos and we watched some Father Brown and Called it a night!

Can Summer last Forever?

Summer is really a perpetual state of bliss. You care a little less about the budget and a little more on adventures and memories. I care a little less about the schedule and a little more in just doing what we want. Looking through our summer so far is satisfying that we actually made an effort to just spend a little more time together and got some great memories packed in.

Second week of July we got to go on 4-H horse camp. It was seriously amazing. 

Ellie left for 4-H camp so the other kids and I took off for the creek with Cherlyn and her kiddos.

A little Wallys beach

I was actually at all these places but I think this might be the rare photo of me! 

Dusty and Ellie got some cow chasing in with our friends Tara and Ally {and Austin and Mike}

More moving cows.

My happy place. We tried to put in an effort to get to "the lake" as much as we could. I am hoping to find another few days down there but it was heaven while it lasted.

Playing at the beach at the lake. Andy may love the lake as much as I do.

Annual fort Steele trip!


So much cards this summer! The girls are all finally old enough to really start playing cards. They learned how to play rook and bugger your neighbour and hearts. Andy tries to get in a few rounds of go fish in between.

BC is on fire this summer and the smoke has been an issue we've had to contend with at the lake and at home but it has made for some amazing sun shots. 

All the kiddos tubed this year. Ellie is hands down the champ. She has really stepped out of her shell and put fear aside. It's helped all the other kids too. 

Our cousins from Manitoba came and visited and wanted a rural farm experience. It was an awesome visit and the kids loved hanging out. Ellie, Kyle, and Penny were the only ones that managed to sleep outside all night!!

We did put them to work! We got the chicken coop partially painted and a loaf of hay stacked!!

We also are one kitten short in the barn. Miko the cat will be living the high life in Manitoba!! 

It was an awesome visit and we have to do it more! Thanks Aunt Jean for the snow Bobs!

This might be one of the biggest highlights for Lucy. She struggles with nervousness while we ride. She has come leaps and bounds this year on her pony but sadly she was outgrowing her. The universe smiled on us and the stars aligned and we found her her unicorn. Meet Reese. She wakes up every morning and begs Ellie and dusty to go riding. 

This has been Ellie's highlight. Kneeboarding. Hopefully we can get back to the lake because she is determined to ski this year!

We have 2 more weeks left of bliss! Fingers crossed we have a few more adventures!

Summer Starts

June was a whirl wind and it's hard to believe we are a week into July already! 

Dusty and I had a mini day break {with our favourite little boy side-kick}

It was awesome to have no phone service and some soul quenching scenery.

Record books have been turned in and we have 1 major 4-H activity and then it's a wrap for the year and it has been one heck of a year!!! 

We finally made some time for riding lessons with one of our most favourite ladies. Penny has been doing awesome! And Lucy found a new pal to ride.

We ran away with another of our favourite ladies on a pizza and buggy ride! We need to make more time for this in our lives!






1st week into July and I hope we get 8 more like it! We have a summer full of rodeos, horse shows, movies in the park, community events, farmers markets, lake time, boating, riding, and hopefully visiting.

Showmanship- 3rd

Western Pleasure- 1st

Western Equitation- 4th

Trail- 1st

Command- 1st

Versatility Pleasure- 1st

English Pleasure- 1st

English Equitation- 2nd