Spring Break. Week 2.

This week began as the Sleepover Week. Guess it should be Passover Week, but we're all about reality. So... Miss K was at a friend's place Sunday night, then we had a friend here for two. Girls hanging out together means mall trips, so that's where it was all happening this week. At the mall.

Had a fun evening with friends on Monday night, who served us up a delicious lamb dinner. There you go. We didn't forget about Passover Week after all!

Today we babysat the local grandkiddies. Oh they are so much fun.

This little guy was feeling a little rough earlier in the day, so he had us all fussing over him, attempting to make his day a little happier. FaceTiming Papa at work was one request. Looks like it made him smile. 

Spring Break Adventure.

Last week, after a few days of lazing around the house and recovering from a short-lived flu bug, we decided to embrace the sunshine, and ventured out to explore our beautiful BC with some friends. From our place we thought to first take in Bridal Veil Falls Park, just west of Chilliwack, so we set off in that direction. We screeched to a halt to read this.

 

Seriously? We had just driven 45 minutes for nothing? Turns out the Park was indeed closed due to potential mudslides from all the rain we'd been having the week before. Ugh. We thought we might walk the trail regardless. But the thought of swimming in mud made us opt for Plan B. Which was Harrison Hot Springs, about 20 minutes away. 

And it was beautiful, I kid you not. Fell in love with this place. Lake in front..

 

...mountains behind. Oh my. What a spectacular little spot.

 

 

We wandered around one of the hotels, and store-hopped all the little touristy shops. The kids made their own fun. Skipped rocks. Rocked the dock. And we're mildly entertained by Alana declaring that she could actually jump onto the beach from the dock bridge. Yes, she did jump. Immediately following about 15 minutes of drama. And the pressure of Hayden jumping before her. Haha.

 

 

 

On the way home we stopped in at Castle Fun Park so the kids could play a round of mini golf. They'd been begging to do this since first thing this morning. See how happy they all are when they get their own way! I'm kidding. My two are always this happy. Also kidding. While Lisa and I patiently sat on the sidelines and drank in the sunshine... ah... it's a good life!

Henry II.

On March 5th this little chap arrived into our world. Henry James, made his grand debut around 6:00pm, weighing in at 7.7lbs. Henry is the 7th great for his legendary namesake.

 

Dada Dave and Mama Steph are very proud.

 

So is his Papa. 

And a few of his aunties. 

And, of course, his Nana is quite proud too, because she just dedicated a whole blog post in his honour! Looking forward to some fun times ahead with this little bundle! 

Other February Highlights.

Raked in a stash of calories from my students on Valentine's Day.

 

Attended a weekend in Arlington for the 10th annual Youth Conference, listening to messages on spiritual warfare from Ephesians 6. This was ministry directed to the young people present, but how needful it is for me to also be equipped with this whole armour of God. It's a dark and evil world we live in, rampant with an anti-God mentality. That much was made clear in the messages. But this belt of truth, this breastplate of righteousness, these shoes of the gospel of peace, this shield of faith, this helmet of salvation and this sword of the Spirit... are enough for me to stand up against the very devil himself. But I need the whole armour. And I need to put it on.

Hiked the Blackey Spit trail at Crescent Beach one sunny evening with this crew.

Enjoyed some after-school entertainment with a rather unique Cinderella.

Finished up basketball season. Made it to the Surrey Region playoffs, then lost in our second game. It was a little disappointing since the girls played hard, but a good finale though, since we became the first ever PA team to make it to these playoffs! So we celebrated at Menchies.

Vancouver Gastown

It seems the dark and rainy days of January passed in a blur of work, school and basketball.

Then, Family Day, February 9th... we ventured where we'd never gone before. The Gastown district of Vancouver. Home to the renowned Steam Clock, and lots of interesting little shops.

 

 

Payed homage to the Olympic Flame, that burned so brightly here six years ago at the 2010 Olympics. Now it's just the bleak remains of a metal monstrosity. A sad but true reminder of passing, earthly achievement.

Selfies have become a part of our everyday life.

 

Ate lunch at the Pacific Centre, and browsed through the rather grand and sprawling Nordstrom, where one swanky pair of shoes was retailing for $1500.

Alana fancied this dress and wanted to try it in her size... until she looked at the price tag. Shocker! We definitely live on the OTHER side of the tracks!

 

Burnaby Village. Post Christmas.

Didn't make it to the Village in time for Christmas this year, so missed out on hearing the Victorian carolers and visiting dowdy old Father Christmas himself. But managed a quick stop there in January... still in time to see the winter-themed displays and ride on the famous carousel.

Hanging with this family... brings lots of life to the party!

Alana and Brodie always seem to laugh the loudest.

 

This photo has no words. None that are appropriate, anyways.

 

Posing on the tram.

 

What a great start to the New Year... fun and games followed this outing back at our place, with this awesome family, and this special Kiwi guest of honour, Alice McIvor. Also awesome!

Christmas Day.

Christmas morning mayhem.



Delighted with their new, fuzzy blankets.



Daddy's girl is growing!! They're both modelling some new duds!




And Miss Kayleigh's pretty hairdo... compliments of a new curling iron. And by the way, see that game she's playing? Loathe it. 2048. I'm thinking of turning it into a swear word.






My very unexpected and generosity-loaded gift from the family was a new iPad, which you can't see right now because I'm using it to update this blog. But I love it, as you can imagine... so much faster and friendlier than the old one!

And I vaguely recall that this gift-opening was followed by a family visit and turkey dinner. But you'll have to believe me on that one, because there's absolutely nothing to show for it, bar some added weight gain.

And I outright refuse to photograph that, never mind post the evidence!

Christmas Cards 2015.

Family photos for Christmas cards this year were very much a last minute decision. Thanks to an obliging friend who was willing to go along with our impulsive last-minuteness, we now have a small collection of memories so we can remember exactly what we looked like at the end of 2015.

And judging by the amount of wrinkles I seem to be accumulating, I think I'll be more than hesitant to be so camera-keen at the end of this year. Ugh.