Happy Seventh Birthday!

M had a terrific birthday. In fact, I would say that it was a terrific birthday month. She is taking after her dad- birthdays always last more than a day! Her birthday surprises started off with an outfit and a trip to Victoria with a friend to see the Hannah Montanah 3D movie. M received birthday money, so we took her on Saturday to a mall, and she was able to shop. Mom was walking around with an armful of "I'm thinking about these." M kept saying, "How much do I have now?" She is quite the shopper! And then finally the big day - her actual birthday! M invited friends over and we had a flower theme party. We created flower invitations, had flower pot party favors and made flower tattoos with sand. The weather outside (snowing in March!) was too crazy for outside games, but the girls were content to play inside. When we made the move, I was really sad for M because she left so many great girl friends. She was very close with them (they even threw her a good bye party). I didn't think she would be so lucky to find another great group, but I was wrong. Watching M with these girls was such a blessing! Some of the hits of the party were M's Hannah Montanah jeans. All of the girls flipped when she pulled them out! Her second American girl doll was also a big surprise. Mia is a skater and she came with her own pair of skates. The girls wanted me to open her immediately. Well, the day ended with me exhausted and M all smiles. She had a great day! Thank you to Nanny and PopPop, Nanny and G-Daddy, Aunt Shonda, Uncle Tim and Maci, Great Grandma Franks, Uncle Scott and Aunt Mara, and Great Nana for making the day special - even miles away!

Happy Easter!

Just wanted to say Happy Easter to everybody. M just loved her new dress and received lots of complements on it. Mom had to give Great Nana's birthday gift to her early because M was dressing her American girl doll in her Christmas pj's for church. M was thrilled with the matching dress. Thank you Great Nana!

Bull Dog Football

Well, C is now an official Canadian Bull Dog! C is doing so well playing football. He went to football camp and then played in a tournament. The season officially started with C scoring a touchdown. C had a hand off to the right and was able to carry the ball in two downs to a touchdown. His second game C (#24) had a great block that enabled his player to score a touchdown! Does his mom sound like she knows what she is talking about? I am trying to learn the game. I keep asking his dad what position he is playing. I still don't really know. I know that on defense he plays the line and he is in the middle. Position? No idea! He also plays offense (smaller team - football is still trying to get big in Canada). Watching C makes me think of PopPop Franks and how much C would have loved to call him and talk football. He is really having fun and looks forward to playing each week. His football coach goes to our church and his son is C good friend. C has been so blessed to have some really great friends.

Good Friday Walk to the Kona Cross

Our Church had a Good Friday Service and every year after the service they take an approximately 2 mile walk up a mountain. At the top of the mountain is a cross. The view covers the whole North Cowichan Valley. Along the way they celebrate the Easter story. C and M begged to go. Dad was a little worried about the walk for M because it is a straight up the mountain hike, but C and M were troopers. On the way down Pastor Mark decided to take a short cut that really was not a short cut. The short cut became a long cut through bushes and thorns. The kids thought that it was the greatest thing to be lost. M just loves Pastor Mark so he did not loose any points in her book. What an awesome way to celebrate Good Friday.

Adventures During Spring Break Part 2

Well, Monday turned out to be a fabulous day! We went with friends to Victoria. Victoria is the city that you would fly into coming from Seattle. It is about an hour from where we live. Victoria is a beautiful city and it is very "British." There is a lot to do there. We went to the Underseas Gardens. You get on a boat and then you go down steps (way down). You are under the water! We got to see an Octopus and other creatures. They have an octopus show, but we missed it, so we will have to go back another day. Also, we went to a park in Victoria. This park was really big. It even had a petting zoo. As you can see from the pictures, the goats were our favorite. At one time, Conor had a bunch of goats all over him. One was standing on his back trying to eat his hood. Another goat really liked Dad. The goat was nibbling on his ear. We fed ducks, played on the playground and wandered through the gardens. If you go farther down the park, it takes you right to the ocean. We act like that is so amazing because we keep forgetting that we are on an island. Today was a great day and we are looking forward to many more adventures.

On Her Way to Level III Ice Skating!

Yes, that is right - M has passed the first two levels (red and orange skill levels) and has received two badges in her "Learn to Skate" Ice Skating Program. M has had a blast every Friday after school going to the ice skating rink. Ice skating is a big "thing" in Canada. Ice hockey is even bigger. M wanted to learn how to skate, because she wants to be a figure skater. Dreaming Big has never been a problem for M! She already is gliding across the ice with one leg outstretched. It was the cutest thing to watch especially as she is still working on the coordination aspect of it! She has no fear of falling and just picks herself up and starts again. Her next level is the gold skills challenge. She tells me that she is "Going for the Gold!" The first picture shows M with her badges and skills card. She is so proud.

Adventures During Spring Break

Spring Break is here and we are ready to go exploring! It is so hard to explain where we live, so we are going to show you. On Monday, we went to a park where we hiked a trail that led us straight to a beach. We collected shells and found a really cool tire swing. The hike back was up hill, and we thought we were going to have to pull Dad up, but he made it. C left shells on the beach and wanted to go back and get them. We all said, "No!" Wednesday was another day of exploring. We went to another park. The view of the ocean was breathtaking. This summer we can rent boats or swim in this part of the ocean. This beach is very rocky, and we found huge, purple starfish. C was the only brave one to touch it. This park so far is our favorite. We are going to Victoria on Monday with some friends, so more adventures over spring break coming soon.

Adventures in Canada

Well, what can we tell you about Canada. It is absolutely beautiful. The mountains look different everyday. In fact, everyday Dad says, "My mountains are beautiful!" M quickly reminds Dad that they are not his mountains. Dad says, "These mountains are created by God, and since we are his children they are our mountains too." Now we say, "Our mountains are beautiful today!" It does rain a lot in Canada, yet again we are on an island. If you are an islander, you play outside rain or shine. We have adapted to that quite nicely. Across the street where we live is a big field and woods. We explore the woods, go down to the creek and build forts in the field. We are surrounded by lots of trees. We are having so much fun.