WARNING: THIS IS A LONG POST!
Pre-Trip
Lyza is pretty proud of her play dough taco
Before we left on our trip all of the trees were covered in popcorn. I loved singing Popcorn Popping growing up, but didn't really understand what the song meant. There are so many flowing trees around here, spring is REALLY pretty!
Nixon and I helped Kim finish up her deep cleaning before we left. Kim made a goal to deep clean every room of the house before this baby came, and she has done an amazing job. Nixon was a really good help pushing our sectional around, I was surprised how much easier it was with his help
Kim took the kids to a local park with a little lake/pond and the kids enjoyed seeing some wild life
They found a goose egg sitting by the water
They also saw several turtles
Lyza made some necklaces for her grandmas for mothers day
We always check on the kids before we go to bed at night. This is how we found Lyza
Big Drive
The kids were AMAZING on our drive up to Welling! They were really happy, didn't beg for movies the whole time, and made the trip really easy. Look how cute they are first thing in the morning ready for a long drive
We like to stop at the park in Cranbrook to stretch and get energy out
Nixon was fearless going on the swings on his tummy...until he lost his balance and face-planted in the rocks. He got a bloody nose, scraped his forehead, nose, and lip...just what we wanted with family pictures planned during the trip. Luckily he healed up quickly.
Our next stop was in Sparwood to look at the big truck, have some food, and get more wiggles out.
This was my first time seeing the truck in person and it was IMPRESSIVE
It was really cold and windy, so eating outside wasn't very enjoyable
Nixon thought it was funny to hide under his blanket so no one could see him. He eventually fell asleep with the blanket over his head
We Made it to Welling
When we made it to Welling the kids were excited to see that there were new kittens
The trampoline is always a lot of fun
If the shoe fits...
But of course nothing is better than seeing Grandma
Nixon was pretty interested in Hailey
Of course Nixon loved uncle Kevin, a fellow hat-wearer
And uncle Kevin let Nixon drive his truck. Nixon LOVES trucks
Henderson Park
We all spent the afternoon at Henderson Park. It has a really nice playground and the weather was unseasonably hot
Cute
Lyza loved playing on the big rocks around the lake
You can't have good quality family time without ladder ball
Enjoying cousin Hailey
Cute face Hailey
Back in Welling
That evening we had a hot dog roast, of course with s'mores for desert
The kids got to ride on great-grandpa's quad with grandpa
Lyza liked it, but it was a little too loud for her
The next day we went swimming in Lethbridge and had a great time. Our kids swim all the time in the river and lakes, but haven't been swimming much in indoor pools. They had a good time and we got to spend some time learning some basic swimming skills
When we got home from swimming grandpa Bullock had just come over to give Norma some lilacs he had just trimmed...what a gentleman!
Nixon took advantage of another opportunity to sit on the quad
More trampoline fun
These two are really fun together on the trampoline
Pothole Creek
For our last day in Welling we spent a morning hiking through the coulee close to Kim's parents' house before the drive up to Edmonton
Right along the trail we saw a goose sitting on this nest, when we startled the goose (unintentionally) she flew away and left her eggs, and just squawked at us from the distance
The kids loved throwing rocks in the stream
Here is my little puppeteer
Squinty-eyed family photo looking into the sun
By the end both kids decided they were too tired to walk any farther
Before going to Edmonton we said good-bye to great grandpa and grandma
Edmonton
The drive to Edmonton didn't go as well as the drive to Welling. Nixon was unhappy, but eventually we made it.
We spent an afternoon and evening with my sister Sarah's family. It was nice to see our kids reunited with their cousins
Nixon and Alison sitting in the wagon
Playing in the sand box
Our little pirate
Eating dinner. Thanks for the great time Sarah!
Jurassic Forest (Gibbons, AB)
We took the kids out to a dinosaur forest exhibit North of Edmonton. We also took three of our nieces, which was fun when people asked if all of the kids (all 5 of them with another on the way) were ours
Looks like these dinosaurs got out of the park
These two girls (2 years age difference) were a cute little pair
This velociraptor in the gift shop/entrance was a little too much for Nixon. You can see that it is a person in an animation suit (didn't do such a good job hiding the legs of the wearer) but the head and tailed moved back and forth and there were scary noises. He didn't like it
Real (replica) triceratops skull
My little guy riding a long neck
There were outdoor exhibits along walking paths. It was fun to walk along and have Lyza act as a tour guide. She would tell us what we were looking at and then hurry on to the next exhibit. The dinosaurs all moved and made noises
We were impressed with the quality of the exhibits. Here is a brachiosaurus being attacked by smaller dinosaurs
There was also a large play ground area. In the sand there were fossils for the kids to find
Cute little hatch-ling ;-)
Proof that Kim was there with us ;-) She was the photographer most of the time
Nixon really enjoyed seeing all of the dinosaurs
A prehistoric rhino
As we were leaving one of the staff asked if we wanted a family picture, how thoughtful
Back at the cousins' house having some fun
I wish we could take Aubrey home to read all of our books
More Fun in Edmonton
The kids had lots of fun at Grandma and Grandpa Keyes' house
Lyza liked seeing her cousin Bronson
When you stop by Lowes to get some flowers for Grandma, you have to take a ride on the mowers
We also spent some time at the Summerside beach and park
Think he is having fun?
Mother's Day
On Sunday we celebrated Mother's Day with the Keyes. It was nice to see everyone
Lyza was so excited to give Grandma Keyes a necklace that she made for her
Lyza LOVED playing with her cousin Lewis
Don't mess with her!
This guy loves to dress himself, even if his clothes are inside out
On Hannah's birthday we went swimming. The pool had a big waterslide and both Nixon and Lyza loved going on the slide. Hannah came swimming with us, and Grandma Keyes and Rachel came and watched. It was a lot of fun.
After all of that fun Nixon needed to have a little snack
He really took a liking to his Auntie Rachel
It was fun to be able to celebrate Hannah's 19th birthday with her. She has gotten a mission call and will be leaving for the MTC in July and then Tahiti shortly after. I can't believe my little sister is leaving for a mission. She will be an amazing missionary!
Lyza and Nixon also really like playing with Uncle Simon
I am really going to miss Hannah!
Our kids like the cuckoo clock
19 yellow candles! That thing almost melted from all of that heat!
Lyza tied Rachel up with streamers and didn't want to let her go
We had a really good time visiting family. It was sad not to see Benjamin, who conveniently was in Yellowknife for school the same time we were in Edmonton ;-) We will have to catch him next time.
We had lots of fun and most of it was not captured by the camera. Thanks to those that housed, fed, and entertained us.
Back at home
As much as we loved spending time with our families it was nice to get home and back to "normal"
It certainly isn't normal to see Lyza and Nixon working so well on something together, but it is something that happens every now and then
Here is Lyza working on a color-able Noah's ark that her Grandma Keyes gave her.
That's all for now, take care
