Oh, Canada!

Dan took his second CPA Exam! Whoo hoo! After he got home I had to go run some errands before we left the next day. I get in the car and the seat is like a football field away from the pedals (Dan why are you so tall?) so I go to move the seat up (they're power seats) and nothing. This has happened once before, for like 2 seconds. Last time I just jiggled the seat around then the power seats kicked into gear. This time nothing. I'm just wigglin' and bouncing around the car as much as I can to see if it'll work, I definitely looked ridiculous from the outside. Everything else worked- moving the back of the seat back closer and father, moving the physical seat up and down, just not the back and forth of the whole seat. I start banging my head on the steering wheel, "WHY. DO. YOU. HATE. ME?" What am I bad luck? Well I have to make a choice. There's no other time I can run these errands because we're leaving the next day right after I get off work. My first stop was close and I told myself I'll go there and see what happens. Before I got out of the parking lot I shimmied my pursed behind my tail bone to prop me forward a little more. I was gripping to the steering wheel to keep me close and I leaned the back of the seat forward to kind of keep me up there. This sounds dangerous... maybe I shouldn't be writing this.

I made it to my first destination easy peasy. I was a little touchy on the pedals, I was too close at first, but I was able to run all my errands! Yay! Then.. It was Canada time!

This was the only seat left for me

We made the drive to Canada in two legs. First to Idaho Falls to meet up with Ryan and Kate then we all piled into one car and made the drive. We got there safely and in one piece. We're staying at a condo on a gorgeous golf course. It's beautiful out there!

Who knows why but there's a giant dino at the rest stop right after you cross the boarder.

In the way we stopped in Great Falls where Dan's grandparents and some other relatives are buried. It was really cool to be able to stop because he hasn't been there in a long time.

Dan's grandpa and grandma

I thought this was a creative grave

The first stop of our Canada trip was to Waterton National lakes. Waterton is a lake side town in southern Alberta. You can actually take a ferry back to the USA from here. It's a lot like Yellowstone but better (in my opinion). The first thing we did was hike Red Rock Canyon. It basically where you hike up a riverbed full of red rock. It's actually quite gorgeous! We used to do this hike as kids and it's so fun because you have to climb, plan and maneuver your way up sometimes dangerous situations, all while trying not to get wet. Dan, Dad, Ryan and I started up the river bed and about halfway through there was a part that I didn't feel comfortable doing so I turned back but the other three made their way to the water fall at the end. They said it got even harder as they went on.

We saw a BEAR!

After that we had a delicious lunch of sammiches and then went to hike Bear Hump. The map said it was only 0.90 kilometers and it goes up 200 kilometers in height. It doesn't sound too bad on paper and I wasn't thinking about the height conversion. It was pretty trying! It was uphill the whole way with a ton of switch backs. It was a path it was going up large stairs that go up to my knees. Although the hike was steep and the stair made my quads burn, the worst part was that the elevation changes! We had to stop quite often because our hearts were beating way too fast. It was hard but it was fun! The view was so worth it at the top, I loved it. And a random colony of chipmunks live at the top and they are very used to humans, it was funny to watch them.

We made it down to the bottom where the oxygen was plenty and drove into town. After that hike we needed ice cream! There's this one shop that we go to on the lake every time. It's the best ice cream and we love going to eat it on the shore of the beach.

After that we looked around town and the shops then we stopped by the candy store before we headed to Cameron Falls.

Then had to make a stop and see the Prince of Whales Hotel before we headed out.

We stopped by the Cardston temple on the way home.

Can you see the similarity?

We all gathered at the farm for dinner. Speaking of the farm, my grandparents' place is one of my favorite places ever. It's so pretty and tranquil, I really enjoy being here. It looks like a place out of a movie. After dinner we all badly needed a shower so we went back to the condo sore, tired but full! 

The next day was church. All the family that's here pretty much tripled the ward. This is a tiny town and this family reunion is huge. This is a reunion for my great grandparents (who have passed) and all of their descendants. So it's all my parents cousins, aunts and uncles. There will probably be 5 or 6 generations here in total.

On the way to church we had to stop and see the penguins!

After church we all had lunch at Prairie Song. This is the name of my grandparents' farm and home in welling. They have a beautiful house with gardens and beautiful trees surrounding it. We sat talking with all my aunts, uncles and cousins that I haven't seen in a while. We love playing games so that filled the evening with tons of laughter.

The next day was the start of the family reunion. Most people were camping there at the Magrath Campgrounds. We got a condo for the week in Lethbridge which was kind of a drive to meet everyone at the campground everyday but having a shower that wasn't infested with bugs was priceless. Everyone was meeting at the campground anywhere from 2-6pm so we spent the first part of the day at Writing on a Stone. The last family reunion we had we spent a day here and it's the coolest place. It's covered in these rock formations called hoodoos which are so much fun to climb on. They are the actual redefinition of hardcore parkour. The place makes for some awesome pictures too!

We HAD to get Tim Hortons that morning

The ONLY picture I got was the picture where Dan had a bug in his ear.

After that we remembered there was a short hike to see the indian's writing on a stone (hence the name). We all thought it was a leisurely stroll to the carvings. I couldn't have been more wrong. It was fun for the first ten minutes. It was only an hour hike total but coming back was HOT with no shade. I was determined to get back ASAP and basically was in the zone to walk straight back. I was so overheated I just wanted shade! And with the mood I was in I didn't find the drawings that impressive. I don't think I was impressed last time I did this hike either. Besides the fact that It was so stinking hot during that hike, the rest was awesome!

We met up with everyone at the camp ground and people were slowly rolling in. Dinner wasn't until 6 so obviously that meant it was time for the water slide! I had no idea that when they said waterside they me want this thing! It was easily the coolest water slide ever. All of us kids and adults did a great job of tearing up the new sore laid at the end of the slide thus creating a giant mud hole for anyone that didn't stop in time. It was super fun.

We had dinner and met some cousins and second cousins, aunts and uncles, great aunts etc. After that any of Dan's downtime was spent of the waterside. He blended in with the 8 year olds who were glued to that thing sun up to sun down!

The next day we were all in our family tshirts. The colored dictated which line of family we were. The afternoon was spent water sliding, playing games and relaxing. Our family was in charge of dinner Tuesday night so we whipped up a delicious Easter dinner filled with ham, cheesy potatoes, homemade rolls and salad. It was delicious! After dinner we started up a game of volleyball. I'm not that great but it was awesome because we had people of all skill levels playing. In the middle of the game I reach down to scratch my calf and it's swollen and hard. I look down and at first it looked like I was getting eaten alive by Mosquitoes. They have a lot of those critters out there but they only come out in the cool evenings. I kept watching it for a couple more serves. It was starting to bruise and it was super hot. I ditched the game really quick to seek the help of my Aunt Sheree who is a nurse. I was worried it was a spider bite! Luckily it was only a broken blood vessel that popped in a weak spot when I slid for a dig at the ball. After I learned I wasn't going to die I ran back to the game and we finished to win the game! That night was bingo night and Dan won us candy!

Leg injury Day 1

and here's a cool picture of a dragonfly I got

The next morning was the last day of the reunion and we all gathered for breakfast one last time. After that we helped clean up camp and said our goodbyes. We headed off to Calgary for the day. We went downtown to the Calgary Tower, shopped around, I tried bubble tea for the first time and had all sorts of fun. We met Neil and his family at a drive in for dinner then headed back to their place to crash.

Like usual we were up early and we headed to Banff National Park. Banff is a pretty moutain side town with all sorts of hikes, hot springs and shopping. We started out with the shopping. My favorite? The candy store! We went and saw the Banff Springs Hotel, the basin and saw some pretty views before we left. After we were done at Banff we drove back to our condo in Lethbridge. We got back just in time to go swimming!

Just keeps getting worse

The next morning it was time to start the drive home. The loooong drive home. We did it in two legs again stopping in Idaho Falls. We also found out Dan's first CPA Exam score.... He needs a 75% to pass and Dan got....

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A 91%!!! Dan is basically an overachiever ;) but in all seriousness he has been studying so hard for these tests and I'm so proud if him balancing everything in his life and working so brand to pass these tests. Way to go Dan the Man!