Portland to Victoria

The fastest (and safest) ever to Portland with two kids. Left Vancouver at 2pm and arrived at the Residence Inn at 8:05pm. Only one stop for Figaro's pizza and a large Mocha. It was smooth sailing thanks to W's entertaining and Backyardigans on the Mac.

Now two solid days of shopping (almost) and exploring some of the fun kid friendly sites in Portland.

Porpoise Bay Camping

Three days and two nights in the Wild West coast. Okay maybe not the Wild West coast, but when you are with 3 kids under 5, it can be.

Porpoise Bay, Sechelt was awesome! The weather was fantastic, although a little cooler than first expected at night, but -2 sleeping bags sure help (even in July).

K, M and Z were definitely in their element. Lots to see, touch and explore. Z was rather difficult when it came to the bathroom. In fact nightmare comes to mind. They were regular toilets too (tried the Biffy' s, but too smelly). I guess she just missed the comforts of home?

Great day exploring the estuary and then a full afternoon at the beach. Crabs, clams and sandcastles. Good fun!

Love waking up to the sounds of ravens, squirrels, seaplanes and the odd generator. Oh yeah, Z was up at least 5 times during the night. Not much sleep for the adults on this trip.

Food was great! Pancakes, strip loin steaks, grilled ham & cheese, and bacon, eggs and Coleman toast. Yum!

All and all a great trip with the kids and the experiences were memorable.

Day 7 Final Day

Sleeping with your own kids is an adventure. I should've worn a cup the way Kyle kicks and moves all night.

Zoie wakes up half way through the night crying that it is too dark and where is Daddy and Kyle. Still very cute even at 1am.

5:47pm home sweet home. 20 minutes in the stinking traffic before the bridge.

Great final day. Picked almost 20lbs of cherries at a small place in Winfield. Very sweet! Kyle had a blast and was very good at it. Zoie, well you know.

Lunch in Kelowna. Off to the waterfront and then back on the road. It was 30 degrees there. Hot!

Ice Cream in Hope and then the final push. The kids were ready to get out by 4:30. So was everyone else.

Best part - Kyle: the Museum, cherries and the zipline at the beach.
Zoie - not the zoo, otherwise the Hotels.
Darren - take out coffee every morning, the Heritage Museum and Lake Louise.
Wendy - The museum, and ...

Day 6

Wow what a day! 12 hours on the road.

Left Calgary at 8:30am and arrived at the Vernon Best Western at 9 pm. We got a great room and the last one of it's kind.

First off, the kids rocked this part of the trip. They were amazing!!! We tried for 2 hour stints in the car and it seemed to work. Lake Louise was absolutely beautiful! Some great photos.

Then we explored the city of Golden for 3 freakin' hours. Yes Golden. They closed the road between Golden and Revelstoke because of numerous accidents near Rogers Pass. After a feed at McD's we looked for what parks we could find. First one was not much and thought 3 hours there would kill us. Thank goodness for the local water park and highschool with lots of cool playground equipment.

Back on the road by 4pm and headed for Revelstoke for dinner - AGAIN! I think they cooked the rice and 2 noodle dishes in the same wok - they tasted all the same. Not the friendliest of service. Oh well, Ma and Ba got their rice.

On the road, gassed up, caffeine and 2 episodes of Backyardigans. The kids fell asleep and all was smooth sailing.

Tomorrow we will explore some fruit stands and then home.

Day 5

Sleeping arrangements were slightly better. At least my back isn't as sore and I feel more refreshed than the past couple of days.

Wen had trouble with the kids kicking her and then Zoie fell off the bed. No damage.

Drumheller was a no go today. Too far and Zoie is afraid of the Dinosaurs. 4 hours of driving there and back didn't sound like a good idea.

Off to Heritage Park instead and that was a great choice. Lots of fun and lots to see. Zoie was a little afraid of the horses, but she came around. The trains were very cool and Kyle loved it all. What a great age!

Old school amusement rides for the kids and adults. My speed actualy as I couldn't get sick.

A little laundry and begin packing. Ready for the ride to Kelowna (hopefully in one day?).

Starting to rain and forecast is the same for tomorrow. Not great news for another try at Lake Louise. A couple of Steamwhistle Lagers and life is always good!

Day 4

Our backs are killing us. I'm better off sleeping on the sidewalk.

Also Zoie was up quite a few times last night.

New plan tonight.

Gotta love Zoie's comments though.

"Zoie why were you so yigh, yigh? Because I like waking up people".

Breakfast (Taro and red bean bread) and coffee at Monk Cafe. Not as good as 2nd Cup. Maybe supporting big business tomorrow morning - Starbucks.

Ba's neck is getting sore from the different pillows. Life in a Hotel.

We are prepping Zoie for the Dinosaurs pretty much all day. If anything she will probably play at a local playground. Stay tuned for tomorrows post.

Getting ready for Olympic Park, Costco Liquor Store and some outlet malls.

At Olympic Park. Not a whole lot to see, but neat to see the difference between what we just put on now and 22 years ago.

Can't believe that the mascot for Montreal was a beaver? No wonder they were so broke.

Went to the top of the 90 metre tower. Kyle and I anyway. It was $5 for an elevator ride. Ma, Ba, Wendy and Zoie ended up there for free anyway because Zoie had to pee. That is secret to saving money.

Then to Deerfoot Mall - Outlet mall. Wonder around for cheap things. Couple of super hero T-shirts for me and Wendy hadn't really got started yet.
Then the search for food. After a stroll through the food fair, nothing beat the Buffet for $11/person.

I'm still tasting it! Just what we needed, an all you can at Chinese lunch. Ma and Ba loved it.

Bit more shopping, but not much. Then to the Costco Liquor store. Cheapest in town. Spent $160 on 13 bottles. Good deal. Only one tax! And I can bring more than 4 bottles over the border.

Day 3

What a sleep on the sofa. I think both Wen and I have bruised legs from the bars in the bed.
New plan for tonight.

Kids made it though the night surprisingly. Together too. Didn't roll onto each other.

Up at 7 and off to Second Cup for coffee.

Ma and Ba had a good sleep and were up eating bow and nai.

Ready for the Zoo.

It didn't start well. This is Zoie's protest to even getting into the zoo. It took a lot to get her actually come in. She was so scared that the animals were going to come out and get her. Believe me we were ready to feed her to the lions at this rate. It was a nightmare!

Kyle loved it and ran ahead to see everything. The elephants were awesome! So close to everything. If only Vancouver's Zoo could take notes of how to set up a zoo. Very similar to San Diego, but obviously not as big or busy.

On to Tim's for lunch and then try and get Zoie to nap. Ha! Good try.

Nope no nap.

Ma and Ba headed off to Chinatown on their own. Came back with complaints of small and nothing but chun guun. Expensive too. No bakeries either.

Off to Costco and then back for some home cooked Ma and Ba special. Yummy!

A little Franklin and books - Kyle out by 7:45pm. Zoie timeout at 8:20pm. Still trying to wake up Kyle. Who's child is this anyway.

Once down then we will walk around and get some sleep for another adventure tomorrow. Maybe back to the zoo to drop off Zoie.

8:26pm TO #2 for Zoie. She threw Ashia at Kyle again.

Day 2

What a rough night with the kids, well Zoie that is. She was up asking for Mommy. We were just hoping Kyle wasn't going to wake up. He rustled a little, but okay.

Wendy, that was another matter. Finally all were out and there was the snore from the other room.

Sun shining through. 6am. Kyle moving a bit, which he is awake. Just ignore and he won't actually get up.

6:45 time to shower and get the wagon train moving. Zoie had a nice little sleep in - 7:15am.

Everyone else up! Looking forward to the Continental Breakfast. Oh yeah, free!

Wow waffles, not Eggos. Ma loved them! Who knew. She ate almost three of them.

Of course Zoie had a little of everything. Coffee, not so good, but that means we find something on the road. Starbucks?

2 bananas and an apple for the road. Packed and ready to go!

Almost 9am.

Rogers Pass, Glacier National Park, rain and very cold. 10 degrees. This is supposed to be July!

Sobeys in Golden to use the facilities. Thought there was a coffee shop, but naddda! Not so golden. Oops forgot about the time change. We have now lost an hour.

Quick stop at the "Welcome to Alberta" sign and a pic. Pouring rain! No kids in this one. In and out.

Now the kids are getting a little bum burn. Lake Louise for a stop, but 6 degrees and pouring rain only got us a couple of coffees, sandwich and a wrap. Then off we went. Hoping the kids will take a nap. 1pm (really 12 in our heads)

Let's try Banff. Coffee has kicked in and needed the salle de bain. Still pouring rain! Will have to save this for on the way back. 2pm

Seems like the longest trip ever without the sun. Hits patches of sun and then highspeed wiper rain. I don't think I have ever used that option on the van.

Zoie has zonked out. 2:30pm Kyle is pretending. Wendy wants to. Ba has faded in an out. The flat hills of Alberta will do that to any man.

Into the Regency we go. Nice and big. Two rooms, kitchen and a living room. Not sure how Wen and I are going to do on the sofabed as it in its sofa stage, it sucks!

Kids are heaven. They are running around madly and having a blast. Ba took Kyle's sugar away and he had a meltdown. Not knowing he was using it as treasure, but he survived.

Off to Chinatown Calgary for some grub. Started to rain, then pour. No umbrella. Run!
Quick let's find something. The Garden Inn it is. Lot's of debate about the menu. After I entertained the kids at the lobster and crab tank, food was on its way. Heineken in my hand all was good. The food was very good. A fight with Ma to pay (I lost), and we were off to get the night time ritual started.

Looked up T&T and Superstore for Ma and Ba. Kids showered and then 3 of us were off to get some food. Wen successfully got Kyle down early and Zoie actually sleeping in the same bed. We shall see? They have a King bed and its just down the hall from Wen to hear them.

Now it's a little Bachelorette for Wen, Ba has cleaned all the dishes, and Ma is getting the interpretation from Wen about poor Ali. What an lame duck Frank is! I always thought he was a loser. Should've gotten an tatoo.

That's all for now.

Day 1 - on our way to Calgary

It started at 8:15am, van loaded, seating assigned (each child got an adult) and then the last hug from G. Oh yeah, some final instructions from Dad to G so she won't forget. We were off; heading East.

Through the corn fields of Chilliwack, passed a speed trap just before Hope (I slowed down), Dino town closing down forever in September (sad isn't it), and then a stop at the old Toll booth. Yeah, savings of $10. It was a little chilly at the top - 15 degrees. Felt good to stretch our legs and get the kids out. Had to switch adults, as Z was reaching her "toll".

Now 10:15am and the push to Kamloops for lunch was on. Finished the 5th children's CD already, man that was fast! Entertainment switch worked great as both kids were satisfied with what they were doing. Dad had a few moments of dozing off (lucky guy). Nothing but 110km/hour and two lanes. Good old Coquihalla. Couldn't ask for more. Lots of Albertans heading home. I'm sure they escaped the Stampede.

12 noon. Into Kamloops. Stopped to take a pic with the giant Kamloops Trout. Wow what a treat!
Forgot it was Sunday and not a lot open. Went to check out a couple of Chinese restaurants, but I guess Sunday is a slow day in good old Kamloops.
Settled on Lotus Inn in South Kamloops. I guess it is a tourist attraction because there was a tour bus out front. No doubt the all you can eat smorgasbord for $10.95 is the best deal in town.
We settled for rice and wonton. Good old mom makes friends easily. Wendy put on her charm to actually get some wonton ho, which they said they didn't have.

Ice cap mocha and 10 timbits and we are off again. GPS pointing us to Revelstoke with many stops in between.
Almost 1:30pm.

Zoie fighting to nap, but finally Wen gets a break from entertaining. Kyle just hanging out in the back and being a model passenger. Too bad the sun was always on his side. Just a little hot!

3:00pm Craigallachie. The last Spike. What a treat to step on a piece of what little know Canadian History we have. Some good pics. Funny thing when we took a picture in front of the mural, the Mah's are the only Chinese actually in it. Quite ironic when it was the Chinese who actually built it in the first place?

3:30pm Enchanted Forest. I've been passing this place for years and always wondered what it was about. A cheesy road side attraction? Yes if you are 25, single and nothing else to do. A 2 and 5 year old on the other hand - perfect! A great way to spend 90 minutes stretching our legs and weary behind. Zoie and Kyle loved it. You would think it was Disneyland. Lots of little fairy tale houses that the two (and us attempted) to crawl into. The fun was figuring out what house was coming up next.

(below was actually edited on Monday in Calgary as I was cut short the night before)

5Pm on the road to Revelstoke. That stop was the best thing for our legs and more importantly our mindset. Mindfullness at it's best!

Ah Days Inn. Nothing left but a 1 bedroom suite with 2 queen beds and a pullout couch. After a family meeting in the van we went with it. The seniors discount because of Dad and the free breakfast was the kicker.

Not a bad place, clean, non smoking (except outside the room). Fridge to refreeze the ice packs and keep the water and coke cold. Just a place to sleep and run around. The kids anyway.

Off to the big town to look for food. Pizza for us and chow faan for Ma and Ba. It is hard to remember we are not in the fast paced world of Vancouver. Everything is in slooooooowwww motion. I think there were only 100 people in the whole area and it took 45 mins for food. It was like watching trying to watch toast or wait for a bus. At least there was entertainment at the Plaza. Sharon Shook was singing Karaoke style (without the TV). If only I had my Elvis song list and my suite, I could rock the town of Revelstoke on a Sunday night.

Finally after a pic with the Grizzly statues it was time to get to bed. A quick shower, especially the kids feet, PJ's, 15 mins of Spongebob and a Justin Bieber video, book and then Kyle was easily out by 8:15pm.

Zoie, well that was a different story. After a few more books and colouring, she took off her t-shirt because she was hot, we tried her. It didn't work at first as she threw Ashia at Kyle while he was sleeping. He stirred, but was still out.

Back out in the living room. She fought till the bitter end. Even with threats of sleeping in the van. Man she was a piece of work. How she had so much energy?

Out 9:15pm.

Now our turn. After a major thunder and lightning storm, we were ready to knock out. Ba was snoring up a storm already. I was trying to stream some Chinese TV for Ma, but could only get Mandarin channels.

Enough. Too bed we all went. I snored apparently. I guess I was pretty tired. It's either too many beers or extremely tired which brings that on. Latter it was.

See you tomorrow.

Darren, Wendy, Ma, Ba, Kyle and Zoie.

Thunder!