Jul 06 2010
Our trip to Canda…….part 3
Hey peeps!
YAY! Finally some internet access and some time to post our trip update! This past week has been such a blast catching up with some wonderful people! We have had a blast. As i type we are now in Winnipeg and have had some wonderful days catching up with Ivan and Jo and getting into the Wedding preparations too! Starting to feel all very exciting now!
So just to back track, the last I wrote was when we were just about to leave Jasper and heading to Edson to meet up with my fabulous DT member Renee and her family. We arrived safely and seriously had some of the best days of this trip so far! Our families hit it off right away and we had sooooooo many good laughs together, and shared many special moments too. It truly felt so surreal to be in Renee’s house, cuddling her kids, making dinner together, and talking about all sorts of things from stamping, weather, history, and God too. Such special times for sure, and memories to treasure for a lifetime!
Here is some fun photos of our time shared there……
Renee and I together…
Me sneek peeking at the brand new US/CAN Catty from Stampin’Up….oh la la!
Enjoying a glass of wine on the back deck….precious memories!
Renee’s hubby Paul cooking a feast on the BBQ! He is not only a fabulous cook, but an amazing preacher too! We had the pleasure of attending his church on Sunday 
Janaya and Renee’s daughter Maria, got along fabulously!
The extremely talented Renee at her creative space!…..oh you gotta see how amazing this room is…..totally jealous!
Amazing eh? Even Rod was impressed!!!
All together…..I love this photo, it reminds me of the wonderful time we shared together as families! So sad to say goodbye too. Poor Elijah cried as we left as he really enjoyed spending time with Caleb. Hopefully Paul and Renee move to Australia one day!!!
After we left Edson we headed east to Edmonton! Man this place was a big city, which we hadn’t seen for a little bit. They are doing so many roadworks too, so it was quite a task to find our way around the city with all the detours and what not. Made it all okay. It was a bit warmer here too which was nice! We went to the famous West Edmonton Mall too! It is totally massive and you can totally lose yourself here. The first day we just went for dinner and to check it out……the next day I went back for some serious shopping, and Rod was looking forward to heading to the Amusement and water park they have in the shopping centre.
Here is some pics of their adventures at Galaxyland…
All together…
Hold on tight kids!!!
Now this little girl seems to not be afraid of anything!!! She went on all the roller coasters, and even at the waterpark she went down the biggest aqua tube all on her own! Not bad for a 4 year old!
I had a fabulous day shopping, and also meeting up with one of my lovely blog readers from Edmonton, Julie. We had a lovely coffee together, and she helped me navigate my way around the huge Mall! So lovely.
I actually didn’t do much shopping at all……much to my surprise, but I did pick up some Mac make-up and my Clinique skin care stuff…..enough to last me over a year! It is half the price here. My moisturiser that I buy in AUS is $97 and here it is only $46! What a price difference!
The kids had a blast all day and were soooooo exhausted by the end of the day…. and come to think of it, so was I! Edmonton wasn’t what I expected, but it is a lovely place. We got to bed nice and early as we had an early rise the next day.
Wednesday, we headed off bright and early to drive to Rosetown…….the beloved home of the stamp and nail extraordinary Amy Rysavy!….I was soooo super excited to meet this gorgeous gal from the Prairies! Okay a little star struck too! Man I can totally understand why her blog is called Prairie Paper and Ink because she lives right in the middle of what seems nowhere! LOL! We had a wonderful catch up, and she also did a fabulous job on my nails too! Of course it couldn’t be a visit without photos!!!
Here she is……..ta-da!
….me and AMY!
Amy in her gorgeous esthetics studio……so beautifully decorated!
The sign at her entry……
I will always treasure this time with Amy and our chatting about all sorts of things stamping related Hopefully one day we get to do it again….you never know right? I never in my wildest dreams thought I would ever meet her once, so you it could be possible
Next off we headed off to Saskatoon to catch up with some more Nienhuis’s. In Vancouver we stayed with Marian and Peter Nienhuis, then we stayed at their son Anthony and wife Corien’s house. Rod knows Anthony well and travelled some of the US with him back in 1995, so they of course had a fabulous reunion. They also have 5 kids (almost 6) and so our kids loved having other kids to play with too!…….mind you the adult boys were big kids too! There had been so much rain in the past few days that so many paddock were flooded along our road trip. Anthony and Corien’s basement was actually flooded the night before we arrived too. Their front yard was full of water so the guys thought they would get out the quad bike and make some fun of it! I don’t think Rod has had so much fun is so long…….
Here is some of what they got up to….
Biking through the water filled paddock……whoosh!
Rod in his element…..
The end result……mud everywhere!!!
Here is a pic of their gorgeous home we parked out front off…
Notice the three BIG trucks parked out front!
The next day was Canada day here, and we went out to discover Saskatoon…..It was such a beautiful sunny day too. We went to one of the Zoo, and got to see lots more Canadian wildlife which was great! I didn’t know a Badger was so big! LOL!
We came across this in the Zoo park and all had a chuckle….
Tiarne loved spending time with their daughter Lauren…
Again it was time to say goodbye….more tears were shed by the kids, but once we got on the road they were okay again…….this time a long 9 hour drive to Winnipeg, and the anticipation of seeing Ivan and Jo again kept us in good spirits!
What a wonderful catch up it was too…..we have really enjoyed being here the past 3 days and seeing them again. I have had dress fittings for the Bridesmaid dress, along with Janaya and Rod too. We have been doing lots of Wedding preparations which is getting us all excited for the big day on Friday! Can’t wait, and I promise I will share photos as soon as possible!
So that is the latest update. I hope you are enjoying my crafty posts in between too
Take care peeps!
What a FANTASTIC post Keesh! I love reading what you’ve been up to and those pics are just soooooo good! Thanks for sharing…………can’t wait for the next installment!
Luv Dot
xo
Looks like you are having a blast. Love the muddy pic of Rod. I put a comment on Renee’s blog that she should move down under. Sio glad you had such a great time visiting with them.
Looking fwd to hearing (reading) about the wedding.
Fi x
Hi, Keesh
I thoroughly enjoy reading about your cross-country trip and seeing your pictures! We’ve driven all the way to BC twice ourselves to visit our family there (once when I was six and a second time when I was 16) so this brings back memories! Lake Louise and the West Edmonton Mall and the Rockies… Good times!
Have fun at the wedding!
Cindy
xox
Love hearing all about your trip. You all look like you are having a wonderful time. It is always nice to go and meet people of like minds. Listening to your friend preach would have been amazing. There are so many churches I would love to visit in the USA when we go there next year. Take care and safe travels. Looking forward to seeing the wedding photos. Love weddings
God bless
Hi Keesh, So pleased your are having your trip of a life time. It’s more than places and experiences, its friends and feelings. I’m VERY envious. Thanks for sharing and make the most of it all. Luv KimT
Oh Keesh,
This is so exciting, being able to read all about your travells. I make myself a cuppa and sit down to really absorb all the fun you’ve all been having out there. The photos are amazing and such a wonderful way to accent all your adventures, you will have to write a book when you get back..”I’d buy it” Can’t wait to see wedding photos, I’m sure it will be like a fairy tale. Take care and love to all of you from Char xxxxx
SO fun to read about your walk about in our fair country! I’m DROOLING as I saw Renee’s stamp studio!!! Love the celery walls in Amy’s salon too. Two great ladies who’s blogs I enjoy. Thanks for sharing your adventure with us all. I haven’t been across all of Canada and have lived her for 35 years! Enjoy and look forward to the next installment
Am soooo happy you seem to be having a BLAST!!!! Am going to HAVE to show MY hubby those studios - I WANT ONE - stamps feet - LOL. Thanx soo much for taking us along on your trip with you - it’s a nice break from Winter in Melbourne!
xXx
I love reading what you are up to and all the fun you are having. Thanks so much for sharing with us and I’m amazed you have the energy after all that shopping! So glad you have got to meet some of your crafty friends face to face and love seeing the sites of Canada. Thanks again. All our love for the big day!
sounds like you are all having a wonderful time. I love to hear about your travels. It must be so nice meeting up with crafty people on your travels as well. Im looking forward to hearing about the wedding. have a fun time.
love Andrea
Hi Keesh,
I’ve just had a good old catch up of all your travelling adventures - what a fabulous time you guys are having! I’m so thrilled it’s all going so well and you’re enjoying the company of such lovely people along the way. All the best for the wedding on Friday, I’m sure that will be another wonderful day for you all. What an awesome scrapbook you’re going to have of all these wondeful travels.
Love and hugs, Nyster
WOW…I love browsing your blog, and as a lifelong Lower Mainland (BC) resident I was reading your entries on your trip to Canada - what a small world it truly is, when I read that you stayed with the Neinhuis’ - I grew up with them - and then to read that you know their son, Anthony, very well…went to school with him and his wife - neato! Glad to read you had a great time in Canada!