More touristy fun....

We stayed an extra night in Fairmont, so that we could go back to see Fort Steele the next day. We just missed the 2pm (hour long) show in the theatre by 10 minutes and they don't allow any entries once it's started! We wandered around for a bit and then sat and waited for the 2:40pm stagecoach ride/tour through town. After that, my family humored me and we got a family photo take - old style! We then ran to the 4pm train... if we had it to do over again, we probably would have looked around a bit more first and then taken the 5pm train because by the time we came back, most of the little shops were closed (Bakery etc)... the grounds were open until 6pm though. When we got to the school house and saw the swings behind it, I said to Miles, "I've been here before! I'm sure mom has pictures of us here when we were little" - I checked with her and sure enough I was right :)

Half of us on the train ride....

The other half....

On the train.... looking back at Fort Steele

Swinging at school :)

The family! Thanks for cooperating guys!

Reading about Fort Steele....

Heading to the water tower - I love this picture (too bad Cole wasn't in it too)

Looking out the tower window - Mommy & Cole are way below!

Waiting for the stagecoach

Here it comes....

Campground Three...

After five nights in Salmon Arm, we headed to Fairmont for the next four nights, staying at Spruce Grove Campground. We had a great spot and got to enjoy the water and mountains from our picnic table! Miles and the boys enjoyed the pool a couple times and we all took a trip up the hill to the hot springs pool one night. Side trips we took from here were to the Bavarian Village of Kimberley and the historical town of Fort Steele.

Can't say I've seen a better looking Home Hardware sign than this one (Kimberley, BC)

The boys following the leader around the ledge, while I looked in the only open gift shop

This is where we had supper (schnitzel) - it was good but made us miss Little Bavaria even more... no comparison!

... still following the leader....

Cole thinks the bathtub in the trailer is just his size!

Miles perfecting another great breakfast... blueberry pancakes (Mickey Mouse ones for the boys)

My view... sitting on the trailer steps

A side-trip to Kamloops

We had invited my relatives in Kamloops to come out to our campsite for a visit and BBQ... they had graciously agreed to make the trek, new baby and all, but that morning it poured and there was thunder, lightening - the works! We called them to come up with 'plan B' and they said to come their way! So we added 11 extra people to Auntie Kathy's kitchen and had a great evening! The kids all had fun playing on the decks with trucks, ride-on toys etc (Auntie Kathy has four little grandsons of her own, so is well prepared for little people) and it was great to catch up with everyone. We brought all the fixings for cheeseburgers & Auntie Kathy whipped up a yummy dessert - no one went hungry! Thanks for the fun! Serina, Troy and Finn spent part of the day with us, on Tuesday, at our campsite, so we got a double visit with them! Yay!
(PS: Uncle Olav was away fishing so we missed him)

Our kids playing at the campsite before the rain started

'Bucketheads' Liam and Elise @ campsite

Amanda, Darnell and boys

Serina, Troy and Finn

All the kiddies - there are two mom's at the back helping to hold up babies!

Ethan - he loves anything unique

Serina and Cole

Sister/Cousins... those of us that were there (once again - too many cameras to look at!)

Amanda and two-week old Dominic

Ghost Town

Another adventure we had was a visit to Three Valley Gap and their Ghost Town... you can't miss the big red-roof resort on the side of the highway but unless you actually stop and go in, you will miss the wonder of the small town nestled below! We had a great time wandering around and our tour guide, "Thane" even opened up the Saloon for us and also showed us the trains. When Thane found out where we were from, and told us where he was born and raised... the SAME small town that my hubby grew up in - only Miles was born in 1971 and Thane left in 1972 so they didn't have opportunity for any 'bonding' time :) We made it through the sights, seeing just about everything and decided to head to the restaurant for supper - just then the skies opened and it poured rain!!! Our timing was perfect!

Forest Fun

After driving past the Enchanted Forest MANY times, we finally got to go in and take a peek! The boys were thrilled and ran from place to place, while Elise and Cole were content to ride along with their dad's! We were a bit disturbed by the poisonous leaves that were everywhere (signs were posted) but we made it through without incident and thought it was quite a cute little attraction, capturing many of the best-loved fairy tales and stories... the three little piggy houses, Little Red Riding Hood (Grandma's House), Hansel and Gretal, the Old Woman's Shoe, Wizard of Oz and many more...

The big boys...

All seven kiddies together

The dad's and babes...

The momma's

Sarah, Steve and family

Us... after several attempts (including Liam picking his nose!)

I think my knight needs some polish

Ethan having fun... a bit worried later when his hands didn't come out instantly!

Coley enjoying his perch!

Ethan locked up again....

Campsite number two....

Our next destination was Salmon Arm Camping Resort - we absolutely loved it here! There was a pool, mini golf, playground, internet cafe, ice cream.... My sister and her family joined us here for three out of our five nights. The kids loved playing together and we also ventured out to see the Enchanted Forest, 3 Valley Gap, as well as a trip to Kamloops to see my aunt and cousins...

There was a great pool

Lotsa campfires

'The Breakfast Club' - spending time with the cousins

Mini-golf

Our trailer is in the background

Summer begins!

We headed west on July 3rd and didn't return home until the 17th. Our first stop was Cochrane, AB, where we met up with our friends Jason, Maria and kiddies. Miles went golfing with the guys one eve, in honour of Jason's 35th birthday and we also went to Callaway Park (once again - thank goodness for discount coupons!). On Saturday morning, we discovered that Ethan had the chicken pox - we decided to carry on as planned and he was a great sport about it all. We did of course, let anyone we planned on visiting know and let them decide whether they wanted to see us or not! Then on Sunday afternoon, Greg came out for a visit and brought steak to BBQ! We saw some beautiful sunsets... and then another night, thought we were in for a tornado!

We saw a few trucks like this on the highway - thought it was neat how they had so many together!

The log ride at Callaway Park: Ethan, Sadie, Jason, Liam & Miles

Liam would have stayed on some of these rides ALL day... getting him off was lotsa fun!

Our campsite in Cochrane, AB (Spring Hill RV Park)

Roasting hot dogs and s'mores

Spring Break getaway

Last week was Spring Break for the schools in our area so we took a little family trip over the border to Minot, North Dakota (March 25th to 28th). The hotel that we stayed at had a waterpark that we had unlimited access to. This was the boys' highlight of the trip, but we also got to do some shopping and checked out the Scandinavian Heritage Park. It was great to get some quality family time in and steal daddy away from work for a bit!