UBC Gardens and Jericho Beach

  Weekends, when Dave is home with us, are glorious! I feel like we all are so much happier "when daddy comes home". We always get so much more done around here, because Dad is creative in other ways than Mom, and there is more encouragement from two of us than just one. Saturdays we usually start the day out by cleaning up the house a little and running errands, but we also try to get out of the house and go somewhere free or cheap.

  We headed to the University of British Columbia's Botanical Gardens this past weekend. It's an amazing park, with much of it inside a natural rain forest. They have different sections with many different plants from around the world. We explored mostly the Asian section and even got to take a walk up in the canopy of some tall cedar trees. It was so gorgeous, but nerve-racking walking across those suspended bridges.

 Dave began with Isaac riding on his shoulders, but before he got up too high, he realized it would be so much safer to let Isaac walk, because the bridges were so wobbly. The bridges were very well built and hung. It scared me to death to watch Isaac fall against the rope walls of the bridges, but he would only whimper a little in fright and then get back up and keep going. He loved it, but I think he was just as anxious as I was to get down, back on solid ground. I think we'll wait until he's a couple years older to try that with him again. The older kids loved it! Madelyn liked to get really wobbly and shake the bridges! Caleb liked to wait until everyone else crossed, so he could walk along without anyone else causing disturbances on his bridge (check out his funny strut on the catwalk in the video below)! Kylee was careful as could be and even got close to tears watching Isaac go along. She has always been so sensitive about his safety, ever since he was born....she's exactly like me!

                                       

  We headed to a great beach afterward and had a picnic. This was Jericho Beach, just south of the Vancouver harbor. Then the kids ran along the shoreline, wading in the surf and collecting shells and even a dead crab. We could see huge barges anchored out in the bay, waiting in line to go into harbor in Vancouver. We could see the west side of Vancouver and across the bay to some very nice neighborhoods. The beach homes around us along that beach must have been multi-million dollar beach front homes too! The clouds were low that day and were interspersed in the mountains around the harbor. It made for a beautiful setting. Although it was a rather chilly day, and we were glad we packed jackets, it was a gorgeous day to walk along the beach. We thoroughly enjoyed our day out!

Poutine, Sqirrels and Eagles, Father and Son's mix-up!

  I mentioned in the last post that there is something new we discover everyday here. That has slowed down this past week as we've concentrated on settling into our home, but it definitely hasn't stopped, and won't for a long time! There are SO MANY PLACES we plan on going and are told are musts, like Stanley Park, whale watching, all the museums, hikes (especially the one where you can walk on bridges up in the trees), gardens, seeing Victoria and Vancouver Island, etc! It's all super exciting. One lady from church asked me if were here for the summer. I explained that we moved here because of a job, and started telling her that whole story, but she stopped me and said that she meant if we would be spending our summer vacation here. I said, "Well, yes. I haven't really planned anything else other than one family reunion in a couple weeks back in the U.S." The more I've thought about that, the cooler the idea becomes! This area is definitely a vacation destination for so many people, and we LIVE here!

  Last weekend Dave took us to see his work. We didn't get to go inside, because he wasn't asked to work that day and didn't have the "weekend key", but we walked around that northern residential/business area of north Vancouver. Here are a few pictures from that walk.

A view of downtown Vancouver through the trees, from a bridge near the Skytrain by Dave's work.

This is an awesome little "Free Library" that looks like an old telephone booth! These apparently are all over the city and you can donate books to them and bring them back for someone else to read! You can scan that little bar code with your smart phone to find other locations to return or borrow books! Awesome! (I wonder about the levels of honesty people are trusted with, but it's a very wonderful thing to see!) It's just a nice little addition to the community. :)

Dave also took us to a little restaurant about 4 blocks from his work that is famous for their Poutine! Poutine is a Canadian dish that consists of a plate of French Fries covered in gravy and cheese curds! It sounds weird at first, but we were all licking our chops and trying to be polite by not licking the plates too (all except for Kylee)! We split two plates of Poutine between our whole family (just enough)! There was a chicken version with peas and a beef version with mushrooms and peppers! It was almost like eating Philly Cheese Steaks, but on top of fries, rather than bread. Delicious!

  We've had many invitations from people in the ward to come to playgroups and visiting teaching appointment/picnics in the parks (best way to do that in the summer with a bunch of busy moms)! So, we've been able to discover the amazing and gorgeous parks here. The squirrels are all different colors here (black, grey, brown and red with tufted ears). They are a little too tame! They come right up to you when you walk down the trails. They know people have nuts (although you're not supposed to feed them). One baby one even put his little paws up on Madelyn's hand and then ran off when he realized she didn't have anything!

  During one picnic, I pointed our to some ladies I was with, the bald eagle family up in the tree tops. The young brown eagle was being pestered by a flock of crows, until mama eagle came along. It was a fun encounter to witness. I think baby eagle wanted to keep playing. They were so beautiful with their yellow beaks and talons and distinct markings and calls. We were actually unsure of what kind of bird they were exactly, until mama bird came along. She was a cinch to identify! Next time, I'll be prepared with the camera. :) I need to make a habit of carrying one...and I still need to get a phone.

  Friday night, last week, Dave took the boys to the Father and Son's camp-out with our ward. The only major problem was that they forgot the map at home and couldn't locate the ward members! So, they made the best of it and hiked to the tip top of Mount Cypress by themselves and slept out under the stars! I had no idea about all of this until they got home! Dave was extra grateful we bought some nice thermal sleeping bags last year and that he brought along some peanut butter, jam and bread for dinner, since they didn't find the rest of the group! I was glad I remembered to pack them some warm pajamas. It apparently wasn't too cold, but it was Isaac's first Father's and Son's camp-out (I wasn't expecting Dave to want to take him, but he did!), and I wanted them to be as comfortable as possible!

  Dave had an over-sized duffle bag on his back full of their overnight supplies and three sleeping bags, and Isaac (20+ ponds) in arms, but managed to hike over 2 miles straight uphill on a rocky path to the top of the mountain! Wow! They got to the top just in time for bed-time. Isaac kept standing up and looking around, until Dave put Isaac's sleeping bag inside his own and cuddled up to him. Then, Dave was the only one who couldn't sleep until 2:30 AM, from worrying about the boys! They came home just before 8 AM, a lot earlier than I expected, but reported that they had fun! Here are a few pictures:

   We have tentative plans to visit the beach this weekend, so for now I'll sign off, but stay tuned for more!

Discovering...

  Many family and friends have asked for updates since we moved to a suburb of Vancouver, Canada one week ago. We live in the upstairs of a house. It's about 2200 square ft, and feels just right for our size family. It's a little dated, but functional and we hope it will feel like home soon. Everyday there has been something new we discover. For these two reasons I have decided to start blogging again! I want a place to keep pictures and record adventures of our time in the Vancouver. Welcome to the new blog Couver Bites (the name went through various unsuccessful stages...what do you think?)

  The most important shout out I want to make at the moment is: The Wilsons are reunited again! Okay, wonderful, right? But, now on to the less obvious and the gooey details. First of all, Canada is beautiful! We saw Ontario last summer at an extended Wilson family reunion, but British Columbia it gorgeous! It's enticing! Funny that, that is what everyone said it would be, and we got sick of hearing it, but wow! I tell ya what. It fits the bill, ladies and gentlemen! There's this point at about mid Oregon, during that long, tedious drive, where your eyes start perking up and by the time you hit Washington, they are watching every tree. Canada, though, on this side of the country, is like a whole new world of gorgeous! There are mountains and beaches in the same place, and so many trees, I think they must number close to how many stars fill the night sky! There are blackberries and Salmon berries that grow naturally, like weeds, everywhere! The air even looks different. 

  Our move was not the most wonderful time of my life. I don't think I've been stressed like that since my college years. I won't go into that. Those that know me, know what it was like. Dave and I both agree we will not plan on being apart for 3 months again, especially with the biggest move we've ever made in tow. Not fun. 

  The trip itself was fine. The kids were great in the car, although it took us nearly 17-19 hours to make the 15 hour drive. We got to the border and had to process my work visa at 11:00 PM. We had to wake up the kids, all smelly from 2 days in the car, and drag them into the customs building. I tried to ignore the stares. We were probably the largest, most tired and kind of cranky family any of those people had seen in a long time, or ever. It didn't really help that the border officers are trained not to be very personal or too friendly either. They just want to get you in and out. Hey, at that hour, that idea was fine by me!

  We got to our house at around 1:00 AM. The first impression I had, stepping across the threshold was...Indian Restaurant. The house seriously smelled like one. We rent from an Indian family, whose extended family lives in many of the surrounding houses. We share a laundry room with and 85-year-old Traditional Indian man in a Turban and beard longer than my hair, who can't speak English, and constantly says, "No problem", while gesturing to the washer and dryer". We sometimes fall asleep thinking we are in India, while being serenaded by the Zither and long held out vocal strains that move up and down in quarter tones. ;) I liked the restaurant smell at first, but after a week, I'm thinking of visiting Bath and Body Works. I wonder if they have one here. Don't get me wrong, the people are very, very nice. The old man gave our daughter a hug when he met her for the first time. But, I guess I'm in a little bit of a culture shock.

  I've spent the majority of the days unpacking, cleaning, trying to locate silverware and spices, and figuring out how people lived before microwaves! I'll need to get one of those soon. I also need a phone, as many of you know. The money is pretty, but I don't have any of it. ;) I need to be added onto Dave's bank account still. What money I did have was used quickly on a Costco run (after I was brave enough to take all four kids out for a spin in the minivan by myself, in a new country where at some parts of the day the right lane of the road is a driving lane and other parts of the day, you're allowed to park in it!)  

  Speaking of driving, in Canada, you can only make left-hand turns on particular roads at certain hours of the day! And by raise of hands, who knows what a blinking green light means?! Needless to say, I just drive slow. 

  Finding food and produce and milk is a whole new world here. Produce is cheap, but you want to use the markets. I will make frequent trips to the U.S. for some things, depending on if it's still worth it after adding about 10% to compensate for the worth of the U.S. dollar compared to the Canadian dollar. We maybe significantly decreasing our dairy intake too. $5.00/gallon!? What!?

  The ward (church group) we are part of is already amazing! I have so many people emailing me and inviting me to things! We had dinner at the Relief Society president's house on Sunday, I was invited to a mom's movie night and saw "Maleficent" on Tuesday night, we attended an "8 is Great" activity for Caleb's age group on Wednesday, and tonight is the Father and Sons camp-out for the boys, so my girls and I are going to another girl's night at the R.S. president's house.

  We live about 5 minutes away from a beautiful nature park (one of many) called Deer Lake Park. We went walking for family night on Monday. We discovered ripe Salmon berries, and all the blackberry bushes that will fill the whole city and area in July, and big black slugs everywhere we stepped! There were wild flowers everywhere and beautiful, evening light on the lake, grasses and trees. Unfortunately I forgot my camera that night. We will post pictures soon, but for now, I must sign off and get some dinner ready. Thanks for stopping by!