Summer Vacation part 1

It’s been an eventful summer. Fortunately, we have been able to get away several times to camp and holiday not including the seven weeks we spent at Wood Lake RV Park waiting to get onto our new property. By the way, if you plan on making reservations at Wood Lake RV Park, make sure you get a quote emailed to you as when we arrived, the price went up dramatically. We were under such stress to find a place to stay, that we didn’t bother to get anything in writing, so we weren’t able to prove what was said in the original conversation. Enough about that!

As we do every year, we spent the July long weekend at Pillar Lake Resort with Lindy and the boys; also with our friends, Paul and Wendy. The weather was great so Ken managed to get in some fishing with the boys. We did a little bit of swimming even though it isn’t really a lake you would typically swim in.

One afternoon, Kale and his mom rented kayaks. Kale really enjoyed it and was happy to spend that time out in the lake with his mom. Hopefully that's something the two of them can do again.

Because the weather had been so bad in June, there wasn’t a fire ban so the evenings were spent around the camp fire toasting marshmallows for s’mores and telling stories which included lots of laughs.

Mid July, Lindy and the boys, along with Ken and I ventured of to Vancouver for a few days. This little trip was mostly about Lucas. He had always wanted to go through the Vancouver Aquarium. We spent three hours inside checking it out.

I have never thought about stingrays much. Not something that has ever interested me and that is what killed Steve Irwin. They have an exhibit in the aquarium of a rather large pool full of them and you can actually stand at the side of the pool and reach in and touch them. “Ew, they feel strange.” I said. They felt like kind of a rubbery silky substance; not at all what I would have expected them to feel like.

Lucas had a ball watching all the fish along with everything else there was to see. I’m pleased to say that Kale enjoyed it just as much as Lucas did.

It was brought to my attention that the boys had never seen the ocean before. So we spent a little time at the beach watching a storm approaching from the west. Thank goodness it didn’t amount to much.

The day ended doing something Ken wanted to do, he wanted to take the boys for a ride on the miniature train they have in Stanley Park. He thought the boys would love it and they did but I’m sure you can guess who loved it the most. The next day was for Lindy and I.

We were up early and on our way to Granville Island. A must see when in Vancouver. My brother and sister in-law live in Langley and came in to join us for the day. They are the perfect tour guides and escorted us all around the island taking us through all of the best shops. Again, the weather was perfect and the temperature was just right for that kind of activity.

As we wandered around, Ken noticed what looked like a pirate ship docking in the bay.  He found someone to talk to about it and discovered they take people out on a tour so Ken signed Lindy and the boys up for it. Lindy thought it would be more of grandpa thing to do with the boys while she went shopping with me and her aunt. She changed her mind at the last minute and went with Kale and Lucas instead.

It was actually a theatrical event and so everyone taking the tour had to dress up as pirates. Once on the ship, the show began. After the ship leaves the bay, they are followed by a pirate that is driving a boat that looks like a bathtub. He chases the ship and pretends to rob it. 

During the performance, one of the pirates picked Lindy up and pretended to throw her over the side. One little boy started to cry because  he thought he was really going to throw her over board. Lucas wasn't too sure either. Meanwhile, Lindy whispered to him that she can't swim. 

The tour lasted about one hour and fifteen minutes and the three of them came off  that ship with the biggest smiles. Lindy thanked her dad so much for the experience and said she would highly recommend it to everyone.

That was our July. Next time I will tell about our August vacation.