canada geese

We have been loving watching the Olympics, especially since our first stop is London. We are ready to go, not on the organizational sense but in the birds-needing-to-fly-sense. Thankfully we aren't quite due for departure since we are still trying to figure out how to cram our entire lives into four backpacks. As well as dealing with the paperwork-of-life (which is not my passion)... wills, insurance, bank accounts etc.
Yet the Canadian athletes continue to inspire us as we are treated to nightly gymnastic events and high dives in the lake. Soon we will be flying!

model a

While visiting relatives we were lucky enough to go for a spin in the children's great uncle's Ford Model A. So fun getting to do the things I loved to do when I was a kid with my own kids!

planning for take off

These days when I am laying in bed at night (listening to my family sleep) I am left wondering how we will ever condense our already reduced stuff into four backpacks? Burning questions like Which pair of shoes is "the one"? fill my mind as I sleep with my family in various rooms in various houses belonging to some lovely friends who are generously housing us.

land of everchanging fog

We are in Tofino, a four or five hour drive from Victoria BC, on the westcoast of Vancouver Island. Out here on the Pacific coast the weather changes by the moment, it will go from dense intense fog to sunny and warm in the same hour.

We stay on Chesterman Beach and recommend this trip to any one visiting Canada! The beach is virtually empty and children can run for miles, collect shells and play in the surf. Wetsuits will be needed for long stays in the ocean and can be rented easily once you are here. Tofino, the town itself, is cute with lots of local food, beer and gelato. A foodie haven. Definitely bring your groceries with you because you are paying more to have them driven out here if you buy them at the grocery store.

summer livin'

We are finally house-free and just enjoying the month of July locally. We have been generously offered some housesits by friends and have a few visits to family and friends in other cities. It feels so exciting to be in this limbo spot right now. It is nice to get to be out of our house but still in familiar surroundings and houses for the kids to make the adjustment to the realization that we aren't going home anytime soon.

Plus a trampoline always helps!

almost ready...

We have rented our house and are vagabonds in one week! But we won't be leaving Canada until August. Instead we are going to visit a few favourite spots, housesit and swim at the lake with friends. Our life as explorers is almost here...

kid food

My kids are pretty good eaters. But a lot of people are asking me what they will eat once we get away from the western fare. I hope they will eat what we eat. It will be an adventure watching them try new things they can't pronounce, because I really believe that eating local cusiine around the world is a huge part of the experience, for adults too. My plan is not to try to find pizza in every corner of the world.

toronto

Just back from visiting friends in Toronto, Ontario. I haven't been to the city in over fifteen years (long before kids) and I was pleasantly surprised to discover parts of the city with a slower pace in mind. As the purpose of the visit was to meet the new baby of friends - I got to enjoy lots of nature strolls right out their city door. The trails in this park were filled with families on bikes heading to the farmer's market, toddlers wandering down tree lined-lanes and lots of friendly people.

I love not camping

My friends know that in recent years my motto has been "I love not camping". Well, that can't be my motto while travelling on a shoestring with my family for a year... I just know that we will be faced with rough conditions including peeing over a hole on a moving train.
So I am embracing my camping side as best as I can. A good place to start is our little rustic cabin - no running water or electricity, just one room, an outhouse and a beach...

and so many great memories.

99 days until departure!

A friend emailed me today to tell me that we leave in 99 days! Clearly she is checking my blog, so I need to get more diligent on the posting. Right now it feels like we are wading through a jungle. So much to do, sort out, get rid of etc in order to be free of all our worldly possessions. Look, I get that these are "problems" I've created for myself and I'm not complaining. I'm happy and excited!
So on my top priority list right now is to rent out our house - and this little nature walk is right out our door. Who wouldn't want to live in this Canadian jungle?!

stinging nettle cure

Spring on our rural property means stinging nettle! The kids noticed it on a hike in the woods last week. I loved that they called out "stinging nettle" like it was no big deal, knew not to touch it and moved on. It gave me insight for our upcoming travels, we can just acknowledge things and move on - my kids are growing up.
Anyway this spring bloom has perfect timing because I felt a cold coming on. We picked and brewed up some fresh stinging nettle tea and after a few cups and a good night's sleep I felt that the cold was gone. I think I caught it right in the early stages. I knew stinging nettle was good for me, but this instant cure made be a true believer... and it is growing for free and wild right here. A quick internet search will reveal all that this magical herb can cure. I've decided to drink it every day for one month (spring tonic) as one site suggests.

le planning

In honour of all of the trip planning I've been doing for the South of France I decided to try this wine (among many others). Yes it is rosé - I'm breaking out of my black-sheep-of-the-family status - me being the lone white wine drinker in the family. Needless to say the wine was fine. And our planning is coming along nicely. However I have really been procrastinating on the house rental (our own). I have got to focus on that next. It is much more fun imagining where we will be next year, rather than trying to secure tenants for this summer...

bird love

Buddy made this little bird seed heart for the feathered friends around our house.

canadian, eh?

There are a lot of misconceptions about Canadians out there in the world. Suprisingly most Canadian don't live in an igloo or know who invented the snowmobile.

old fashioned ipod

While digging around at the grandparent's my son found this and declared, "Look at this old-fashioned iPod!" Since we don't let them use an iPod this has become a treasure and the old tapes of my youth have found new life. Truth be told, our car still has a tape-deck so they know tapes... but this prehistoric thing looks huge to them. Sort of like those cell phone from the early nineties.

winter warmth

We use a lot of wood to heat our house in the winter. It's been interesting watching our pile decrease knowing that next year, we won't need any of this. There are starting to be a number of things that we realize is our last and won't need to be replaced. I went shopping with friends on the weekend and only spent a few dollars because I don't need anything that I can't fit into a backpack!