8.10.2011

July 1-31

July 1, 2011
Let the Grunewald Family vacation begin!!!
We love the Halvorsons and Bass Pro Shop so why not combine the two together? We did, it was awesome, stay tuned for more Halvorson fun.  Lunch was great, they took us to 5 Guys Burger and Fries in Airdrie - it was a great burger (even rivaled Peters Drive In!)  Tiffany's prior employer was the Canadian Sports Hall of Fame and it didn't disappoint on its inaugural day, it also helps to have an inside advantage to get the full experience! The end of the long and exciting day we got to have a picnic with the Roberts in Cochrane.  Now that's what I call a great Canada Day!

July 2, 2011
What's a summer family vacation in Calgary without a trip to Calaway Park?!  Not a good one anyway - we had blast and brave mom even took the kids on the log ride and got soaked to start the day, luckily it was a scorcher so everyone dried off sufficiently (the roller coaster helped as well)  We met up with the Pratt's in Calgary in the afternoon - now that they've moved back from eastern Canada. Yeah!

July 3, 2011
So not everything can go completely according to plan and burning out our front brakes in Revelstoke was one of those fun things!  Luckily we made it safely and grandpa is an expert mechanic. Brand new brakes and we're ready to go!

July 4, 2011
Okanagan Valley means two things: the best fruit and the best beaches
in Canada, grandma has fruit trees in the yard and we had our fair share of cherries off the tree and of course the beaches were perfect!

July 5, 2011
The second best thing in life to sliced bread is getting a snuggle from mom to warm up on the beach after a killer swim.  We ended the day with a dinner at Dori-Ann and Garth's new house on the ridge overlooking the valley, one of best views we've ever seen!

July 6, 2011
After you a get a little tired of beaching it everyday, have no fear, grandpa and his motorboat are near!  He pulled everyone around on the tube all afternoon, from barely a crawl for the little girls to full speed for 20 minutes to try and drown daddy and cousin Jory.

July 7, 2011
Grandpa (not pictured above, by-the-way) works on a ranch in Vernon.  We went to see the kiddies, ride the horses and ride around the fields in a quad.  Loved it!  So then we hit the mall for some souvenir shopping.

July 8, 2011
Theatre hot dog lunch and then some Kung Fu Panda 2 - skadoosh!  Finished off the day with Vietnamese Pho with grandma and grandpa and then dessert to Cold Stone Creamery!  Perfect.

July 9, 2011
One of the best hikes in Western Canada is at the Shuswap Lake up to Margaret Falls.  We all had fun and got some great pictures and didn't even have to break a sweat to get there.

July 10, 2011
You can't go to grandma's house without getting some super cute outfits!  After church the girls got an impromptu photoshoot at the Japanese Gardens.  The weather was great to help create memories!

July 11, 2011
As time was counting down to be in the Okanagan Valley, we got a boat tour of the north portion of the Okanagan Lake and all the great scenery and beautiful houses along the shores.  The girls even spotted a deer swimming in the lake 100 meters offshore and we stuck around to make sure it got back to shore ok.  The girls were all relieved.  Now its time to pack up and  move to the Invermere BC and on to the Grunewald reunion which means more cousins and more fun!

July 12, 2011
You may see the kids with clothes on and in the lake?  The only thing missing is Auntie Bobbi with clothes on and in the lake.  The best part of vacation is doing the things you can't do at home where everybody knows who you are!

July 13, 2011
One advantage to the many advantages of a lake resort is when the weather turns nasty, the indoor pool works great to keep the grandkids and crazy uncles busy for the afternoon.  Too bad with our large, rambunctious party, we scared all the other families away.

July 14, 2011
A BC favourite is going to Fort Steele, we got rides on the steam train, horse draw carriage and got a tour of the town by a tour guide who shared many exciting stories of the old west.  After a long drive back to Calgary through the Crowsnest Pass dad and the two older girls joined the Halvorsons at Cross Iron Mills again, but this time it was at midnight to watch a sneak peak Harry Potter 7 part 2!  It was a great show but by 3am it was a loooong day!

July 15, 2011
After a very hectic holiday to date and some VERY late nights, Friday was spent doing some running around Calgary, visit to the pet shop so the fish could nibble on the girls fingers and of course, PETERS DRIVE IN.  Ahh, we can die anytime now - our life is fulfilled.

July 16, 2011
Congratulations Beau and Heather (Clifford) Zemp, it was a beautiful ceremony, lots of family and tones of photographs to remember the big day.  After the wedding at the Wedding Pavilion on the West end of Calgary near C.O.P., the wedding party headed to Riley park for some more photos and crazy poses.  The reception that evening was definitely food, folks and fun.  Man can the Grunewald girls dance, they were described as Energizer bunnies and we literally had to pull them away from the dance floor!

July 17, 2011
After a long ride to the heart of the prairies we finally arrived home safe and sound.  Our lawn was dead, the garden was full of weeds but we did get a lot of our flowers blooming so there is a silver lining to everything.  Now the hardest part of the trip is get back to regular life!

July 18, 2011
We welcomed a new member into our family this summer - a trampoline!!  A trade for our swing set with the Tondevolds was an easy and quick set up and the kids have been on it everyday with and without the sprinkler under it.  Lyndon grew up with a trampoline and we all have tones of fun and its great exercise as well!

July 19, 2011
For those of you have eaten at East Side Mario's and had their Italian Wedding soup, its quickly becoming a family favorite around here.  Now that mom has figured out how to make it at home, we're all a little more Italian these days!

 July 20, 2011
Although the fish tank was fun, the fish tend to shy away from being picked up and sitting on your shoulder.  The kids wanted a more interactive pet and we have welcomed some more feathered friends to our clan.  Luckily friends of ours were looking for a fish tank that was low maintenance so we can see them now and again and catch up on old times.

July 21, 2011
One of the advantages of a black mess trampoline is when the temperature rises (which it has done a lot this summer here!) a sprinkler underneath adds a whole new dimension of backyard fun!

July 22, 2011
Our favourite babysitter is growing up and getting married, [sniff-sniff].  The photo shoot was fun and would have been more fun if we weren't attacked by mosquitoes and then rained on!

July 23, 2011
Annual Mormon Pioneer Picnic at the farm near Yellow Grass.  Great weather, lots of fun and super yummy pies and burgers!  Mother Nature held back a downpour and lightning storm until after the fireworks show was completed.  We made it back to town but just barely!

July 24, 2011
Some people ask why anyone would live in the Canadian Prairies when winters can get to -50C.  Well one reason is the summers are some of the best in the world, warm, mild and beautiful scenery.  A nice Sunday evening stroll proved that theory true again!

July 25, 2011
We tried to get into a city pool for FHE tonight but it was packed and a line up waiting to get it.  So we found a small spray park and had just as much fun and there was no chlorine required!

July 26, 2011
Whether the kids are at the spray park or swimming pool, nothing is better for mom than watching the kids play while listening to some sweet tunes.

July 27, 2011
Instead of waiting for the last hour of the day to get into the city pool free, we paid our $11 and got into the pool in the early afternoon and played for hours.

July 28, 2011
After almost giving up on the Hibiscus Tree dad got for Father's day a year ago, we put it out on the deck earlier this summer to give it one last chance before tossing it.  Well it loved the heat and sun and so much so, it is blooming again.  We love that it continually blooms in the summer but sad the beautiful flowers only last a day or two before closing and falling off.  Hence the life of the Hibiscus.

July 29, 2011
With lots of friends over for everyone to play with and the temperature rising, what can be a better fit than kids, summer and Popsicles!

July 30, 2011
Dad borrowed a chainsaw and attacked the dead tree limbs in the yard a while back and had so much to get rid of, a U-Haul truck was needed to take it all to the dump.

July 31, 2011
We love to read in this family and when there are no school assignments to keep up with, some recreational reading on a warm summer afternoon in the shade is a great way to pass the time.

2 comments:

  1. What a cool idea. I may just have to do that for my little family sometime too!!

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  2. Sounds like you've had a great start to summer. Strange to think there's only a couple weeks of it left!

    ReplyDelete