Schedule

This schedule has changed a few times, and as with all road trips, I've tried to allow for some fluidity. We are not be any means rigid people when it comes to keeping a timeline so this could get interesting.

On July 6th we plan to leave for Osoyoos and stay one night. We're hoping to catch up with a friend or two even though we are only passing through. July 7th we head to Cranbrook and should arrive around dinnertime. We've set aside July 8th to spend with Dan & Sarah who we haven't seen in ages.

July 9-11 we are booked at a great campsite in Banff and we plan to visit Lake Louise, Cochrane (to see Nate's aunt & uncle) and whatever else we stumble upon over those few days. As we leave the area, we are passing through Calgary to see Jess & crew... but we're not sure if we'll stay the night there are near Drumheller. The boys will need a day to take in the sights of the dinosaur museum.

As much as we would LOVE to head to Edmonton, we really would rather see the Calgary Zoo, Canada Olympic Park, and Drumheller before we head on our way once more.

We should be in Regina around the 14th or so. But we will check out the RCMP Depot and try and catch a 12:45 show of the Musical Ride. Towards the 15th, we will head towards Winnipeg and visit a few people depending on time.

We hope to arrive in Dryden either the evening of the 15th or early on the 16th and stay until the morning of the 18th that is where Far Away Grandma & Grandpa are! We'll get to see where they work, shop, play, etc. The boys are very much looking forward to this leg of the journey.

From there we will head towards Port Elgin, Ontario as this is where we will be staying with Nate's family for a week. We hope to see quite a few great looking campsites along Thunder Bay and Lake Superior. We'll be arriving in Port Elgin either late on the 22nd or early on the 23rd.

After the week with Nate's parents and siblings, we will be having a big reunion with aunts and uncles and cousins as well in Collingwood for the long weekend. It's been a long time since we were able to see a lot of these people who are very dear to us and we're looking forward to it!

The hard part will be once we need to return home. See, the reunion ends on August 1st, and we have a wedding in BC on August 5th (the Friday). This wedding is of a friend we've known since we were first married and we adore her. We've plotted the route and it does entail some incredibly long days, but we figure by this point everyone will be yearning for home.

Only 10 more days until this incredible adventure!

Too Many Lists!!

If you're travelling for a month with two kids in a small van, you have to be smart about what you bring or don't bring. We're wanting to cook quite a bit so luckily Clementine has some storage space for pantry items and cooking utensils. The boys both can go through clothes pretty fast, but we'll just hit the laundrymat once in awhile instead of bringing a month's worth of clothing. We had a soft roof-top carrier for all bedding (2 sleeping bags, 3 blankets, and 4 pillows).

There is some space in between the backseat and the back window, but due to the engine being in the back, it's not that deep a space. I bought 2-for-1 Rubbermaid containers today from Zellers. Two large ones and 2 small for our clothes and other miscellaneous items. All four containers should fit nicely in the back. The cooler can either be bunjee-corded next to Malachi or stay on the floor behind the driver's seat.

That leaves 'entertainment' items. The boys will be in the van for an incredible amount of time. I've hummed and hawed over what to bring for them to play with, but with the spacing and slight budget issues (Please Canada Post go back to work so Nate's work cheque comes!!!) I just am not sure what to bring for them. They love art, so a few colouring books will be good. And we will be stuffing in as many little cars as we can. I've thought about a Magna-Doodle or Etch-A-Sketch too. I don't think too many electronic toys are good, but we have two iPod's for sanity breaks. I have some pipe cleaners and I've read about bring painter's tape... that could potentially be hours of entertainment right there. I've also printed off some picture scavenger hunt pages, where the boys have to cross off an item once they spot it out the window. Not sure how great it will work, but it's only paper! I wish I could squeeze in their bikes and tonnes of fun things for them to play with while we're at campsites... but like I said.. space is an issue.

So, what would you bring? What would you leave at home? Do you have ideas for great road trip games appropriate for a 4 and 3 year old?

The Video That Sealed the Deal

In the Beginning

We've often talked about what our life would be like if we had the opportunity to slow down, even for a short time. To be able to be together with no worries or commitments to adhere to. We've dreamt of a vacation the four of us could wander on, just to be adventurous together.

The idea was sparked to purchase a VW van. We can't explain why, but the obsession grew. Everywhere we went we saw Westfalia's. We pointed out our favorite ones, stayed up late into the night prowling the internet for sad Westfalia's looking for new families, and we even ventured out to take a look at some. Once we started looking, we just couldn't stop. There were a few that left a bad taste in our mouth, simply due to sad neglect.

One night, as Dad was looming on ebay, searching for the perfect Westfalia to make his dreams come too - THERE SHE WAS!! A bright, newly restored, perfectly happy and not at all neglected, 1976 VW Westfalia named Clementine. It was absolutely love at first sight. We can't admit in public how many times we watched her youtube video. We simply had to have her. There were some small glitches: we live in BC, Canada and Clementine was travelling over the continental USA to arrive in San Francisco, California. Mom was very much against purchasing a vehicle from out of the country (as she knew she would end up with a lot of paperwork), but she found herself wistfully imaging what it would be like to own Clementine. How fun she would be to drive! And to take the children camping!

So plans were made, money was saved, and after many phone calls to her lovely owners - Dad left for San Fran with a friend and met Clementine for the first time. She was all he had envisioned. He made sure to remember all the advice associated with owning an older vehicle: don't leave the radio on, or the heater, remember to hold on to the stick when she's in 4th, and take it easy! After some border shenanigans, she was home.

Jer and Kai loved her from the moment they saw her. Driving around side by side in the backseat they were actually content. We had a try-out camping trip just last weekend. Mom had forgotten how much fun camping could be. Just watching the boys run around in the fresh air, and admiring our new (to us) van, and imaging all our summer adventures made for a great night.

Currently, we are looking to travel across Canada in Clementine. We plan to stop and visit friends and camp out at some great Canadian locations. We will end up in Ontario for a week with family we haven't seen in way too long. All in all, it will be a month together as a family and we are so excited to share all the craziness with you!!!