A Dallas getaway!

Spencer had some work training in Dallas of all places for a few days and it eventually worked out so I could go with him.  He served his mission there 15 years ago so really how could we not both go and check out the area again and turn his work training into a mini reunion, getaway and some fun!

When we left Edmonton we left this:

I can't say that I was sorry to leave this for the beautiful temperatures in Dallas and we did have nice weather around 25 degrees.  Nothing but sun and brownish grass.  

Then we flew in DFW airport.  I was so nervous about having to separate from Spencer for 3 days and having to drive on the roads down there and staying with people that I didn't know.  Thank goodness that it all worked out and we both got to enjoy ourselves.

This are the Wangs (pronounced Wong).

 

It took a little while for my ride to show up and then Spencer went his way and I went mine.  We stayed with some Chinese friends that Spencer knew on his mission.  So the wife (Sister Wang) can with me to pick up our rental car and drive back to her place with me.  It was dark and thankfully not too busy on the road.  We also had the help of a GPS unit to guide us. 

This is the house where we stayed.  All the houses in the sub-burbs are like this....no basements so everything is above ground.  Everything truly is bigger in Texas. 

Here is our rental car.

These are the roads that I was driving on.  The drivers were all really good and polite;  You drive way FASTER than I'm used to.  But in the end I felt pretty confident in getting around (with the help of the GPS of course).  Atleast I didn't have to contend with snowy roads, too!

Here is our rental car.  It was pretty nice, leather heated seats.  I still can't figure that one out...not in Texas anyways.  I would love that option in Edmonton though. 

It was nice to be able and sleep in and not have any responsibilities or worrys that accompany parenthood.  Grandma and Grandpa Ord were able to watch our children and from the report that I still keep receiving from my children they had a wonderful time and did some fun things.  I hope that the kids will always be able to remember the special one on one time that they were able to have with their grandparents.

 

Apparently Texas has the most shopping per capita in the United States.  I think I just might have discovered that for myself.  I visited a lot of stores; outlet malls, strip malls, costco, regular malls, quaint little "town" type shopping areas, fancy malls.  After you've seen one you've seen them all.  The stores start to repeat themselves and I wasn't finding things for that great US price.  So I didn't purchase hardly anything. 

 

I was able to meet up with Spencer on Tuesday night at Southlake Town Square, which has and looks like a quaint little town but is it all shopping.  We had dinner together and got caught up.  Then he went back to Deloitte University and I went back to where I was staying.  I arrived early at this shopping area and tried to call Spencer but my old cell phone didn't work in the US so I had no way of contacting him to find out when he would be arriving.  I tried to look through the stores but was getting worried and frustrated.  I waited and waited and was almost ready to give up and drive back when I saw two large tour buses pull up and I knew that he was on one of those.  So I went to where everyone was getting dropped off and as soon as I saw him come off the bus got teary eyed.  I was so relieved to see him!  We had a nice night together. 

This is a portion of what southlake town looks like at Christmas time. 

 This is where we ate at.  The food always more than filled us up and we usually had enough for leftovers the next day.

 We went on a short carriage ride together. 

Here is an artified long horn steer that Texas is famous for. 

On Wednesday morning I went to the temple for a session. I can add that to my list of temples I've attended; which is now at an impressive 7.  I had an episode of thinking that I had brought my expired recommend and couldn't go but as everyone knows the recommend expires 2 years from the date that it was issued.  So it turns out that I was ok. 

 This day was super nice.  Here is an outside picture. 

 Some fountains and flowers.

Some side details of the temple. 

Here is the bark of a tree on the temple grounds.  Smooth...but hiding on it was a gecko.  Neato!

 How do you know that it is Christmas in a land where they very seldom get snow?  You see randomly decorated trees at shopping areas and on the side of busy roads. 

Here is a house in the same neighbourhood that decorated thier bushes out front...see the pointsetta flowers and the holly?  I think I have to say that I love the four seasons that we get in Canada.  The cold winter one could be a little shorter and maybe not so cold. 

 

On Thursday Nov. 22 we went into downtown Dallas and visited the JFK Museum.  This is the building where the shooter (Lee Harvey Oswald) shot JFK from. He was shot from the 6th floor of this building so on the sixth floor they turned it into a museum.  It was very good.  An audio tour of the the life and history of JFK and his rise to President of the United States.  Details of his death, the investigation, funeral, conspiracy theories, legacy.  If you can see if from the above picture there are two white X's on the road those are the points at which he was shot at. 

 

 

This is a replica of the building that was used in a movie and then donated to the museum.  6th floor on the right side was the window.  That same day on the grassy knoll there was a bit of a memorial going on and people talking about different conspiracy theories.  Of course we checked out what all the excitement was about. 

 

After all the JFK excitement.  We went on what I think our highlight of the trip.  A chance to go back and visit Spencer's mission area.  This is the one of the apartments that Spencer lived in.  He was so excited to see it again.  All the streets came back to him and we drove around.  A lot has changed in the 15 years since his mission days.  But he said this particular apartment building hadn't. 

This is the door to the apartment.  I can attest that it smelled chinese.  It actually reminded me of Taiwan a litlle bit. 

 

 Here is the courtyard of the complex.
 In one area there was an incredibly big church that the missionaries called the death star, we drove to find it and it has since been turned into a rather large school with a new addition. 

 Okay so another highlight was the chance to meet up with our good friends the Joneses.  We met while going to school at Purdue in Indiana.  They are living in the Dallas area.  Who would fly over 2000 miles and not get together....not me!  We had a nice breakfast together and then they guided us back to the airport to catch our plane.  My only complaint was that of course it wasn't a long enough visit.  Maybe in another 7 years we can meet up in Canada or better yet have a Purdue Reunion. 

Finally here is Spencer on the plane ride home.  Poor guy he gave me the window seats on the way down and then going home he got stuck in the middle seat.  What a great guy.  We had a wonderful time and missed our children.  It is nice to be able to get away but I think it is always nice to go back home again too. 

 

He Did IT!

WaHoo!  Today at 8am we found out that Spencer passed his CA exam!  We are so excited.  After days, weeks, months of studying, assignmnents, and exams it is all finished.  He will eventually be getting the title of Chartered Accountant.  Way to GO Spen!

Halloween

Here is some of the fun we had this year for Halloween.

This is a craft that I used to keep the kids busy one Sunday morning.  I call them my ghoulish crew.

Our pumpkin carving night for FHE.  Everyone carves a pumpkin except for me I get to carve two or at least help out in a big way for the boys.  I didn't find the pumpkins at my local store very good this year but I picked out the best ones I could.  The one Spencer was left to carve didn't even stand up.  Oh, well he made do. 

Last year Evan would at least help clean out the pumpkin "guts" but this year I was on my own.  He is still hesitant when it comes to getting his hands slimy, messy, sticky, gluey....etc.   We didn't use patterns and did easier carvings so it didn't take us all night and there was less frustration on every ones part.

 

Here is the after.  Left to Right we have Spencer's sideways face, Evan's skull, Aaron's spider and Megan's Pokemon creature.  Not a bad crew.  The kids loved having them lit up and I loved the smell that comes from a candle burning in the pumpkin. 

We didn't do a lot of extra decorating.  We have the usual window clings that I've saved for a few years now, I bought this year those jelly window clings that I put up in our 1/2 bath along with a couple of black fancied up hand towels and a Halloween hand soap cover all that along with the usual scary smells had the bathroom covered!  The kids also painted a few Halloween themed clay pots to add to our collection that I had done years back along with some store bought ceramic tea lights that I had going for the week. 

It got cold kinda quickly and we had a few days of freezing rain and snow so I didn't get my spiderweb up on the bush outside out front door.  But with my porch light on and those 4 pumpkins lit up people still came to our house.  The brave souls.....67 of them according to my tally.  I was quite generous with the candy hand out as I didn't want any leftovers. 

This year I was seriously contemplating taking the kids to a local mall for some safe, warm indoor fun; but then thought better of it since I also like to hand out candy at our house.  So bundling up was their option for  trick-or-treating this year.  Also I would be doing the mall thing by myself and that was just too much extra work for me. 

I gave the kids hand warmers in their mitts and that did the trick for them being able to stay out a little longer.  Their faces may have been a little chilly but their hands were warm. They got enough candy to last for a while anyways. 

We're going to the dentist so we'll see what damage has been done!

They had some fun school parties along with the costume parade that Aaron and I went to.  I sent the kids with Halloween pencils and erasers to give to each class mate along with a "healthy" treat to share with their class in the afternoon. 

 Megan shared this 7 layer dip with blue and yellow chips served in a black cauldron.  OOhhhh!  I helped Evan make a dry snack mix with goldfish, chocolate cheerios, raisins, craisins, white yogurt covered pretzel pieces and a few candy corns. 

 My boys dressed up a superhero.  I made their costumes.  They are always wearing their capes and wristbands and masks. 

Megan dressed up as my "artsy girl".  This is her take on being a Jackson Pollock painting.  She had fun creating this( she would have had more fun if I let her drizzle more paint herself).  As always a unique costume. 

 Here they are warming up and looking and eating their candy.  Ignore me as I help Aaron learn the proper candy sorting technique.  Thanks for all your hard work kids; your dad and I will try not to eat all the candy after your in bed!  Happy Haunting!

Ord Stamp of approval

Last year for Christmas I asked Spencer to get me a subscription to Canadian Living Magazine.  So I've been enjoying the magazine all year.  They have awesome recipes and I've tried a lot of them.

Here are some that I've tried:


1.  Pad Thai for the recipe click here.

 



2.  Smoked Brine Turkey click here.

3.  Eggs Benedict click here.  I really enjoy the smoked salmon variation.  This is an extremely rich recipe and when I make it for just 2 I cut the recipe in 1/2, even then I can only eat one. 

4.  Maritime Seafood Chowder click here.
 

 
I remember by Dad making clam chowder and I loved it.  This recipe reminded me of that but with a fresh twist.  Using a few small packages of fresh fish makes a big difference. 
 

 5. Angel Food Cake with Lemon Curd and Mascarpone Cream click here.

 

Mascarpone is a soft cheese like ricotta and you can find it in the same section of your grocery store if they carry it.  I just use ricotta because I couldn't find it; then wouldn't you know they started carrying it!

I also read the Vegetarian Times Magazine and follow a few food blogs in order to keep me interested in making dinner and baking I love to try new recipes.  Spencer and I love to try out my new recipes my kids on the other hand....still have to eat it to at least try it.  That's our house rule. Enjoy!

October Thanksgiving weekend

Well another year, another day older, a little bit wiser....it sure was a busy birthday weekend.  It fell on the Thanksgiving/General Conference weekend. 

We did enjoy watching all the General Conference sessions and we really didn't do a thanksgiving dinner which I rather enjoyed;no stress and not a lot of time in the kitchen cooking on that weekend.  It was busy enough with General Conference and my birthday celebration.

We started out Saturday trying to finish up the last of our Saturday chores and I was making our semi-annual "Feast on the Word" breakfast.  It is sure easier to do a fun breakfast at home then trying to drag everyone out to a breakfast restaurant early in the morning. 

Notice that we broke out the Halloween plates that the kids love using. 

The menu:

• Scrambled Eggs
• Bacon
• Sausage
• Seasonal Fruit
• Yogurt
• Hot Chocolate
• Orange Juice
• Cinnamon Buns (missing from picture)

It was so yummy and enough to fill some tummies so we could enjoy General Conference.  To keep the kids busy I pulled out our General Conference Bingo Cards and had dollar store prizes for those who got a bingo.  The kids were listening and quickly used up by bingo prizes.  I also had a few treats like suckers, m&m's, mini kit-kat bars etc. with the names of some general authorities on them.  When that particular general authority spoke we got to enjoy that treat.  Most of my activities were generally well received.  Next year I'll have to come up with 4 different activities; one for each session that helps to keep the kids occupied and interested. 

Sunday we always like to get dressed up and go to a stake building to enjoy the morning session. 

On Monday we decided to celebrate my birthday.  Spencer and the kids worked hard to make a video for my birthday.  It was really well done.  They had fun and I enjoyed watching it.  We had Hawaiian Haystacks for dinner that I didn't have to make so they tasted extra yummy.  Then I got my presents: The video, some products from Rocky Mountain Soap Company, and a new "fancy" watch.  I also received a lot of nice cards from various family and friends.  So thank you to everyone who made my day extra special. 

 Here we are opening presents.  This is the watch that I got.  Can you tell that Megan is super excited for me? 

 

Here is the cake that Spencer bought for me.  I told him that I wanted a Costco cake this year and boy did I get one! ( I actually wanted those fancier bar cakes that they sell but apparently was specific enough on the type of cake.) We only ate one piece each; which was a row by the sun and we cut the flowers off and passed it along to another lady that we know who has the same birthday as me and the last portion of it is still in my freezer awaiting a time when we have the missionaries over for dinner to help us eat it. 

 

I had an enjoyable birthday spent with people that I love.  Happy Birthday to Me!

 

 



Evan's First Talk

Here is Evan's first talk that he gave in primary.  He was confident, read most of the talk by himself and enjoyed his time in the spotlight so to speak. 

"Choosing the rifht means making good choices.  We can choose the right by listening to our parents, reading the scriptures, saying our prayers and following the prophet.  We know that we have made a good choice when we have a warm feeling in our hearts.  I am trying to choose the right everyday and I know that if I pray for help Heavenly Father will answer me by helping me to choose the right. In the name of Jesus Christ Amen."

Summer Recap

Here is some of what we did this summer:

1.  Beach Bums

What do you do when you live north and your sister lives south?  Meet half way of course!  That is exactly what we did....at Sylvan Lake.  The weather was beautiful this trip resulted in my first painful sunburn in quite sometime.  We loaded up all our beach stuff and snacks and headed down.  Unfortunately there wasn't any "beach" where we were on the strip but there was plenty of grassy area for our chairs and toys and the water is quite shallow; which makes for some fun playing for the kids. 

 

Here are the two bright beach babies.  Two moms with 5 kids between them and no one drowned!  That would be a very successful trip in my books.  My sister brought her blow up pool which acted as a playpen type structure to corral the girls in.  It worked pretty well. 

 

Here is Megs trying out the floating "surf" board.  I also had an orange blow up floater mattress and as per tradition Megs and I held on and kicked our way out to the buoys.  Which is quite a ways further than it looks.  With the wind blowing slightly we were a little off course. 

 

 

We also brought Meg's whale.  The girls had fun sitting on the whale and splashing in the water with their mom. 

 

 

2. Capital Ex Parade

 

The parade starts at 10 and we got there about a f hour early.  I bought some timbits for a little treat and some toys/small games to help keep the kids occupied while we waited. 

Here is one of the entertainers that came by to help pass the time until the parade started.  He was from Australia and he was this amazing balloon tying guy.  He was one part of a 3 man marching band.  His two band mates were made entirely out of balloons; hair, faces, instruments.  Awesome!

 

 

Here was one of the bigger floats to pass by.  It was always funny to watch then maneuver these giant floats under the pedways downtown It was a pretty tight squeeze. 

There was also clowns, horses, little motorcycles, various people riding by on floats, bands....etc. 
We lasted almost up until the end.  Aaron had had enough and wanted to go besides the fact that  we were being squeezed out of our spot  and I wanted to try to beat the rush out of the downtown.  Unfortunately it took us over 1/2 hour to just get out of the downtown core; what with all the walkers crossing the streets and others who also decided to leave early. 

3.. WEM Water park

I almost forgot about this we took a Saturday afternoon and enjoyed the fun of an indoor water park.  It was pretty busy.  The kids had way more fun this time around.  They loved the kids area and a few kid friendly slides.  Not to mention the tube ride and hanging out in the actual wave pool. 

 

 We were having such a lovely time but then 1/2 way through Evan wasn't feeling well.  He just sat on his chair sleeping and wrapped in his towel.  We actually ended up staying a little longer since Megs was having such a wonderful time.  Poor Evan he just sat there not feeling that good.  He was the one who wanted to go into the hot tub to warm up.  That is so not him, usually it is too hot for him. 

 

Afterwards we went to Tony Roma's for a little dinner.  What a fun family day. 

 

4.  Fort Edmonton Park

 

I love this place.  There are little fun things that you can do for fairly cheap.  A train ride is always a good idea and a great way to start a day of exploration.  Here are Megs and Aaron (Aaron just woke up from a little power nap in the van). 

 

I bought some tickets and was hoping for the kids to go on a little guided pony ride.  Evan and Megan went and had fun.  Aaron on the other hand cried so much just sitting on the horse that the lady said he would have to stop crying or get off so as to not scare the horse.  So off he came. 

Then we stopped at the bakery for a treat.  A huge brownie, a cinnamon bun and some giant cookies with some icy cold lemonade to wash it all down. 

 

No trip would be complete without a trip to the fair grounds.  The kids love to ride the Ferris wheel (I did once; I'm not a big fan) the carousel is also a hit.  Here is Aaron riding on a free ride that is powered by hand by one of the workers.  They also have some penny carnival type games where everyone is a winner! 

 

 

There is also a photography studio there where you can get an old fashioned picture taken.  If you want to see that you'll have to come visit me and see it hanging on our wall.  There is a 4D theater, playground, wagon and stage coach ride, various candy shops, ice cream shop, mini golf, hotel, shooting range and a few restaurants.  We always seem to go when it is the hottest day out?  The kids have been really good sports as there is a lot of walking involved. 

 

5.  Elk Island Park

 

Elk Island Park is one of our new favorite National Parks to visit.  We went there for a short afternoon visit this summer.  The mosquitoes were terrible on the short hike that we went on and caused us to do some quick walking and brief periods of running. 

 

 

 Of course we came prepared to check out the living boardwalk.  The kids had a grand time scooping out whatever water bugs they could.  The water was quite murky and we didn't find as many insects as we have in the past.   Here we are on the boardwalk.

 

 We also secured a fire pit and picnic table and had a hot dog roast.  Afterwards the kids played at the park there.  The best part of this park is that it is only 30 minutes away and you get to see Buffalo up close.

 

6.  Camping in Jasper/Family Reunion

 

It was a long planning process but we were able to get everyone together for a camping reunion.  The weather was pretty good.  We had a couple of rainy periods but nothing that didn't keep it exciting. 

 

We were also able to get campsite as per our request fairly close together.  The cousins had a fabulous time running around and playing together.  We went on various hikes and rotated dinner cooking responsibilities through the three days we were together.  Some of the best times are at night around the campfire.  Sharing stories and treats and catching up with family that we haven't seen in awhile.

 

I was going to do it with just myself and my kids since Spencer was going to be writing his final exam right through the time but after his last day he quickly drove out to Jasper to join us.  Which was really fun.  Camping is a lot of work for one adult.  Our van was packed full and we even brought the kids bikes strapped to the top of the van.  Evan re-learned how to ride his two wheeler in just one day and loved riding around the campsite with his cousins.  Spencer had to bring out our toques and a few extra blankets as the temperature in the morning was quite chilly until the sun popped up over the trees. 

 

 

Here is the train that my boys could spend an entire afternoon on if the could.  There isn't really much to do on it except fool around and climb all over it.  

 

I went a day early to spend sometime with just my kids before everyone else arrived but Grandpa and Grandma thought that was a fabulous idea so they came a day early too.  Actually my one brother and his family were already camping there so we all hung out together.  Here we are at pyramid lake.  We rented a canoe and Grandpa and uncle Jeff took the kids out.  Unfortunately the weather turned on us and we had to put a hold on the fun. 

 

 

 Here is a view of our campsite.  Our tent is the blue one in the background.  We purchased a new Coleman stove and I loved using it.  It made cooking food faster than over a campfire. 

 

 Here we are after a short hike up to Angel Glacier.  The water was freezing and the kids had fun picking out the chunks of ice from the lake.
 

 

 It is called Angel Glacier because it looks like an angel with its wings or arms out stretched.
 

 

Here we are before the hike.  Excited and ready for adventure. 

 

 

 This is us hiking the seven bridges.  It is really a pretty hike and you can cross over seven different bridges.  It is neat to see the rock canyon and how deep it is and how powerful the water is to slowly carve away at the canyon rock.  The kids enjoyed throwing rocks down each time.

 

 This is lake Annette.  A little sandy beach with shallow water so it warms up some in the sun.  Spencer always has such fun building sand castles at the beach.

 

Here is the rest of the crew with snacks and blankets and shade.  This is our take a break area.  The weather was nice.  The one thing that was a first for me on this trip was the fact that Aaron kept on having accidents and so I ran out of clean clothes pretty quickly.  I hauled the kids into town and we had to wash our clothes at the laundry mat.  The town has two and of course we picked the dumpy one.  Oh well we got most of our clothes clean again and we had a chance to look around town for a little while. 

 

7.   Jazz Night at the Muttart

 



 

A week night date at the Muttart was a fun night to spend together especially in the summer when babysitting is easier to come by.  They had a Jazz band playing and the show pyramid was in full blooms with Dahlias to enjoy.  We enjoyed a nice dinner at Culina Muttart and most important time spent together.  We also got the chance to pot some herbs that are outside in our garden. 

 

8. Carson Lake/Pegasus Provincial Park

 

We knew that we had to get in one more trip to the beach and Spencer missed out on the canoeing on our Jasper trip so he searched around to find a beach where you could also rent canoes.  This is what he found -- Carson Lake.  It said that it had a day use area and also camping sites.  So we drove and drove and thought we were lost but we weren't it just took a while to reach the turn off.  Yes, we drove about 2.5 hours up past Whitecourt to be able to enjoy a beach and canoe rental.  The drive was really quite pretty and a good highway to drive on. 

 

 

 Here is our beach stuff.  We were a bit surprised at the size of the day use beach area.  It was no bigger than a postage stamp.  But we still staked out our spot and it made it easier to keep an eye on the kids.  They had fun playing in the sand and with the other kids.  The water was ok to swim in.  We packed snacks and a picnic lunch of some frozen KFC chicken (which wasn't thawed for us to truly enjoy or have much of a lunch with).  The mosquitoes were terrible but the sun was shining and we had a good time.

 

 Here we are enjoying the lake.  Me and the boys are sitting on our air mattress and Megan is knee deep in digging as far down into the sand as she can to reveal the clay underneath. 

 



 

The canoeing side of the park was just a short walk away.  The prices were ridiculously cheap compared with Jasper.  Spencer took Megan and Evan out first and I look like they paddled to the other end of the lake but Spencer said they were still quite far away from it.  They had a good time while Aaron and I hung out on the shore, watching the other boaters come and go. 

 

I went out with Aaron and Megan came along for the ride.  I didn't last long.  I was too paranoid about tipping over.  Canoeing with little experience is not my cup of tea especially with a rented canoe. 

 

We lasted about a hour doing this and then had to start our long drive back home.  We stopped to grab a bite in Whitecourt and then enjoyed our drive back home after a busy but fun and successful day.