Three years already??

Wow, it's been three years since I wrote in this thing...seems like a lifetime ago!

Dale & I are about to embark on our next adventure heading west again with a motorcycle, a daughter, and a couple of friends. The boys have been lectured, quizzed and left with notes and schedules in order to keep busy, the house in 'order' and the dog alive upon our return. The grandparents, neighbours and various well-placed friends have been notified. We'll see how it goes... Regardless, I'm ready for a vacation.

Happy upcoming Canada Day everyone! :)

Another phase done!

One whole month later and we are now done our vacation adventure! We picked up Olivia this morning in PA. She had a fabulous time and is ready for her new gym in Ottawa. By the time we arrive back at Dale's parents' house, we will have concluded this trip with 89 hours in the van!!

Details for our move into our house are going well. We will meet the truck to unload on Wednesday, July 4th. We are all looking forward to being in one spot and unpacking our suitcases, at least for now... It will be interesting to see how long before we get the travel bug again!

We heard from Eric yesterday. He is having a great time at trainimg camp, playing guitar & singing in the praise band, making lots of friends, and preparing his lessons. We are thilled and continue to pray for him as God clearly prepares him for what is ahead. Thank you for joining with us in this!

We have had fun with Alex this last week - our "only child". I think he has liked it too, but it sure has been quiet!

Next week when we have internet connectivity and access to our email address book we will send out our new coordinates. In the meantime we will keep you "posted"!

Chillin'

At last count, we have been travelling in the van for 71 hours. Thankfully they have not all been at once!! We are enjoying some much needed time relaxing at a family cottage near Orangeville, Ontario. The scenery is beautiful and the accommodations extremely comfortable (thanks Aunt Nan & Uncle Clive!!).

We dropped Eric off at his summer ministry training camp in Fergus, ON on Sunday after laundry & repacking & airing out fermenting hockey equipment. If the smell eminating from these hockey bags is any indication of the time the boys had at camp, I'd say it was AWESOME!

We will be leaving here on Wednesday for our last official leg of this adventure! We should arrive in Ottawa at Dale's parents' place sometime that day. We expect to hit the ground running with all that needs to be done to prepare for our move-in the following week and Dale's hockey & business ventures. It's hard to believe we are nearly done being nomads, although I'm not sure how long it will be before we get the next travel bug! There is still lots more to see...

Points North

We made it across the border this afternoon and have stopped for a few minutes at Tim Hortons to celebrate!

The boys had a great time at hockey camp in St. Louis as we left yesterday afternoon for points north.

We will be in Orangeville for a few days at a family cottage, relaxing, doing laundry and taking Eric to summer ministry training camp. We plan to land in Ottawa mid-week next week.

Still looking for at camera/pc cable - should find it after we unpack EVERYTHING! - Susan

St. Louis, New York and points in between

It has been quite a week. While the boys have been in St. Louis at hockey camp, and Olivia in Pennsylvania at gymnastics camp, Dale & I escaped to New York City for a little time on our own. We have packed lots into this window of time and are very thankful for this "second honeymoon" after 20+ years of wedded bliss.

We have learned a lot and gained an appreciation for this city during open air bus tours of Manhattan, Brooklyn and Harlem. We have taken extra time to see Times Square, the World Trade Center site, Madison Square Gardens, Wall Street, Statue of Liberty, a Broadway show and, of course, shopping. I'll upload some pictures when I find my camera/pc cable...

One of the highlights was chatting with a former pastor & boss of mine, Dave Epstein, who now has a church in Manhattan. Dale also ran into a co-worker from TCI in the middle of Time Square! Wild!

The real reason the South lost the war! :)

So much fun! We are still having a great time. It is hard to believe that tomorrow we begin our separate adventures for a little while. The boys will start hockey camp, Olivia begins gymnastics camp and Dale & I have some time together in New York City!! We are currently getting laundry done, repacking and running a few errands to make sure everyone has everything they need for the next phase. I think we are all glad to be out of the van for this next part! There have been complaints about the rose-scented air freshener so I guess it's time for a new one of those too. We have certainly gotten our "mileage" out of that one!

Things in Huntsville have progressed well in our absence. The house is now packed up, loaded on to the truck and will soon be headed northbound. We officially close on the house on Monday. I have mixed emotions about it today. A piece of my heart will always remain in the "Heart of Dixie".

Funny Road Sign!

This struck us as being quite funny...



What else would the restrooms be..."Pay as you go"?