A Day of Fun and Relaxation

Day Off in Edmonton, Alberta - NO kms. Yay!!!

Greg and Charlotte (to the left of Greg)
heading out to battle the waves!

Today we took the kids to the West Edmonton Mall's Water Park for the day.  They played in the wave pool, slid down all kinds of water slides, from the corkscrew kind to the super-ultra-fast ones, and fooled around in the splash pad.  Needless to say, they are wiped!

Before we went to the water park, though, Charlotte and I took a special trip to the Build-A-Bear Store. If you know Charlotte, you will know that she has a certain stuffy friend named Rosie who is always by her side.  Rosie has been Charlotte's sleeping companion, best friend, and object of comfort since she was two years old, when we 'made' her together at the Build-A-Bear store at the West Edmonton Mall during a trip to Edmonton.  I distinctly remember little Charlotte sitting in her stroller while we looked through the store together, and once I let her out, she immediately went to the shell of what became Rosie, and picked her out.  We breathed life into the heart and made a wish on it, and after a few moments with the stuffing machine, the bear was all soft and stuffy.  Afterward, we were making the birth certificate and when I asked my baby girl what her new bear's name was, she didn't hesitate in saying "Rosie".  And ever since then, Rosie has been Char's almost constant companion.

Charlotte, Sparkle and Rosie

Well, today Rosie went back to her place of birth.  She and Charlotte chose a new friend for Rosie, and together they warmed another heart and made a wish, and a few minutes later, Sparkle was born.  The lovely lady at the store who was helping us create Sparkle, noticed that Rosie was looking a little floppy, and volunteered to add some stuffing to her.  Charlotte was very reluctant, but when this lady told her that fresh stuffing will make her last forever, Char's eyes lit up, because she has been noticing that Rosie is rather worse for wear lately.  It takes a lot of hard work being a constant companion and cuddle buddy!  Anyway, Rosie got some additional stuffing today and it has breathed new life into her.  To celebrate, we bought Rosie a pink fluffy skirt and Sparkle got a sparkly skirt.  Sparkle was placed in her Build-A-Bear box home, and this lovely lady asked if Rosie wanted to ride along too, to become acquainted with Sparkle.  Charlotte giggled at the thought, and the two bears were placed in the box.  So, now when you see Charlotte there will be TWO pals hanging out with her: two well-loved and beautiful bears who bring my daughter joy.  Thanks for being such a great pal, Rosie, and welcome to the family Sparkle!

After our day at the water park, we had dinner at the mall at Jungle Jim's and then toured around downtown Edmonton.  We saw downtown, the University of Alberta, the Legislative Buildings,

...because you never know when you
will want to go lawn bowling at 3am

Commonwealth Stadium (home of Greg's beloved CFL team, the Edmonton Eskimos) and lots of other lovely buildings and neighbourhoods. While we were driving through the area designated for government, there was a lawn bowling green, and we pulled into the parking lot beside it to take a few photos of the parks surrounding it.  As I was waiting in the van, I saw this sign and I couldn't help but laugh! (see pic at right).  Anyway, it was such a beautiful night and the sun was setting.....it was wonderful.  Today sure was a nice break from being in the van all day driving, but alas, all good things must come to an end
and we are hitting the road again tomorrow.

Tomorrow Greg is getting the heaviest ply tires available for our van and having the oil switched to synthetic, which is supposed to be slower to freeze, in preparation for our trip up the Dempster Highway en route to Inuvik in the Northwest Territories.  After that, it's back on the highway and off we go again!


Greg and I were talking at the water park today and we realized that we had both sort of considered the first part of our holiday a vacation.  Most of the roads we have traveled Greg has been on before, even if it was a long time ago.  From here on in, however, we are in new 'territory' (excuse the pun), and it makes our move all the more real, yet again.  After listening to other people talk to us about our soon-to-be trip up the Dempster, we admitted that we are both quite terrified.  What if it's raining and the roads are mushy?  What if a transport knocks a huge rock in our windshield?  What if we get a flat tire?  What if, what if??  I hate playing this game, and I try not to - but after listening to so many conflicting reports about this drive and what to do and how to accomplish it, we are just anxious for it to be done sooner rather than later.  We are dreading it, and knowing it is four days away now is making us quite apprehensive.  So....thank you to Elaine for your St. Christopher Medal.  We are hoping and praying that the patron saint of travellers will be on the lookout for us on that day in particular!  For all of you who pray, keep us in your prayers.  Greg and I are trying to put on a brave face and lead our children happily into our new life in the north, but right now we are nothing short of terrified.  We thank God for each other and for all of you, and we can really use a boost of confidence and energy to get us through the next phase of our journey North.

I would like to finish tonight by saying a humble and grateful 'thank you' to all of you who have been reading along and commenting to me about how much you are enjoying hearing about our adventures.  It means a lot to all of us to know that you are following us on our adventures and that your thoughts and prayers are with us. We love you!