Canada Trip Part 2

This post is going to be a little heavy on the pictures. If that doesn't bother you, then plunge ahead.

So, we spent a month this summer visiting family in Manitoba. For those of you that aren't Canadian, or have no knowledge of Canadian geography, Manitoba is the province in the centre of Canada.

In the summer, it looks like this:

Yeah, it's flat. Really, really flat.

Theo got to practice his karate kid moves

and watch his grandpa shoot at targets with his bow. Here he is pretending to shoot an arrow

If you are wondering what that target is, it is a small rubber black bear.

We spent a few weekends at the vacation cottage that Dustin's parents own by Riding Mountain National Park. There is nothing better than eating outside and roasting your meal over an open fire.

Theo could not get enough of this dog. It is no surprise that he is now asking when we can get our own dog.

One of my favourite aspects of the nature in Manitoba are the bogs and marshes. We did not get to go on a canoe trip through the marsh, but at least we were able to go on a short hike using these great bog bridges. 

Dustin's parents, sister and brother-in-law took the boys to an amusement park geared toward young children. They had an absolute blast.

We also took the children here last summer right before we moved to Japan. Here is a picture of William in the creepy clown car from this August

and one from last August when he was 5 months old

Auntie Karlee and William on the carousel

The trip wasn't all about the kids though. Dustin and I were occasionally able to ditch them with the grandparents and get away for some much needed date time. Here we are enjoying some delicious sushi and martinis for our 7th wedding anniversary.

We found a LARP group (live action role play for those of you who have not attained our level of nerdiness) that was doing a demonstration in the park. Theo enjoyed hacking at this man with a foam sword.

Even William tried to join in on the fun with his weapon of choice, the war hammer.

Theo and his cousin had fun doing everything but eating their food

William got to know his great grandma and grandpa

Why was there a giant Adirondack chair in the park? Who knows, but it was a good place to take a photo

Thank you to everyone in Manitoba that made our vacation enjoyable, comfortable, and memorable. You are welcome at our place in Fukuyama any time!

Friendly Manitoba

I love Manitoba, I do. Sometimes it just feels as though I am convincing myself of this. Most of the time, my attitude towards living here is well described by the Weakerthans' song "One Great City".

The other day, I was listening to Winnipeg artist and general good-guy Del Barber's song "Home to Manitoba". I found myself actually waxing nostalgic while listening and was shocked to think that I might possibly miss this place when we are gone. I have never been homesick in all of the dozens of times we have moved, since I have never felt that I actually had a definite place that I could call home. I have lived in Manitoba longer than any other place, got married and had my children here, so maybe, just maybe, this time I will feel a twinge?

Manitoba, at least it's not Saskatchewan

Only about an hour after thinking all of these loyal thoughts about Manitoba, I stepped outside to bring the kids to the park. I was struck by a biting, cold, unpleasant wind that cut through my clothes, whipped my hair into my eyes, and blew a cloud of dirt in the kids' faces. The only place I know of that might just have colder and more intense winds than Manitoba is on Jupiter, but I am sure that we come in a close second. Every loving thought from earlier was blown away with this wind.

Oh, to live in a land that has mountains and trees!

Springtime in Manitoba

2011 Manitoba - Flooding in the town of Morris.

The weather has been slowly getting nicer as the days go past. Spring in Manitoba is season that for the most part must be endured, not enjoyed. The only thing that makes it seem pleasant is that it follows winter, which beats spring as the worst season hands down.  In April, the snow starts melting and causes a month or so of flooding and mud. Every year there are hundreds of people with homes and farms full of water. There are drawbacks to building your house on the bottom of a glacial lake on a flood plain. What bothers me the most about spring in Manitoba is the mud. If you have never had the pleasure of experiencing it, it is like walking in a half baked brownie: black, sticky, heavy, and turns rock hard when dry. For those Manitobans who are starting to get indignant right about now, I must admit there is a brief 2 week window in June where spring, as it should be, actually shows up. The lilacs and crab apple trees bloom and it is brief and beautiful. So maybe spring here isn't all bad.

Theo enjoying the gale force wind of prairie playground.

I have been acutely aware of the unpleasant qualities of our soil since at the moment we are living in a new development. The street has not been paved, no one has put in grass yet, and until a few days ago everything seemed coated in sticky clay. Since the weather remained above freezing and it was relatively dry last week we are finally able to venture out the door. We have been enjoying the neighbourhood park at the end of our street. Theo (and I suppose William to some extent) love going to this park which is virtually in a cow field. As you can see from the pictures, it is a play structure erected in the middle of nowhere. I love the fact you can hear the mooing of cattle and smell the earthy, grassy smell of the pasture surrounding it.

William enjoying his first spring.