All things are possible, oh yeah!

Here it is, the final blog.

Kinda of a strange feeling to think I won't be sharing with you anymore in this way, but it's so awesome to be home :)

So this last blog won't be a run down of the last week of our stay, or a funny story about the crazy trip home (we left Calgary with just one nappy and had 3 flights to get home!!!), it's going to be a little more on the thoughtful side.

It's hard to explain to people how much you learn when you take a trip like this. I mean, we learnt a tonne about Christian camping, and we came back with heaps of new ideas on things we could try here and exciting things to implement. We also learnt how to navigate through airports with only moments to spare before missing our planes. We discovered and enjoyed learning about Canada's rich history and  beautiful environment. 

But I feel like the big things I learnt were things I discovered about myself.

Like, 1. Just because I am an introvert and normally take a while to warm up to people doesn't mean that I have to live my life that way. In Canada I realised that if I wanted to have friends and people to talk to I was going to have to get over this stupid boundary I had put in my head and just go up and talk to people, open up about my life and let people in. And here is the shocker... it was fine! I made heaps of friends and in no time had plenty of people to talk to. 

2. I really didn't think I could handle being away from home and from my surroundings, I am such a homebody usually and the idea of being away for so long totally freaked me out! But you know what? I loved it, I loved the change of scenery, being away and having the chance to explore an entirely new place. 

3. I totally hate not having a plan, or a list or a project and I was really worried that going over there and not having anything really pinned down would do my head in, but I just relaxed and started going with the flow. Eating tea at 8pm and feeding the kids cookies until we can eat? No problem! Not knowing where we were going to camp that evening? No drama! Not having any jobs to do and anyone to feed my approval addiction? A-Okay! I coped and I think that having that experienced has allowed me to relax and realise that it's ok to not have everything perfect all the time. 

4. Spending 24/7 with my kids. I really didn't know if I would be able to handle this. And after a few weeks, I really did think they might end up being left in Canada while I took an early flight home. But after a little while it suddenly hit me that in Tassie I am always saying, "Gee I wish I was less busy and able to spend more time with my kids!" and what do you know?? God sends me a whole six months to relax and enjoy with them. And by the time we came home, I'd have to say I don't just love my girls now, I truly and deeply like them. I think that I often used to just "look after them", not really hanging out and spending time with them. They are so awesome and now when I am with them, I am so much more tuned into them and we have so much more fun!

5. Alex and I. Wow, there have certainly been new dramas and new pressures while we were away but we came away stronger and more in love then ever. We have new visions and goals for a our marriage, our kids and life at home. We seemed to  have unified and we had the chance to really look at where we want the next 5, 10, 15 years of our life to look like. There is nothing like moving into a tiny place and being in each others face everyday to work stuff out!

It's going to probably sound a little cheesy but what I really learnt, the crux of the whole thing is that I can really overcome any obstacle and the only thing standing in my way truly is me. I know, it sounds like every silly encouragement picture on facebook that you see and simply scroll past. But for me it's true. I know now deep down inside of me that I can overcome big stuff, that I am made of sterner stuff and that if I want to, if God is for me, then it's not only possible, it's a certainty!

There is nothing like finally realising that everything you have ever wanted for you life, is within grasp and completely yours for the taking. God has shown me so much, and I know He will continue to show me and my family so much more as He takes us on the next leg of our journey. 

I don't know why you may have been following this blog, maybe you know us, or maybe you found it by accident. But I truly hope that today, maybe you will look to God and see yourself the way He sees you. Full to the brim with possibilities!!! Take a leap, put the pressure on, achieve what you have been only dreaming about. Because, as the song says and I have come to know deep within me....All things are possible, oh yeah!!!

This is Tamara Grey signing off on the adventure of a lifetime (ready for the next one!)

It's the Final Countdown..ba da daa dummm, bada da da daa

One week to go. Can you believe it? We can't!

So this last week we have been traveling around and catching up with a few relatives who decided to pop over since we were going to be here in Canada. Why not, it's as goo a reason as any hey?

First up was Oma (or Lynne, Alex's Mum). We picked her up late one night from the airport. The girls were so excited they decided to stay up and see Oma (even though it was like 11pm), but funnily enough only Miss E was able to stay awake to greet her. :)

We then took off for Crow to show her around and introduce her to everyone. Then Alex, Lynne, Joshua (Wilson) and a couple of mates went to Waterton National Park for the weekend to go to a few workshops on photographing animals in the wild. They did managed to get some great shots of some bears, so that was pretty exciting! The girls and I just chilled and caught up with some friends while they were away.

Then we took off to show Oma around Banff, we went up the Gondola again, which was fun even the second time around. She was pretty impressed. It's been snowing a little and we got to see some really amazing places while watching the snow drift around us.

This is a drop box toilet and although the smell is non existent when it's this cold, it's certainly not pleasant on your bottom!

Bear riding is a seriously extreme sport here in Canada!

Alex thought I was a little in appropriate getting naked in a cafe. Hee hee

The girls were also pretty impressed with our new abode. A really amazing couple over here offered us their trailer for our holidays so we have been really enjoying being able to drive and go as we please! The girls love being able to draw and colour while we travel :) As well as eat in the trailer and watch TV in bed. )Even though they are supposed to be asleep!)

We have had such a great time in this trailer but there have been a few Rv (the movie with Robin Williams) flashbacks while in it.

Hannah making sure we are headed in the right direction

 

These little monsters were supposed to be sleeping bu kept moving the curtain back to watch the movie with us. Open Season, very Canadian!

Then it was on to Jasper to meet up with some more family. My Mum (Barb) and my brother (Peter).
 it was awesome to see them again and they even brought a surprise with them from Australia.....Peter's wife Dana!!!! Must have been a squishy ride in the suitcase.


 

After spending the day in Jasper looking around and seeing some pretty amazing scenery (all the leaves are changing colour and the world is just awash with yellows, golden browns, reds and burnt orange!) we headed to Edmonton for Hannah's 5th birthday.

We found this amazing pizza place in Jasper, called Famosa, yum!

We thought Famosa was even cooler after seeing this...Only geeks will get it so if you don't, too bad.

For Hannah's birthday we went to the Edmonton Mall , it's a super amazing mall, that has an ice skating rink and a waterpark inside. Whoah!

Hannah with her new butterfly necklace from Oma and Ondie

The Mall also has a Seal Park.

The Water Park that we spend the afternoon at.

We had such a great day shopping, going to the waterpark and eating also the yummy things we could fit in. We left the guilt at the door as we figured that we were walking enough to work most of the calories off.
Hannah had a pretty spectacular day, she brought a Rapunzel doll at the Disney store (that was so cool, I could have gone crazy there!) and some new clothes. Sadly, we didn't get to do any ice skating as there was classes on. But it was still a pretty epic day.

So, it was time to head our separate ways, as Lynne had to get back on the plane to jet set off to her next holiday and Mum, Peter and Dana were heading to Banff. But not before Peter and Dana went to a Hanson concert in Calgary. No, I didn't type the name wrong, it was definitely the Mmmm Bop all boy band sensation of the 90's, Hanson. All grown up but still rocking it apparently. :) Here is photo evidence

Dana (die hard Hanson fan) and Taylor Hanson. Still pretty spunky even without the long hair I might add.

After saying good bye to everyone we are now back at Crow, getting ready to sort through all the stuff we have accumulated since being here and deciding what we are going to take back and what stays. Ugh, this could take the rest of our time here although I hope not. The staff here have organised a farewell for us on the Saturday before we leave, which we are really looking forward to.

But in all honesty....we are just really keen to get home now. We can't wait to fall asleep to the sound of the ocean, get back into routine, go see our our friends and family and church and really get moving on what God has shown us and taught us while here.

SOOOOO looking forward to seeing you all soon! In fact....in 9 days!!!

Love to you all.

Beautiful Banff

Last week we had a great little vacation at Banff, accommodation courtesy of a pretty amazing couple, Ed and Sandra Bryant. (Thanks so much guys, we had a great time!)

Banff is utterly gorgeous, the most amazing scenery and mountains! We were very impressed by the town, the shopping and just the general set up.

On our first full day here the weather decided to put a dampener on our excitement and it rained and rained. Bummer, No worries, Banff has tonnes of indoor activities, Museums, Swimming Pools, Waterslides and 5 Pin bowling! The girls totally loved the bowling and we had a lot of fun too! The girls and Alex also decided to go to a crazy waterslide in the evening.

The day after the weather was even less appealing, rain rain and more rain. The girls didn’t mind though, because thankfully there was a television in our room and the girls haven’t watched TV in 5 months. So as far as they were concerned this holiday rocked! They literally watched TV all done except when they were eating. Alex took a well deserved nap in the afternoon and then decided he was bored out of is brains and went to go look around.

That evening we decided to buy a movie from pay per view. But the TV told us we had to talk to front desk before we could buy it. After calling about 5 times and getting no answer I decided t let Laura use the phone. She wanted to pretend to talk to the front desk too. I said no worries as long as she let me know if a real person talked back. Alex and I were discussing who was going to make the walk in the rain when we hear Laura interrupt with “MUMMY, MUMMY, MUMMY, IT’S A REAL PERSON!” Oops how embarrassing. Especially when the guy proceeded to ask if I ACTUALLY needed anything or was just letting my child play with the motel telephone. Whoops. I made myself feel a little better thinking I’m sure other mothers have made the same mistake!

The next day the weather looked a little more kind so we headed off to Minnawaku Lake and took the girls on a short walk up to get a great view of the lake and surrounding mountains. We took a few family photos and we must have looked crazy cute as we even had some tourists stop to take our photo! Which we found pretty funny.

No wonder everyone stopped for a photo, we are pretty cute!

We then decided lunch was in order and managed to find….(cue the music)…a Bakery!!!!!!!!!!!!! For all you back home you probably have no idea why this was cause our stomachs to rumble in anticipation and our heads to almost spin off with excitement. To all the Australians out there I have some very shocking news for you. Canada does not have bakeries!!!!!!!!

I know I know. First there was no lamb and now this!!? We have occasionally come across a place that makes a few loaves of bread and but that’s about it. No meat pies with sauce, no flaky sausage rolls, no lamingtons or delicious pastries.

What Canada does have is wings and pizza! And they are GOOD!

The bakery was awesome, a thing of magic. J There was much groaning in pleasure, as well as a ridiculous amount of finger licking to show our appreciation of this fine culinary feast!

That afternoon we drove around checking out more beautiful things, hoping for a glimpse of a bear or moose. We took the girls on another walk to see a very nice waterfall and a little cave, they really enjoyed this.

The next day we took the girls to a museum which had a phenomenal display of taxidermy with every Canadian animal imaginable. It was an excellent exhibit. The girls really enjoyed seeing all the animals up close and personal and having the chance to touch different types of fur and animal horns in the interactive room.

Photography by Hannah

That afternoon the girls requested going to the waterslide again, which Alex thought was a great idea, so they trooped off while Miss E and I indulged in a nap.

That evening, the weather was so good and the sky was so clear that we decided to go on the Gondolas and see if Alex could get an epic picture of the sunset up there. The girls were super keen and couldn’t wait to go for a ride. They called it an elevator seeing as Gondola made no sense to them.

Miss E was not so sure of this idea and screamed each time we got on the Gondola for a minute or so until she decided to either close her eyes and hide her face in my jacket or look at us in abject horror for making her do it.

MUM!!! What are doing to me????? Don't you love me????

Laura always the happy one.

The view from the top was fantastic! Alex took some great shots and the girls enjoyed reading all the information signs. Miss E had the time of her life climbing all of the stairs and the other tourist seemed to think she was hilarious. Yet again we had some more tourists take photos of us. We began to think that perhaps we were being mistaken for someone exceptional gorgeous and famous? You never know. LOL

Do you like my new Moose jumper!? I'm loving it, I feel so Canadian!

Love to you all!

Just had to share this incredible cereal I found at the Banff Supermarket. Didn't buy any though. Love the catch phrase..."Just add love". Hee hee

Holidays and the Good, the Bad and the Completely Bizarre about Canada

Hey everyone!

I'll bet you have been wondering what we have been up to since the end of summer eh (see how Canadian I am with my Eh's?)

Well we have been lazing about, going to the pool, the water park, buying things to take home, playing, going out to supper with all our friends and just basically relaxing. Family Camp was a  lot of fun and it was really awesome meeting so many of the supporting families and to meet many of the parents of the counselors we got to know over the summer.

I think we slept like 14 hours straight after the camps finally finished :) Even the girls slept longer then usual. (!) And although they loved going to child care and having so many people to play with, I think they were pretty happy to get their Mum and Dad back. Nice to know they do love us.

For his birthday, Alex spent the day golfing (what a copy cat!) with Ginny and Rea. His day was made complete when he managed to knock 7 off his stroke (18 holes) due to his new birthday golf shoes. It's the little things that make a birthday great hey?

Alex has a big week planned, Joshua is down for the week and they have organised to climb some mountains, go caving and take a ridiculous amount of photos.

The girls have already begun to ask when we are heading home and I have also begun to feel the excitement to return growing in me. Until then though we are content to tour around and enjoy our last few remaining weeks in this fabulous country.

I have been planning on doing a blog on this topic for a while. But it’s taken a while to compile the list, so here you go…The Good, The Bad and the Completely Bizzaire things about being in Canada.

The Good

The people - Seriously the people here are completely salt of the earth. They are willing and happy to do anything to help, and I’m not just talking about the people here at Crow, I mean ALL Canadians!

Percy’s Pancakes – To DIE FOR! Wow, we must have eaten pancakes at least once if not twice a week since being in Canada and I can tell you without a doubt that only Percy's pancakes are worth the extra workout!

The Rum Runner - We are seriously going to miss that place. We have eaten there probably 10 times and we have NEVER had a bad meal. I don't care how many hours you have to drive, if you are on this continent you have visit this place. And have a Crow burger for me. Or two, whatever. :)

Sev (Seven/Elevens) - No day out would be complete without a stop at the Sev (more Canadian lingo for you, this blog is so educational!) to get a Slushie and wings. The kids and I are totally addicted. Miss E totally jumps out of her seat when we pull up. (Don't tell my child heath nurse please, I must maintain my perfect Mother record)

Restaurants are kid friendly - Restaurants are so great over here for families, when you rock up they set your kids up with crayons and toys and paper and when they bring their drinks they are always in cups with lids and straws. GENIUS!

The Bad

Speeding - Canadians are very liberal with "speed limits". It doesn't matter if I'm going the speed limit of 5 over. I will still get overtaken at every opportunity and even just in the pull over lane if there isn't an overtaking lane coming up fast enough. I'm not really sure why this is when Canadians pride generally themselves on their politeness.

Milk Cartons - Yeah I can see your face, what do mean Milk Cartons, why in the world could they be bad? Well let me tell you (and every Milk Carton Manufacturer over here) their design is utter stupid! The nozzel is almost in the centre of the carton and no matter how hard you try you will either:

-Spill it all over the table

-Or it will dribble down the side, and then all over your pants.

Pedestrians - Canadians have a courtesy rule here that you ALWAYS give way to pedestrians. It doesn't matter where on the road you are, they will just step out in front of you and you are expected to stop. When I mentioned that in Australia this is called J-Walking they said "Oh, it is here too, but we do it anyway". Okaaaay.

Four way intersections- The general rule over here isn't give way to your right, it's whoever was at the intersection first goes first. SOOOOO CONFUSING when three cars turn up at the same time. Oh and then to throw a spanner into the works, have some pedestrians rock up and just cross without looking. Seriously!

The Completely Bizarre

Canadians put Ranch dressing on practically everything - It doesn't matter what the meal is, Ranch dressing is a must.

Cheese on Apple Pie - I'm not joking. They really do that! Cheese on their Apple Pie or Crumble. Have I dared try it you ask. No. It makes no sense!

Owl pellets - okay so this one came up in conversation one day. Some people (I won't say all Canadians, maybe I was just sitting with a really strange bunch that day) like to buy Owl pellets (Owl Poo just so we are clear) and dissect it because when owls eat they only digest the meat and then everything else, say the bones, skin etc is made into a compact little pellet that the owl poops out and I assume someone must run around collecting to sell.

Summers camps...happened so fast.

As I write this we are almost at the end of the summer. There are only two more days of the last kids camp to go. After that the COLTS are having two days to wrap up their summer experience and prepare themselves to enter the real world once more. Then it’s family camp weekend and it’s all done! It’s honestly hard to say where the summer went, it has come and gone so fast.

I can hardly begin to tell you how much we have enjoyed our Summer Staff experience here. We have learnt so much and are full to the brim with new ideas to bring home. It’s getting to the point of trip where thoughts of going home and what we are planning to do when we get there are beginning to run through our minds.

When you go on a trip like this, many people tell you that it will change you, that you will think and see things differently but I don’t think I realised how much my thinking would change and how renewed I would feel. Just being in another culture and seeing them working to build the Kingdom of God in many similar and also many different ways opens your mind to an array of new possibilities and opportunities.

I think this trip has also given Alex and I the chance to spend time really thinking about what the future holds for us. We have been able to stop and be still and really listen to where we can see God taking the next decade of our lives together. We are looking forward to refocusing when we return and jumping into the next stage of our lives!

So, I have finally finished the mural for the 2013 PIT Crew. I thought I’d show you all back home…

This is Tower Mountain which is right next to the campsite here.

We were pretty blessed this week to have Kory (who guy who loved the shrimp) come back to camp and share some Canadian specialties with us. We tried Elk Steak (I think he personally shot the Elk for that one), Deer Steak and Elk Pepperoni. I particular loved the Elk Steak it was awesome.

My Elk Steak

Alex enjoying his Deer Steak Sandwich

 As a thank you, I made Kory some more prawns and also made some more Pavlovas for everyone to share and enjoy.

We were so excited this week to also receive a package from home (thanks Turners!). A few of my special friends here were very impressed with the Cadbury chocolate J I did come over a little homesick that night but thankfully there was still enough chocolate the next day to life my spirits. :)

So, after we finish up the camps here, we are off for our five week holiday around Canada. Lynne (Alex’s Mum) and my Mum and brother Peter will be here before we know it to tour around with us.

Love to you all. Missing you heaps!

P.S We have had some pretty epic thunder and lightening storms here recently. Here are some of Alex's great shots...

A visit from Down Under (AKA the longest blog with the most photos EVER)

Hey everyone,

What an awesome couple of weeks we have had!!!

Last week was Intermediate 2 at Lakeside where I was helping Brenda in the role of Head Counsellor. It was another awesome camp, the girls and I really enjoyed going to campfire and seeing the concert at the end of the camp.

Alex has been off in the mountains doing the All Boys Out Trip. This was a 10 day camp, completely out in the wild. Alex says is was absolutely awesome. They managed to peak 6 mountains from memory. This particular boy’s camp is only for teenage boys, so they are able to have some really deep conversations with the guys.

We have been really enjoying being a part of the camps and the girls are just loving the child care here. Half the time they don’t want to hang out with Alex and I when we are free, they just want to chill in the Teepee (which is the childcare room.) They have different carers every camps but the girls have loved all of them and have also enjoyed meeting lots of new kids. Even Miss E has been warming up to new people!

I have to admit that although we have loved doing the camps, we were particularly excited about having this week off, especially as we had some very special visitors from Tassie! Russel and Marilyn came to stay for a few days and we had such an awesome time showing them around.

-Sorry had to put in a side story here. There is a guy here at Crow named Cory who has been here the whole summer, he has been just loving learning all about our Aussie slang, food and he has also been trying hard to take off out accent. I mentioned to him that we had some friends coming from down under and that if he wanted to, he should try out his practiced Australian accent and see if they believed him. Apparently they picked his fake accent a mile away J Turns out just because you say cobber and G’day doesn’t mean you sound Australian, LOL.

Good try anyway Cory J

That's Cory on the left. He and Shandryn were super keen to try "Shrimp on the Barbie". So I cooked some up, they were pretty impressed. :)

The first night we stopped in at Rea and Sandy’s home and picked up Chinese from their favourite place. It was so nice to hear the Aussie accent again and to not have to be constantly thinking about using “Canadian” so we could be understood. We mapped out the next couple of days of their stay while there and then after Sandy’s “homemade” desert (hee hee, it looked homemade but apparently was store brought!) we took the Steers over to see the evening campfire. Which was pretty amazing, there was even a performance of “What makes you beautiful” from one of the boys cabinsJ Not exactly sure why….but it was fun none the less.

The next day we left early to head to Waterton National Park. The Steers were “lucky” enough to get a van with 8 seats for their rental (read all about their story on their blog) so we decided to all go together. The girls were super impressed as the van was decked out with 2 DVD players and screens J 

I have no idea what this look was about but it looks so funny!

Quietest trip ever. We even got the chance to stop in and show them a Walmart to visit the restrooms.

The chipmunks were out and about when we stopped off at the waterfall in Waterton. They would run up under our feet and jump about hoping for food. Some other children were feeding them candy (!) which meant they were happy to stick around and perform for everyone. Sadly none of them sang though. I was so waiting for them rock out in their little high pitched voices.

Due to the flooding, one side of the National Park was out of commission so we decided to visit the Red Rock side of the park. Which was great as we hadn’t been to that side yet.

You can see why it's called Red Rock hey?

On the way back out we even managed to see a Mama bear and her baby. They were eating the Saskatoon berries and weren’t even slightly interested in the audience that had pulled up to take a photo.

That evening we dropped the kids off at Crow and went out to supper in Fernie with Rea and Sandy. Now, do you remember the Blessing Game of Rea’s? Well, so far we were behind! Rea and Sandy had managed to pay for the Chinese, Marilyn and Russell got lunch, so Alex and I were keen to win the Supper round. We knew this was going to be difficult, as Rea had made the booking and had probably already made sure with the waitress that no-one else was allowed to pay but him. But that was ok, because I had been thinking about this all day and I had (pause for effect) a PLAN.

After a fabulous dinner, Rea was lounging about in his chair all relaxed, obviously not at all worried about the bill. So I grabbed my wallet and went to talk to the waitress (who turned out to be half Australian!). I asked to pay the bill and she told me in no uncertain terms that Rea had already spoken to her and that she was not allowed to let me pay. (told ya, so predictable, we so know Reas tricks by now.) Time to implement THE PLAN. But I had to be quick as Rea was already on his way over to gloat.

I quickly tried appealing to her explaining that he never lets us pay and that it was our turn etc.

She shook her head at me smiling. Rea had an even bigger smile and began to turn away knowing that he had won.

Ok, time for the last part of THE PLAN.

Me: “If you let me pay, I’ll double your usual tip!”

You could hear Rea in the background “WHAT!”

The waitress “Done!” J

And that ladies and gentlemen is how we do it.

Rea was not impressed. LOL But everyone else was laughing their heads off. Poor Rea sucked most of the way home.

The next day I took Marilyn shopping in Fernie and the Boys went golfing.  Rea found 30 golf balls J That evening we stopped in at Alex and my favourite place to eat, The Rum Runner. SO GOOD!

On Friday we decided to head to Calgary with Marilyn and Russel as they had to leave the next morning. We stopped in at Fort McLeod so that Russel could say that he had seen a Canadian Mounty. It was pretty cool and the girls loved seeing the horses.

So before we knew it, it was time for the Steers to jet set to New York. It was so awesome having them here and having the chance to chat with them about our ideas and things we had seen and would like to try back home. J

Before the homesickness decided to hit due to the Steers departure, we called up Joshua Wilson to see if he would like to come out and hang with us today. Turns out it was his birthday the day before and all he did was go to work! BORING!

So we took him to Mini Golf and then went back to Ed and Sandra’s (they weren’t there, just letting us use their awesome home) for a BBQ supper and DQ icecream cake.  We had a lot of fun. The girls have been wanting to go Mini Golfing for a while now and the centre was a new one. Miss E had a yellow golf ball and just threw is everywhere. J

The next day we decided to head to the best park in Calgary (that’s what google told us anyway). It was pretty sweet. A toddler park, a school aged park and a splash park all in one.  It had started off as a pretty hot day so we let the cool down in the water.

Laura! You are totally in my way!

And now here we are! Back at Crow, gearing up for the last two camps. I can hardly believe that the summer is almost over L.

This week we have Senior 1. Alex will be in charge of an out trip and I will be helping with Head Counselling again as well as doing some painting. The PIT crew have asked me paint their mural in the PIT cave. I am really looking forward to it.

Sorry it’s been such a long one! I’ll try and keep up better this week J

Love to you all!

P.S I know! SO many photos but here are a few more I just had to share...

Aussie Shampoo and Conditioner! Oh wait...except it's own and made in the USA!!! What? Is that even allowed????

$2 for a pound! How crazy cheap is that?

Pavs are getting pretty popular over here....