interior road trip highlights

what a great trip! though lots of time in the car (mostly while Sasha napped) we certainly got to walk a lot too...as you can see in this awe-some pic Sasha is lookin' pretty confident on her feet these days (at some point i'll remember to get a pic of her actually on her own two feet...which she is...far more often now...)

the day we left vancouver was the first day of rain in weeks...great time to start a vacation ;)

we played hide and seek with rain clouds throughout our long drive...one valley sunny...next rainy...next a mix of both...kept us guessin - will we be dry tonight? will we see the stars?

our first destination was Clinton to see our friend Shon...however we had spontaneously decided to drive through Whistler to drop off a couple of things to Monica...hoping to catch a few hugs if anyone was home (we did get to squeeze Dean!)...and the highway construction ended up slowing us down big time (over 3 hours to get to whistler!!!! usually only 1 1/2 max for those who don't know) we averaged 50 km/h the whole way...much smoother sailin after pemberton...

so our first night we camped at Marble Canyon, just before Cache Creek. Mark and I had actually camped here many years back (with Bailey dog) so nice to be in a familiar place at the last minute...and we got to see some stars through the cloudy night...and were dry :)

here is Mark setting up camp with Sasha's help.

we made it to Clinton for an afternoon visit with Shon...got to check out his new digs and see and learn all about his continued efforts to live sustainably. it was great to have lunch with him and catch up...and next time we will be sure to spend at least a night! (a few hours does little to make up for almost two years without seeing a good friend!)

here we are in the greenhouse...just one of the garden plots that help sustain Shon and his friends.
and sasha in her new hemp hat - too cute

the next stop on our journey was to Chase...a visit to my friend Tristan and the organic farm he has taken over from his dad...Golden Ears Farm...and given it was the rainiest day and night of our trip - we were so very grateful to stay in their home!

it was such a positive environment...and Tristan, Adam (thanks for feeding us and giving up your bed for us Adam!), Ollie, Monique and Carl were great company...and great musicians...soooooo nice to relax to good live tunes and great conversation!

Sasha seems to have an inherent rhythm and impressed the guys with her natural beats :)



i wish I had gotten a better pic of us Tristan! darn camera and it's fussy abilities indoors!


because of the rain we didn't really explore as much of the farm as we would have liked (next time!!) we did get to introduce Sasha to a couple of sheep, a few llamas and a bunch of chickens...and she giggled like crazy at the chickens...as they clucked at her waiting for food i expect...

the next day we were on the road again...

a leisurely drive around Shuswap Lake...a meander through Salmon Arm...through Revelestoke...a ferry across a lake (with scenery that reminded me of the Georgia Straight a bit)...



and then we decided to camp out at Blanket Creek...Sasha played for a surprisingly long time with rocks and dirt while we set up camp...wisely having set up the tarps first...and while we worked it began to rain...and then it poured!





and then...the skies lightened...just before getting dark...and we were dry and warm by the fire after being chilled to the bone...and we got to see stars! :)

friday morning we packed up and moved on...stopping for a picnic lunch and toe dip in a cool lake...

and later in the day a visit to the Little Slocan Ranch...a straw bale lodge and gorgeous getaway (my camera can't do it justice...and inside we were so caught up in the stories that Heather told us about the place that I didn't even think of taking pics...not even when Sasha laughed wildly while playing chase with Mark!)...we decided we'll be staying here next time a round for sure!!







these balancing rocks between the lodge and a beautiful waterfall were the same height as Sasha...but we thought better of having her pose beside them ;)


our final destination for the day was Syringa...just outside of Castlegar...to camp with one of my best buds Yanive and Shannon and Ayden...and Shannon's mom Bonnie...and the dogs! and the mountain goats we saw every time we came and left the park...sweet!

as you can see in these pics that follow...one common theme to pics of Sasha for this week is that she is either dirty or wet...or both...but loving it all...except for the really cold lake water...not too fond of that ;)
















the camp side acoustic performance by Yanive and Shannon was only a warm up for Sunday...the motivation on our timing of this trip was to be a part of a Rock for the Cure benefit concert that Yanive organized with his friend Corey. Yanive is the frontman for Day by Day...Shannon plays guitar in the band too...Corey is the drummer...and the band has an alter ego...a cover band called the Magically Hip - teehee

Rock for the Cure was a day full of a great variety of local musical talent and plenty of family fun! when we arrived we found the mayor of Castlegar being dunked in the water tank...i too had my turn to cool off...very nice on a hot & sunny day...the perfect kinda day for an outdoor concert :)

and congratulations to our friends for organizing a successful community event...and raising a couple of thousand dollars for their local cancer society...you guys rock...in many more ways than one...you rock stars you...smooch



Sasha made another new friend...and barely sat still preferring to stroll around the park all day...





and we got a really good scare when she was hunted down by wasps!! i was taking this pic just 'cuz it was cute to watch her play with the remnants of our smoothie...until she was surrounded by 4 wasps (didn't realize until i downloaded it that the wasp was on her face in this pic!)...who followed us all the way back to the blanket...and Mark had to keep shooing them away while I cleaned her off! crazy crazy wasps! fortunately she wasn't stung...

until the next morning! while packing up camp she was stung on her arm. aside from a screech with the initial sting she didn't seem bothered by it...though i certainly kept a close eye on it!


after three dry nights and a couple of starry nights at Syringa (some clouds had us doubting) we hit the road on the way home...had lunch in Grand Forks...we did plan on spending one last night under the stars at Manning Park...however it was insanely grey...and totally downpouring...not at all tempting...so we had dinner in Hope and arrived home by the end of the day...

now its time to come to terms with being on strike...tomorrow is the first day on the picket lines for me...Mark may be soon to follow...and who knows how long this will go on for...

i'm feelin really good though...full of positive energy from a great trip full of good times with Mark and Sasha...and good friends :)

we were sad that Che couldn't be with us on this journey...thought about him alot on the road...but we would love to do this trip again...and have many great ideas on how it can be even better next time...with him!

on my other blog i've got plenty to write about after this journey too...more thoughts on sustainability...community...complexity of organic labeling...plastic...wonderful to have great experiences to reflect on and help me grow as an agent for positive change!

soooooooooooo full of gratitude right now...

our first summer journey begins

this beautiful girl was just one of the new friends Sasha made at the folk fest...now on her feet she kept us pretty busy through the weekend ;)


(below are a few pics from the weekend: Sasha sacked out in the shade of stage 2 while we enjoyed a most excellent collaborative jam session...my favorite part of the folk fest is the jams that really work!; Gilly, Rob and Merlin enjoying the Carolina Chocolate Drops)

before we hit the road i just wanted to share the stories of two of the other friends Sasha made:


first was Sophia...a blue-eyed curly blond girl about 2 weeks older than Sasha. I knew Sophia's father from the britannia neighbourhood, and the two girls had a ton of fun filling his hand with dirt and grass (Sasha) and emptying his hand (Sophia)...until they got bored of listening to us adults talk...then Sophia stood up, leaned over and grabbed Sasha's hand...pulled her to her feet...and they both turned and walked a few steps holding hands...awwwwww...totally one of the cutest things ever! then they simultaneously landed on their bottoms...and decided to crawl and explore together instead.


later in the day, while it was my turn to walk and dance with Sasha, she became captivated by a boy and girl chasing each other around close by. so she got up on her feet and walked over towards them. every time the little boy (about 3 ish in age) came near her she started giggling like crazy. and she kept trying to grab him when he passed her with a huge grin on her face! is it possible for a 14 month old to be a flirt...certainly seemed so!

uh oh...

aside from making new friends and bumping into many good friends (some we get to see more often than others so it's always nice to catch up!), Sasha also danced to lots of good music, napped in a sweet shady spot to more good music, stumbled about on her own 2 feet or dragged us about with determination, played in the bubble pools (and screamed so loud when it was over and they dumped the water out...Mark heard her from stage 2!), played with Merlin, Keyan and other adorable tykes, played a drum, strolled along the beach...lots of fun...not so relaxing...and absolutely fabu! :)


still not sure if we'll be out on strike when we return...for any of you interested in keeping track of the situation:
cupe15.org...my union local
cupe391.ca...marks' local
cupe.bc.ca

of interest to me is the fact that the city of vancouver has hired a pr firm with experience at spinning things like the avian flu and sars epidemic...dirty politics...

puttin' it all out of my mind now...our road trip begins...yay!

steppin' & splashin' into summer :)

so it's been a few weeks that Sasha has been able to toddle a few steps between things...but Granpa had the luck of watching her first 4 steps with intention. june 28th she got up and took four determined steps across the room. and within moments Mark had the joy of walking in the door and seeing her next 4 steps...right into his arms! awwww...just the moment he'd been waiting for!

then he called me at work to tell me all about it...no...i'm not jealous at all ;)

it was also a day of big steps for Che who graduated from elementary school the very same day! yahoo!

gave us a lot to reflect on that night...warm and fuzzy parent thoughts of pride in our two beautiful kids :)

of course there are many other big steps down the road for both of them. at 14 months and 13 years (he became a 'teen' the day after his grad!) their paths still have lots of winding turns to conquer yet. and when Che graduates high school in 4 years, Sasha will just be starting school! talk about a long-term PAC life...hehe

the long weekend included another big first for Sasha....her first sleepover at Granma's! then Mark and I had a gathering of friends to celebrate my bday - another backyard bbq party of course! ;)

and canada day I was MC for Kensington community centres annual fun day. despite the hangover (yes...I had one too many glasses of my yummy sangria) I had the energy to entertain and dance to all of the good music so i had a super fun day with our community. it certainly helped that we got to sleep in a bit...thank you Penny!!!

we've got a busy summer planned. two road trips (july - to the interior to visit a friends organic farm, camp and help my good friend Yanive with his Rock for the Cure concert in Castlegar; august - to the island (specifically Campbell River) and Cortes island to visit family and friends...and camp!), a folk fest and another outdoor concert, swimming, playing...

and perhaps a lot of time on the picket lines!! the entire GVRD region has been in bargaining negotiations for some time now...and it's hard for me to say how it's all going to play out at this point. just about every union local in the lower mainland has cast a strike vote (with almost all locals voting in the 90% range). the potential is high that we'll be out on strike by weeks end...or not...grrrrrrrrr i very much dislike limbo periods...i'll keep y'all posted.

we'll get by whatever happens. easy to feel...with much gratitude of knowing we have a super network of love from family and friends

we will also stick to our fun family plans already made...and if we have to add some picket-line time to the list of things to do...well, it's not a horrible thing to have your kids stand alongside you & your co-workers singin' songs of solidarity...and spreadin' positive energy in difficult times :)

pics today: a couple of Sasha enjoying her new pool; playing with her friend in the mirror; us with two families we love to play with (Gilly, Rob & Merlin, and Julie, Des & Dianne); and Sasha hollering her national pride