Happy Father’s Day!

I haven’t blogged forever…it’s been a busy month! It was a treat to have a family vacation to Alberta recently, and to spend more time together. The kids love having adventures with their Dad, and he loved getting out of the office to be with them. Thanks to my amazing sister and brother-in-law, who chauffeured us around, we got to see many beautiful places:

Johnston Canyon, a nice, family-friendly hike ending in a waterfall you can was after sneaking through a little rock cave.

The stunning Lake Louise, where my husband had been with his dad when he was little. It was partially frozen still, so we had fun playing with ice crystals, which we pretended were popsicles.

…and the Badlands, which has a rare, rugged beauty all its own. More about our trip, soon I hope, if I can find a moment!

Happy Father’s Day to all the dads out there, and hope you get the chance to make lots of beautiful memories with your kids!

The father-daughter trip of a lifetime: visiting the Holy Land

One good thing about my dear old friend insomnia is that when the days are way too busy and chaotic to find moments to write, the quiet of night is a secret refuge…moments stolen from sleep to find myself again, and to reach out and reconnect with you, my readers. So in this much overdue post I will finally tell you where my daughter and husband James went on holiday recently! The Holy Land!

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Last time I posted a few pictures with palm trees and rocky desert but no one ventured to guess where they were…so now you know! My husband has always wanted to go, and recently that desire had increased even more. As he is such a hard-working accountant and really needed a break, I finally relented…having been reluctant to have him so far away. To make the trip even more special, he wanted to bring our 10-year-old daughter with him, to make memories for a lifetime. When I was 12 my Dad took me on a train trip to California to the San Diego zoo and Disney Land, and it was so wonderful, and such a bonding experience, so this partly gave us the idea. At first that really scared me, but the more we researched and learned about the trip and their great tour company, Tours 206, the better it felt…security there it pretty top-notch now, and Tel Aviv airport is said to be the safest in the world. Apparently Norway is more dangerous…and what is there to worry about there…perhaps falling tree or grumpy gnome? 😉

A few of my closest friends encouraged me to not make decisions and live life based on fear, and to let them go as it was such an amazing opportunity to see the world, especially while she is young enough to still want to hang out with her Daddy. My daughter really wanted to go as well. “Please, Mummy? I want to see where Jesus lived!” So after weeks of crazy passport preparations, paperwork and shopping for desert gear like giant sun hats, off they went! Now here is the fun part: some more pictures!

Happy Easter from the Eastlands!

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These greetings come a little late, although it’s just the start of Easter season….because it’s been crazy busy with exciting trip preparations…more about that soon…let’s just say my husband and daughter are having a huge father daughter adventure! Any guesses where they are?

Here are some hints! They’re a little tricky…so I will put some more pics tomorrow!

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