family vacation

Well it’s finally June & summertime fun seems to be in full swing for us. May & June were so busy that I completely neglected my laptop and instead have been soaking up every moment of the day with my babies. Well that and managing my orders for my business and current stock for the farmer’s market every week. Life is busy! What do you do when you get too busy? Why you take vacations of course! I started the month off with a quick Runaway Mom’s weekend to Kelowna. I learned a couple things on this getaway. First, I still cannot hold my liquor if shots are present. No matter how sweet and girly-named they may be, they are the devil and a very quick route to being completely hammered. The second thing I learned is that you let a group of mamas off the hook of parenting for the weekend, things get pretty wild pretty quickly. Lets just say a lot of fun was had, and a lot of Vitamin Water was consumed for the following five days trying to recover all nutrients in my body I had destroyed. I fear the brain cells are gone for good though. So after returning home to my babies whom I missed SO MUCH, it was time to flip the script and get ready for a little family vacation to Osooyoos. The kids decided I should PAY HARD for skipping town on them. They accomplished this by not sleeping at all really all week long. Also being overly needy so that I found it almost impossible to get anything ready for the trip. It basically took me all five days to prepare. We finally got away on Friday morning though. Hubby is crazy busy with work so he was not joining us. My mom and I rented a lakefront townhouse for a week. Probably the best set up you can get with small children. Tons of space in the actual house so everyone had comfy sleeping quarters, play areas, etc. We also have a patio overlooking the lake with a bbq and a bit of lawn area for the kids to play on. Lastly, there is a fantastic outdoor pool and hot tub! Throw in the fact that we are dead in the middle of wine country and it sounds like a pretty perfect time to me! We are halfway through the trip and I think I have put a good ten pounds on between the good eating and the great sipping. But summer is a bit like December in that sense. Who cares! So far here are everyone’s favourite aspects of the vacation:

Me: Pineapple Ceasars (yes they are a thing), sleeping in (should not jinx it by talking about it), having all my meals with a view of a beautiful lake, and lastly, day-long playtime and fun with my babies. They have miraculously turned into excellent vacationers. Again, should not speak about this or even think it. The ability to jinx great behaviour is not a good thing….

Hallie: Chasing & ‘feeding’ the ducks, lounging on ‘Sophia’ our jumbo swan floatie, gummy bears & juice boxes. Oh and definitely going on shopping adventures downtown. This girl really does have simple needs.

Jackson: Hmmmm talk about simple needs. Loves to sit on the grass and watch the ducks. Likes to climb the stairs. Loves mealtime and wrestling around in mama’s big bed.

Gramma: I haven’t asked her yet but I have a feeling the view of the lake and all of the wine are probably up there on the list.

Now if we could just get our booties to a winery! I doubt it will happen but maybe we can pop into a few on the way home simply to purchase a few bottles. Don’t think my kids will tolerate a tasting or tour hah! Come Friday we will hustle on home, only to get the trailer ready and take off again for a weekend of camping and baseball! All this vacationing will either leave me completely relaxed or totally exhausted. Stay tuned!

Husband’s Bucket List Item: Take the ol’trailer out for a good ol’fashion family fun adventure!

I am sure many preggo ladies can relate when I say that camping is not exactly high on the to do list when you are four weeks away from your due date. To me camping means cocktails and you can’t exactly take part when the bun is in the oven. Nevertheless, it was pretty high on my husband’s priorities that we go before babe number two joins us. Knowing that things are going to get insanely busy when that time comes. I decided to honor this adventure request with a smile on my face. After all, we did purchase a trailer when we moved to Kamloops last Fall and had yet to break it in. Using the trailer for the first time also meant a good clean top to bottom. And because I tend to get carried away with making things extra cozy and cute, this also mean glamming it up and bringing a bit of an Anthropologie vibe to our little home on wheels. The clean and styling of the trailer took about two days; at the end of it all I was extremely happy with it. I still plan to whip some white paint over the ‘wooden’ cabinets and fridge, perhaps even add a stick-on backsplash. Do I dare even suggest that we lay down some fun faux wood flooring. But for now, it looks super cute, very shabby chic. Unfortunately, even the best laid plans never come through. After a full week of 33 degree weather and burning hot sunshine, we have one soggy weekend of rain on our hands! As I was packing up clothes for Hallie, I laughed as I threw in her rainpants and ladybug rain jacket. Like we would need them!!! Boy did we though! Cold too! I was back in my winter parka, huddled up next to the fire in a Mexican blanket. I mean it is all fun but a little warmth and sunshine would have been much more enjoyable! The planned out menu was promising. Check out ‘camping food’ on Pinterest if you are looking for ideas. We tried out the chorizo sausage, pepper and potato hash for breakfast options. Similar recipe located here. I love the idea of just wrapping it in tin foil and letting the cooking happen itself. Super easy and low maintenance, exactly what you what for camping. You also can’t go wrong with skewered food. It’s easy to cook and eat. I prepped Hawaiian Chicken Kabobs, similar recipe located here. Those are always a big hit with the fam-jam, camping or not. Lastly, a tasty, fire-roasted smokie is a camping stable, not to mention the smores that follow! Mmmmmmm even writing this is making me drool a little; #preggoproblems

Takeaways! Well, definitely pack for any kind of weather. This is an absolute must with small kids. Even at a year and a half, Hallie is ecstatic to be in her gumboots, jumping around in puddles and getting D I R T Y!!! She loves it. The messier things get the better. Which I am more than okay with! It is however no fun if anyone, especially your little kiddos, are wet and cold and bored to tears. The great outdoors can only be enjoyed properly if the right clothing is worn. Brings a good mix of indoor and outdoor toys. At her age, her attention span only lasts so long. It’s a good idea to have a nice mix of things to keep entertained, outside and inside. We had a nice chair and table set up outside so she could hang out with the adults and have her snack. We brought the wagon for walks and of course dragging her toys around. A few balls to play with, her bubble-blowing lawnmower. All great for the outdoor space. For inside I brought her animal card-matching game, some books that she hadn’t seen in awhile, a tea set, and of course her favourite toy at the moment, a huge zip lock bag of coloured straws from IKEA. The jumbo kind. I have no idea why but the girl is obsessed with them. She spent a full hour playing with them on the bed and hiding them behind our throw pillows, laughing hysterically the entire time. Works for me! Towels! Bring lots of towels! Wetness, dirt and mud seemed to follow us everywhere on this trip. I thought I had brought more than enough towels but believe me, if you think you have enough, add five more. Wipes too, lots of baby wipes. After all, they are good for everything really.

The trip ended up being a short one – we had some trailer issues that we could not ignore (a gas leak alarm that kept going off! Turned out to be just old and faulty, no gas leak to worry about. Can’t be too careful with little ones though!) so we had to come home early. Hubby was super bummed. I promised him we would go again real soon and I aim to stay true to that promise. Anyone gone camping with a toddler AND a newborn?? Anyone at all? I welcome with open arms your tips and suggestions! Please spam me with your experiences, the good the bad and the ugly! Aside from calling the trip quits early, and the shotty weather, we did have a great time together. One of our last special weekends as a family of three. Happy campers all around here!