Back.

I have to admit, it was tempting to not blog for an entire 30 days. I'm a fan of round numbers, so something like 29 days of no blogging just seemed wrong. But here, I am, on day 29, getting back into it. Am I the only person in the world who cannot turn the stereo volume up to 56, but rather it must be 55 or 60? Rob tells me that I am (the only person in the world who does this). He thinks its absolutely crazy. Same with my alarm. Heaven forbid I wake up at 6:04am. Nope, it has to be either 6:00am or 6:05am. Call me crazy. Its these small things in life that keep me happy. And sane.

So our trip, was great! Three weeks is a long time, so we were happy to come home. Somehow that one extra week makes all the difference. Normally after two weeks we are always wishing we could stay just a bit longer, but I think in 3 weeks, we got to see most of the people we wanted to, visit most of our favorite places, take in a good amount of rest. So it was good. And also good to be home.

I did manage to take 500 or so pictures. Excessive, maybe. Worth it, absolutely! I won't be posting them on here. You'll just have to become my friend on facebook to fully enjoy them. Yes, I'm talking to you Linda.

Some trip highlights? Traveling there with our friends was a lot of fun. Our minivans were outfitted with a fairly tech radio system, so we were able to chat most of the way, and it came in handy in many instances. For example, when our cars got separated on the ferry, we then had to find each other once the ferry docked and unloaded. This process is absolute madness. Hundreds of cars trying to get out of the terminal on two main roads. Its a nightmare. And especially when you are trying to direct someone who is not at all familiar with your hometown. Thank goodness for the radios.

Meeting my half sister, Tara, was an incredible experience. My Birth Mom also happened to be there at the same time (we literally pulled up at the same time). It was a nice visit (about 3 hours). We went to a local park so the kids could play and we could visit/meet. Worked out quite well. We also managed to get out to DQ for some Blizzards. So wonderful to meet her, and I was so glad that we were able to adjust our trip dates to make it happen (we had originally planned to be in Kelowna that night).

Watching the cousins play is always fun. Abbi's older cousin is 6 years old. This year was one of the first (in my opinion) that they seemed to be on equal playing levels. She was at Nana's for all of August, so the girls had a blast, and were pretty good about including Gabe in the fun. Abbi so enjoyed the company of her cousin (basically an older sister), some nights we would go out visiting and the girls would stay and play. So of course Gabe would come along, and honestly, that whole one kid thing seems like such a piece of cake. Of course, I remember the time of just having one kid, it seemed crazy. But now, just taking child #2 somewhere. Easy peasy.

We got out to most of our favorite locations. Sadly we didn't get up to Tofino, one of the places I so wanted to visit. Its a 2.5 hour drive, there and back, on a fairly windy highway. Its a beautiful spot, and worth every turn, and likely every whine, but I just wasn't up to it. Not to mention we were so busy visiting all of our other favorites. Coombs, Parksville Beach, the waterfront, Westwood, Victoria, and of course, some of our favorite restaurants like Gina's Mexican Cafe and Delicados.

Seeing all of our friends and family is always a highlight. Of course, this is the tricky part of "vacationing" at home. This creates a conundrum. As much as we enjoy seeing all of our loved ones, it makes for a busy time, and generally doesn't leave much room for relaxation. The solution to that problem this year was to plan nothing. Absolutely nothing. I pre-booked nothing. We fit in people as we could. Meaning we didn't get to see everyone we would have liked, but did get to see many of our favorites. There is only so much time. So we really took it easy this year. Although next year I'm thinking we may try actually "vacationing." A novel concept really. Going somewhere where you know absolutely no one.

My week in Victoria was good. The UVIC campus is absolutely beautiful. And yes, there are bunnies like crazy. I quite liked the bunnies. I figure its a good problem to have. Yes, I realize they ruin your manicured lawns and student's probably twist their ankles in their holes, but I say its better than a rat infestation or being overrun by lice. I mean seriously, they're bunnies people! Cute, fluffy, hopping bunnies. They made my day, every day.

My actual course was interesting. I was quickly brought back to my early social work days. We are very in touch with our feelings. We centre ourselves. We reflect. We are critical thinkers. We sit in circles, rather than in your typical classroom style. All very good things, just seeming a bit hokey at times. I felt like I went in there fairly "hard" over the first couple days. Just wanting to get it over with and had a hard time with all the touchy feelyness of it all. But by Wednesday I got over myself.

I will say that this is one of the beautiful things about social work(ers). They are never afraid to share their feelings. It truly is a challenge to open yourself up to a complete stranger. But even as we did so within our classroom, it reminded me of the fact that people will regularly open themselves up to us during our career. So things like being present, and being open-minded are totally relevant concepts. It just took me a few days to get on board...

I had other fun adventures during my week alone. I stayed with a family we met through our first church here in Edmonton. We hadn't seen each other in 3 years or so, but I felt so welcomed into their home. I "got" to ride the bus to and from school. For a stay-at-home Mom/housewife, this provided hours of entertainment. I actually enjoyed it. I also got to shop...alone. One night some of my classmates and I took on downtown Victoria, which was an adventure.

I will admit, by Thursday I was feeling pretty lonely. As much as I do appreciate being by myself (in the bath, when I go pee, or when I go shopping), it was getting a little too quiet. So I asked Rob to come down a day early, on Thursday night, to rescue me from myself. He got to spend the day on Friday doing his own exploring, which I think he quite enjoyed. And funny enough, the family I stayed with has three children (one of whom was only 3 weeks old), and I actually enjoyed that noise. I was missing my munchkins terribly. So chatter of a 4 year old princess, and a 2 year old mischievous boy, was music to my ears. Amazing how we find perspective sometimes, isn't it?

So we are back. Life is full and busy. Somehow, it seems to be the way I like it. Nothing better than filling in the calendar and organizing life. Abbi's in preschool. French immersion preschool. Gabe is starting a short little session at the zoo, meeting some of the animals, which I'm sure he will love. Rob will be teaching his guitar lessons soon enough, and continuing on with the worship team. As for me? Well, I'm back in school. Distance education. 2 classes this semester. One is finishing up the rest of the course after the 5 days in Victoria. The best part is that one week of face-to-face class is equivalent to 10 weeks of a semester, so this online portion will only last another 6 weeks. Bonus!

I think we are all feeling refreshed. Got some good perspective. Taking time out always seems to do that for me. A friend was commenting on how strange it is that September is the beginning of the year in North America. Its so true. I find this true of September moreso than January. So as life begins to get busy and full, I go into this time, trying to maintain perspective, and boundaries (Eg. even thought I do love a full calendar, I don't need it "too" full). And most importantly, remembering to take time out as a family. As a Mother. As a wife. As a friend.