Spring Break in Montréal and B.C.

I've been having a tough time getting motivated. I know I am not alone.  It's been great seeing the flowers and brightly coloured photos from bloggers.

 Travelling vicariously is a good thing. Jesse has been  posting photos from B.C. I think ski season is over, I think. 

They were outside with Bernie, the cat, who is a hoot! 

For their March Break adventures, our Ottawa kids went to Montréal for a few days, on the train! We don't do March Break Gramma Camp anymore! They are growing up. Such young ladies.

There was walking, exploring, and much eating involved! I love them acting all cool. My grandies!

Apparently, they went to an outdoor store! There was time to kill. They have been avid campers. I have never camped!

They visited the Cosmôdome! Isabelle wanted to ride the gyro. Hence killing time in the mall.

She was always keen on rides at the local fairs! 

Isabelle at the Cosmodome from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

They are really good at posting photos for the family. I liked the Koi in their hotel in Chinatown. I guess I made Isabelle laugh.

Waiting for the train back to Ottawa! They've been back in school last week. We're going to catch up this weekend. 

 

Thursday is here...

Where has the week gone? Another wee storm! The sun shone later, though.

I forgot to post this and tell the story. It was rather strange. Now, I like to put out the garbage as soon as I get up. This past Monday morning it was 6:30. There are reasons for this. a) I don't have to get dressed, just pull my long coat on over my housecoat and jammies (it is dark!), and b) I can then go back to the house and have my coffee and relax.

This is what I face down at the highway. I checked the mailbox for snow. 

MVI_7111.mov from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

The story: I went down to bring the recycling box back. I noticed a beer can on the ground behind the bin. It wouldn't surprise me if someone was drinking and driving and just chucked it out. Sometime between 6 a.m. and noon. We get beer cans a lot. 

Two cats decided to peek into the dratted red squirrel (DRS) hole. Nada.

Monday afternoon, I went for a walk. I noticed a rodent track in the snow. 

When Jesse visited from Vancouver, he brought some art from their girls, Bryony and Cluny! I put it in on the wall! 

They have had a great winter in Vancouver. They've been doing weekly cross country ski trips. Cluny did a 5 km race on her cross country ski. She was amazing! Jesse skied along with her. She had the option to stop halfway at 2 1/2 km, but she chose to finish. 

1. Off to YVR!

Day 1 Thursday, May 31st

That was an adventure! Yes, Vancouver, to see our 3rd and 4th granddaughters, whom we had not met! We've done Facetime with Cluny (3 years old, not two, not four!)
Thursday morning we dropped off three cats at the Cat's Meow Inn.
We dropped the car off at the kids' house in Ottawa, and grabbed a taxi to the airport.

This is a new building in Ottawa! Strange being passengers.


Schlepping bags, we paid for our luggage. I had repacked, popping in warmer clothes, as the weather looked cold.
There were long lineups for security. Sadly, people were arriving too late and were impatient and hustled themselves and butted in. It sets everyone's teeth on edge.
Meanwhile, people jam their bags in the overhead compartments, where there just isn't room. It's so much more relaxing to check one's bags.


See the little head in front of me? A 9-month old, or so. We played for a bit, standing on mommy's lap, the kid would hand me toys! It stopped the kid from screaming...


Back in the old days, he tells me, these safety videos featured actual employees.


Liftoff! A lovely feeling.


There was this strange object in the sky! Whilst we flew over Lake Superior, we couldn't see it. Cloud cover all the way.


Don't you love clouds? It was strange, with the time change. Three hours back in time!


Hubby gives me the window seat, and this is what I saw.


Made it! YVR


Jesse picked us up! Amazing seeing the mountains in the distance. His car is a hybrid, gas and electric. Very cool.


Vancouver is a vibrant city. It is also very expensive. Jesse and his family live in a housing co-op. We stayed in the basement of a home designed to be a duplex. A basement suite is a very popular option in many homes in this pricy housing market.