Maren's 30th Bday

Well, as if it wasn't enough that Trent surprised me with our stay at the Burrowing Owl a few weeks ago, he also took me stay at the Overlander Lodge this weekend. What an absolute treat. This time, we were even sans Baldie - which means that we got some actual alone time.

We had a bit of a late start to the day on Saturday due to the crappy forecast in Jasper. We had been hoping/planning on scrambing Roche a Perdrix, however conditions are still crappy for scrambling in the rockies. We were also hoping to ride Trent's new bike down to Jasper however the cold temps scared us off. When exactly is summer supposed to arrive??? This has been a brutal spring. Just brutal.

So, instead, we hiked the Sulfur Skyline trail and followed it up with a soak in the Miette hot springs. The cold temps were actually just right for that kind of activity. The hike was enjoyable, but again, there was an unbelievable amount of snow on certain parts of the trail. Luckily, we were still able to 'summit' the ridge. We also saw 2 bears in the area, one with 3 baby cubs. They are by far the smallest cubs I have ever seen. So adorable. Thankfully we were in the car for both sightings.

Then, ahhhhh... the Overlander. We have been there a few times before and it is always just an awesome experience. We stayed in a mountain view room this time and enjoyed a delicious bottle of red wine on our patio before dinner. The meals there are always fantastic also. I had an amazing halibut and shrimp dish. I am not exaggerating about how great this place is... you should go... really.

Sunday was spent having lunch with my folks, reuniting with my adorable son (who changed overnight, I swear!) and having dinner with my great friend Catherine. All in all, it was a lovely weekend. I find birthdays to be not only a time to spend with friends and family, but also a time for personal reflection. Thirty is a big one for me. I have always held '30' as the marker for actual adulthood (!) Wait, does this mean that I have to grow up? No, of course not... but I do think that my next 30 years will be significantly different (and even better) than my first 30. I am hoping it will be a time for me to continue to grow as a person and to begin to take even better care of myself than I do already. One thing that I do know is that I would like to be around for a long while yet, especially now that I have a son. It is going to be so rewarding to watch him grow up. I feel so blessed to be surrounded by such amazing people. I have no doubts that the love from my friends and family will carry me through the next 30 years. Cheers!!! Here is to growing old graciously!

7 months - more roadtripping

Okay, okay... so, I am apparently NOT going to keep this thing up to date!

Things have been well, busy as usual. This past month, we made the trip down to Kelowna to see our wonderful friends Tess and Loic. I, along with these two amazing athletes, competed in the Oliver Wine Country Triathlon. Tess and I did the Olympic distance while Loic used the sprint course as a 'training day'. Tess and Loic both placed third in their age groups (just awesome!) He will be competing in the Oliver half ironman this weekend and by the looks of things, he should do AWESOME again! Me, well, I was just happy to finish standing! Actually, it was a wonderful course and a great day for a race! I finished just three minutes from my goal time and I learned a lot about how to improve (aka: get faster) for the next one. Yes, there will be a next one! I just haven't exactly figured out which one yet. Trent and I are contemplating doing an adventure race together at the end of August, so I guess we'll see. I am not so sure that our marriage can withstand such an undertaking... in any case, I will keep you posted!

It wasn't all racing down in 'wine country', there was of course some wine drinking! We were able to take in quite a few wineries after all, given the fact that Trent surprised me by booking us into a winery for a night and extending our stay by a few days. We had an absolutely wonderful time, even with our fussy, fussy child. Chephren cut his two front teeth while we were down there and he was a bit crazy to say the least. He was a trooper though and we had a great time as a family. We had such a great time in fact that we came home with a plan to move down there! However, after some more careful thinking and discussion about it, we have decided that we are better off here for the time being. Someday we will look at it again though, I really think that we would love it down there.

Other Chephren news includes:

• He is rolling all over the place and getting pretty close to crawling


• He can sit independently for long stretches, although he still falls sometimes when I am least expecting it (WHAM! - poor kid)


• As I mentioned, we are two more teeth into the mix AND, he is continuing to be a crazy fussy teether (boo!)


• The solid foods continue to go well (his new favourite thing is CHEESE), although he is also now pooping 3 or more times per day (sigh!)


• He knows his name and loves to hear it!


• He likes to go in his swing outside


• He is in love with all of our animals - I think that he likes them more than he likes any of us!


• He is finally getting some hair


• He weighs just about 22 lbs - yes, my arms are killing me and is wearing mostly 18-month sized clothes


• He is just as social as ever and keeps us all in stitches with his giggles, squeals and smiles


• He continues to have a terrible temper (uh-oh)...


• He loves to 'roughhouse' already - his favourite new game is 'bulldozer' in which I 'bulldoze' him around on the ground with my head - he loves it! He also loves to be thrown around and held upside down... what a goofball!

Well, I think that's it for now, we are off to go swimming with some friends!