So, while lovely, there were ups and downs along the way.  Puking out the car window as we drove away from a campsite one morning may top the list. (Life checklist – complete! ) Making Chris pull the car over all day so I could get snacks and drinks and pastries, etc. Actually, that’s pretty normal, but this time it would be imperative that we stop. Now that I look back, most of the trip was spent looking for places to get drinks and snacks. I’m awfully lucky Chris is so patient.  And what were some lessons learned?

* morning sickness during a record heatwave? Not so fun.

* morning sickness and heat stroke on a ferry ride to Vancouver Island? Not recommended.

Oh well. But really, the trip was fantastic. We went to the Vancouver Aquarium, swam in lakes on the side of the highway, visited with Frank, saw helicopters putting out forest fires. And tried the new Very Cherry Dr. Pepper slurpee. Maybe one of the highlights.

More pics on Flickr soon, te prometo.

The ladies of Banff took to the Rockies this past weeknd. Wait, we’re already in the Rockies. We spent a weekend in the woods (better.)

The weekend was spent knitting, napping, chatting, snowshoeing and tanning by a nice wood burning stove. Ahhh.

One fantastic book while in the woods is Off the Beaten Track, stories of Canadian women studying botany, hiking, camping and exploring the Rockies by horseback.  After a few stories I had visions of trying to trace their adventures myself this summer, to test their tracks myself. Until a co-worker told me it would be near impossible in one summer. Oh well, I can still paint flowers down by the river with a basket full of chocolate brownies. And did you know that Mary Vaux married Charles Doolittle Walcott? Dr. Doolittle.  He could apparently “smell a fossil.” I love it.

Most times I’ll buy a book after having someone recommend it, or after reading a review. Maynard and Jennica,  by Rudolph Delson, however, was one of the first books that was a total mystery to me when I came across it, yet I knew instantly that I had to go out and buy it. I actually threw on pants and ran (kay, walked briskly. the sidewalks were icy.) down to Chapters to look for it.

Here are some of the reasons I risked broken ankles.

1. I stumbled across Rudolph online mentioning that he loved Andrew Bird. Who also loves Andrew bird? Me. What’s not to love about warbles and whistling?

2. He delivers excellently goofy book readings – at Google headquarters (!). You can watch the reading of Maynard and Jennica, along with question and answers, online right…… here.

3. Not only does he give goofy lectures, he also poses for a good goofy picture.

4. He lived in Germany, earning a living selling personal letters to strangers.

5. Last, I think Rudolph perfectly sums up both the story and my feelings about the book in an interview from Powell’s Books:

“… at least in literature, the misanthrope and the romantic are opposites. In the misanthropic comedy, we laugh at the follies of a man who loathes the misery of the people he sees around him; in the romantic comedy, we laugh at the fancies of a woman who longs to be happy like the people she sees around her. Similarly, there are two things you can do with blackberries: plant them along your fence to keep the world out, or pick them from the roadside for pancakes.”

Well,  if I can’t convince you, maybe New York’s literati can!

When my brother was in Australia I used to find it a delicious torment to know what the weather was like in Sydney. It was nice to know that someone might be on the beach while I was making bank drafts and trudging home through slush at night. If you have similar tendencies, you can check out the weather out west while we are away. The Weather Network (.com) has amazing live cameras that let you take a peak at cities, parks, and ski hills across the country.

This picture was of Banff Tuesday morning. It makes me think of the opening to an Indiana Jones movie. The view is of Sulfur Mountain, and a quick click here will let you pretend you are watching us in a movie. Also, there’s a link to Flickr, over to your right, that will have lots of pictures of our trip. It will be just like traveling with us.. minus the dorky jokes and constant breaks for snacks along the way. Although, I really think those are the best parts.