Home Again, Part III

More photos from our Canadian vacation! :)

On July 7, we took a day-trip to Montréal (many thanks to Bill for making that possible!). Our first stop was at St. Joseph's Shrine, where Brother André lived and worked.
This is Mom, Rose and I looking tiny in front of the church of St. Joseph.
The view from where we were standing in the above picture...
We visited the church of Notre Dame de Bon Secours...
...which houses the tomb of St. Marguerite Bourgeoys...
Then, it was on to Notre Dame (of Montréal)...
...which was GORGEOUS!!!!
Afterwards, we went up to a lookout over the city...

On the 8th, we went sailing again...
...and watched Evening Primroses open. They open in about 30 seconds shortly after the sun goes down. It's incredible to watch them bloom!

On the 10th, we set out for a little sight-seeing around Canada's capital.
This is a look down the locks of the canal.
Parliament...
Rose, standing in the middle of a lock
We even took a touristy boat tour on the canal. :P

On the 11th, we went to Champlain's Lookout in Gatineau National Park (I think that's the name of it)... although the sunset wasn't splendid, the view was very nice.

On the 12th, we saw a production of Shakespeare in the Park - All's Well that Ends Well. It was QUITE well done!!

On the 13th, Rose and I took a bike ride (made possible by our tour guide Gregory :)) to see Joe and Marcel's work site. Here we stopped on Bate Island, on our way across the Ottawa River...
One of their current projects...

On the 16th, our last full day in Canada, Margaret made her first Holy Communion and was enrolled in the brown scapular.
In the afternoon, we went sailing one last time.

And on July 17, we flew home! The Kansas heat hit us full in the face... it was 102F when we left the airport and headed for home. We were a little reluctant to return home after such a good trip, but it had to be done. :)

I've now been back 2 weeks and have a little over 3 weeks before I leave for France. Life is pretty crazy around here, as I juggle preparations for two weddings, try to complete projects I agreed to weeks and weeks ago, and attempt to prepare my life for the European experience! ;) This is it for now.... thank you for visiting my blog! :)

Home Again, Part II

As promised, here is the continuation of pictures from our trip to the Great White North! :)

On July 1 - Canada Day - we set out from the Browns with Jake, Sarah, Mary, and Ben to celebrate the nation's birthday with the Stannuses in the capital city, Ottawa. (We wore the most politically neutral colors possible! :D)
The crowds on Parliament Hill were IMMENSE.
Here, Sarah shows her patriotic spirit. ;)
I have to admit - it WAS cool to watch the RCMP (what we could see of them - the closest we got was five rows of people back).
This is Parliament from the river side.
That night, we went down to the bank of the Ottawa River and watched the fireworks - which were magnificent over the water! This is a picture of Pont Alexandra, all lit up.


On the fourth of July, we actually got to set off fireworks in the backyard!! That was really neat. :) They were followed by a campfire and s'mores.

The following day, we played the part of tourists - exploring (a very small) part of Ottawa on foot.
The church of Notre Dame in Ottawa...

The Alexandra Bridge by daylight...

To be continued! :)

Home Again

Well, dear friends, we arrived back home from the land of Oz (after all, anything outside of Kansas would qualify for being Oz, wouldn't it?? :)) Monday evening. We had a very lovely three-and-a-half weeks up in Canada. Here are a few photos from the vacation...

June 22... stranded in Chicago! Our flight was cancelled quite unexpectedly because of weather, and we were forced to spend the night in Chicago.

Not to be left in the doldrums, we made the most of our situation and visited the Sears Tower! :) It is the tallest building in North America and among the very tallest in the whole world. The view was quite something and we caught a brilliant sunset from the Observatory on the 103rd floor.

Once we had arrived safely in Ottawa, one of the first things we did was go sailing on Saturday, the 24th. It was GORGEOUS and so much fun!! :)
Here Rose mans the rudder...

On Sunday, we went home with the Browns after Mass. They gave us a warm welcome and we settled in.

We went on walks through their beautiful property...

...stopping at the various waterfalls...
...and explored the maple taps.

There were volleyball games...
...a visit to a local museum...
...a visit to The Beer Store...
...a canoe trip...
...card games...
...lots of good food...
...and a campfire to finish off the week.

More in the next post!! :)

Pink Lake

We went, on Sunday afternoon, for a hike around Pink Lake... it is called Pink Lake after the man who previously owned it, not as an indication of its natural hue. :) It was very pretty and a nice hike (except for all the ups and downs - there were lots of stairs!). Fortunately, the July weather in the Great White North allows for outdoor excursions such as this one. Meanwhile, most of those who did not go on the hike went sailing and had an adventurous time (by the sounds of it). :)

Here is a picture of Pink Lake. Pretty, eh? ;)

in Montreal

We went to Montreal for the day on Friday. It was a VERY tiring but VERY nice day. :) We're now safely back in Ottawa and enjoying our time here. Here's a picture from Friday, of Mom, Rose and I at St. Joseph's Shrine, and I'm on my way to bed! :D

'Night!