I felt irresponsible leaving for a week in the midst of trying to sell our house and remodeling the new house. Especially since I'm trying to take an active role in the remodels. Still, when Eric says he'll take some time off work, I jump at it because it's rare.
We left at midnight last Friday night, plucked the girls out of bed, then made their beds--as our house had to be "show ready" while we were gone. When I was a kid, I loved the feeling of being in the car, having all the things I needed in my own little space in the car, and embarking on a new adventure. I want my kids to feel that same way. So I prepared little presents for them that included a cute eye mask (Bianca got a brown bear and Portia an owl) to wear while they're sleeping in the car so the oncoming cars' headlights don't keep waking them, cat neck pillows so their necks don't bend all weird, and a little box of candy for the trip (Portia got Skittles; Bianca Twizzler bites).
It was a long drive. We made it to the ferry around 4pm the next day and headed over to the island of Victoria. It was a little chilly, but the trees and the sea were just gorgeous. We rented a 3-bedroom, 2-bath house on a golf course for the week. We went to the grocery store to pick up essentials for breakfasts and lunches. It's always fun to see what different kinds of things they have in the stores where we visit. Our favorites from Canada were the nacho cheese cheetos, the pickle-flavored Doritoes, and all the many, many flavors of herbal tea. I'm guessing it's the British influence that has everyone in Victoria drinking all that tea. Still, we loved it and came home with all sorts of fascinating flavors, like mojito, melon citrus mint, licorice, and chocolate mint.
Another thing we love to do is go to church. My family did this when we were growing up when on vacation and I think it's good for the kids to see how the church is the same no matter where in the world you are. We followed up church with a trip to The Empress (we wanted to have tea but the wait was too long). Instead, we had a really nice lunch at a sea food restaurant nearby. We ended our first day at The Soda Shoppe.
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| Bianca and Portia by one of the bendy trees in front of The Empress Hotel |
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| Portia by The Empress |
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| Bianca, my little tree hugger, with a Redwood |
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