Road Trip to Canada – Part 2

After another long day of driving we finally made it into Alberta and on to Nana and Papa’s place in Calgary.  I love how beautiful this drive is through the gorgeous Canadian Rocky Mountains!

It was almost bed time for Gavin by the time we got to Calgary, but we still let him blow out the lamp before he went to bed.  This has been at tradition since I was a little girl.  Whenever we spent the night at Nana and Papa’s, Nana would light her old kerosene lamp and we would get to blow it out before going to bed.  Gavin was a little confused and is still just learning how to blow, so maybe we’ll give it another try when we come up for our next visit in November!  I'm glad this tradition is carrying on to the next generation.

We were in Calgary during the Stampede, “The Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth”!  It’s a huge deal for ten days during the beginning of July when the entire city goes western.  Everyone wears jeans and cowboy boots to work, even in the office buildings down town!  And there are free Stampede breakfasts all over the city each day.  They’re sponsored by different companies or groups, and usually have live music.  Some also have petting zoos and pony rides.  Here’s Gavin at his first Stampede Breakfast.

Of course we also had to make it down to the Stampede Grounds while we were there!  We went with Heather and Trevor and despite the heat had a fun time.  We saw the animals, went to the Super Dogs show, played games and won prizes, and ate yummy carnival food.

Gavin & Aunt Heather

At first Gavin thought the cows were giant puppies!  We also saw pigs and piglets,  baby chickens, sheep, and some other animals. 

Trevor paid for Gavin to play some games.  He loved this one where you grab a duck out of the water as it floats by and get whatever size prize it indicates on the bottom.  Gavin was more interested in splashing in the water than grabbing out ducks at first.

Here’s Gavin with his loot

 

Potato on a stick and frozen bananas!  Jared and I also tried out the deep fried cheese cake…definitely not my favourite!

  

So maybe were were a little lame by not going on any rides while we were at the Stampede, but it was still a fun day!  Maybe next time Gavin will be old enough to enjoy the chuck wagon races or some rides!

We also went swimming at the South Land Leisure Centre – a place I remember going all the time while growing up in Calgary.  It was a little noisy for Gavin, but he loves the water and still had a fun time.

Jared is just as much a kid if not more so that Gavin, and made sure we had fun going down some of the bigger slides while Aunt Heather played with Gavin.

We were able to visit some friends while in Calgary.  We met up with Pamela at our old elementary school and played at the park.  We’re glad we were able to get together!

   

Andrea also took Gavin to the park near Nana’s place quite a few times

While Gavin played with Nana and read stories, we were able to go do some fun things without a baby around, which is definitely nice every once in a while!

Of course we had to stop by Peters’ Drive-In for a milkshake

Gavin helping Nana water the flowers

Before leaving we had to stop at a Tim Hortons for lunch and some Timbits!

More fun at the park!

Splash pad near Nanny M’s place  

Four Generations

Thanks again for such a wonderful visit, and for always letting us stay at your place!  We can’t wait for another visit in November!