A make over story

For weeks and weeks little Thaila has been asking to get her hair cut. When we asked her how she wanted it cut, she responded by saying she wanted a "bobble". When asked why, "So that I can brush my own hair". So here are a couple before and after photos....

Shedding a few tears....

Upon returning home from our wonderful camping experience, we had an unpleasent surprise. The family hamster, which we lovely called "Hamster" had decided to leave us for "Hamster Heaven". We are sure there is an endless supply of his favourite sunflower seeds in Hamster Heaven so he should be very happy. The girls and I decided to take Hamster out to my parents place for a funeral and to be buried along side all of my families pets who have passed.

Camping day two....

On our second day, we decided to head towards Gold River and explore the Upana Caves. The Upana caves are actually several caves within one cave group, with over 15 separate entrances and over 450 metres of passages. Everyone really enjoyed this exploration. With flashlights in hand, Heath lead the group of us through the caves. A couple tight fitting spots, always leading to somewhere unbelievable.

Inside the entrance to a cave.......

What we discovered after climbing through the cave.....

And a mystery photographer.......Looks a little like Samantha maybe......

After exploring the caves we started on our way back home...only a 41/2 hour drive.....can't wait to do it again.

Camping in Strathcona Park

This past weekend the Armstrong Gang went for a camping adventure. On Friday afternoon we packed up the car, and picked up Heath around 4:30pm for the start of our adventure. Driving for about 3 hours we kept ourselves busy reading, and playing word games. At about 8:30pm we finally arrived in the wilderness of Strathcona Park. Keeping our fingers crossed that we would be able to find a camping site,we headed towards Buttle Lake Campgrounds. Once inside we drove around the campgrounds keeping our eyes peeled for an available spot, not too many around as it was the weekend. Luckily, on our last pass through we found the perfect spot to set up the tents.

The girls helped set up the tents and camping gear, and then headed down to check out the playground. After the campsite was all set up the entire gang went down to the lake side beach to gaze at the stars. While gazing at the stars we also had a good laugh, as I almost stumbled over top of a couple also enjoying the great outdoors....!!


Day one, waking up to the familar sounds of the resident crows chattering away. I know everyone who has ever camped can relate to that!! After a yummy camping breakfast of pancakes we set our for our days adventures. The first stop of the day was Lupin Falls. A lovely short but sweet walk through the forest in search of a waterfall. Once we found the waterfall, the explorer in us all started to take over. Alyssa, Thaila and Heath found a way to climb, climb, and climb to see more of the falls. While Samantha and myself remainded more grounded and explored the forest. Lupin Falls while not a huge waterfall, still proved to be quite beautiful. Our next stop was to see a more grand waterfall, Lower Myra Falls.


Myra Falls, is located near the south end of Buttle lake and our hike in took only about 15-20 minutes to hike in. Once there it was nothing less than spectacular, the water so crystal clear, cool, and crisp. We all couldn't resist the temptation to dip our feet into the water, and a couple of us even had a little taste of the wonderfully clean water. After spending about one hour maybe even more exploring we headed out for another adventure..... How about pulling over on the side of a river to cook a little lunch....




Thailia dipping her toes.....

Requests for pictures of the garden..

To show everyone how beautiful the set up was. As you came up the driveway you were first welcomed by a lovely wooden planter made by Allison's father, Bob McLean.

From a distance you would have been able to catch a glimpes of the tent, housing our dinner tables and chairs. Not only was it perfect for dinner but it also played and important refruge in providing some well needed shade. It was a HOT HOT day. Metchosin is well known for its blustery winds, well not a single breeze blew on this day!!!

A view from the kitchen window.. Some of the buffett and dinner tables inside the tent. Toward the very back you can see some pink, this is where the head table was set up.
Oh and a picture of my wonderful husband. I will always remember the look on his face as he watched my dad walk me down our garden isle.

okay so just a couple more

So just going to share a couple more photos, as we enjoyed ourselves so very much....

The Miller family and The Armstrong family...


Heath and I strolling through the park
on our way to take the beach photos
My Four Mile Family Cutting the wonderfully yummy cheesecake! Yum
And one of my best girls...

just a few more