Home Sweet Home

Hi all!

We are back.

Home sweet home.

Despite the fighting, the arguing and and teenage dramatics, it was a great time (or at least nothing a few drinks here and there couldn't help - seriously - why is that drinks on vacation are SO easy to consume? I think I need to detox now). The drive out was busy and a tad stressful (thunderstorms; and heavy traffic) and long - although we did break it up with a stop to visit relatives (THANKS to them for all their hospitality - going and coming back!!). Our 'final' 8 hour leg actually ended up taking almost 11. Oh yeah - that was SO much fun!!

Especially when someone pipes up as we're crawling through Montreal at about 2km/hr "I need to poo". FANTASTIC! Not. Fun indeed. BUT - after almost 2 hours, we DID finally get through Montreal to an exit where we could stop and deal with that issue. I am pleased to announce that Banshee indeed did NOT explode like a "big, huge poo-bomb" - much to the disappointment of her brother (man oh man, did he torment her about that. I'm pretty sure she'll be on some shrinks couch for years over that one when she's an adult).

Once at our destination, the drive was quickly forgotten and we all had a great time. Or at least most of us did. The teen had a chip on her shoulder the entire time we were there and unfortunately she dwelled on it SO much, she wouldn't allow herself to actually have fun. BUT . . . the rest of us seized every moment and lived it up. We went to several different swimming holes (and watched some young guy jump from a bridge into a VERY narrow fjord - YIKES!! I seriously thought that we'd all just witnessed this fellow's death!!); hiking at the waterfalls; hiking at another water system (although this was cut short for me due to teenage theatrics); whale watching (WOW!!!); the most spectacular fireworks display I have ever seen (it made the grumbling I did about the $35 admission fee stop!); trips to the "pointe", parks, and hokey tourist attractions; sansous (sp?) hunting when the tides go out, and fishing from the rocks when the tides come in (and catching a JELLYFISH!!!); swimming (3-5 times a day!); tea and croquet parties; visiting with extended family; walks around the beaches; shell collections (my kids collected buckets and bags FULL of shells after each tide receded); glorious sunsets; games; relaxation; beverages and shopping. It was fantastic!!

The only negative is that I realized just how *NOT* french I am. I don't understand much of what they're saying at all. I could take a conversational french course, but it's one of those 'use it or lose it' deals . . . and since I'd only use it for a few weeks every summer, it's just not worth it. Thankfully they're mostly able to speak some english, so it's all good.

Then, as with all good things, it must end. We packed up and cleaned the cottage on Thursday and headed out early-ish on Friday. Definitely bittersweet. We were all anxious to get back to our own home and 'stuff', but sad to leave. There seems to be some sort of magic there - it's as though life slows down and we all resort back to the basics in life. No television, no computers, virtually no phone calls, no a/c, no dishwashers . . . it's all kind of nice. BUT . . . I do have to point out . . . we DID have our cells with texting (I kept in touch with my girls); iTouch for when we were in an area where we could 'borrow' internet and the laptop for movies for the kids during those early morning risings (did I mention anywhere that banshee was up between 5:30 and 6:30 pretty much every single morning?!).

The drive home was fairly uneventful. Our first (and longest) leg ended at Montreal where we visited with family for the night; the second leg ended with a visit with more family about 4 hours up the road (in ON), and then homeward bound on Sunday. Aside from the fact that we almost got smoked by a bus, and I seriously thought that my little family was about to face certain death, we DID arrive home in one piece. The short of that story . . . some ass-monkey, actually THREE ass-monkeys decide to pull out onto the 401 where the speed is travelling at about 120 km (in the slow lane!). These people were travelling in a convoy type thing, each pulling a u-haul trailer behind them. All three pull out in succession, right in front of me. Except they didn't speed up quickly. As mentioned, I was going about 120, and there was a big ass bus on my tail going just as fast. And the lane beside me had cars zipping past even faster than I was going, so moving over was NOT an option. I'm not sure how, but somehow that bus managed to veer into the next lane and screamed past us safely. I finally got over and passed the above mentioned ass-monkeys and did manage (not so proudly I admit) to show them a token of my 'appreciation' for almost killing me and my family. After that, it was easy peasy and uneventful. We arrived home, grabbed some lunch (I'm looking forward to much healthier eating - vacation foods are great - but my gall bladder has been VERY picky about it all); unpacked, then headed over to the in-laws for a delightful TURKEY dinner (can we say spoiled?! My IL's are SO fantastic to us!). Stopped at the grocery store on the way home to grab a few basics (our fridge was emptied before we left) to get us through breakfast, and then I have to head out to do some serious grocery shopping.

But first I have to plan my menu (and I'm not feeling overly motivated).

I'm still off today . . . we have some errands and medical appts, but then tomorrow we are back to the grind.

BUT . . . now that our vacation has come to an end, this means that we are headed towards fall and back to school. We are signing the kids up for their fall activities; buying some back to school supplies; and the teen is heading off for her highschool orientation program TODAY!!! My other half will head into his school a few days a week starting in another week or so to ready himself for the return of the students. NUTS! I can't believe how fast this summer has flown.

I think I need another vacation.