Honey I shrunk the trailer...part 1

A month before my 11 year old niece arrived for her summer holidays here,

I ordered her a birthday present for her upcoming 12th in August.

I found this little model kit on Etsy.

Here's the link

I inquired what it came with?

Everything in the picture was the reply!

So when Stephanie showed up she was absolutely thrilled with our intended project.

It came with many many little pieces of wood and paper...

It came with all of the tools to put it together. Glue, scissors, exacto knife, ruler, pencil, fabric.

Did I mention it came with MANY LITTLE PIECES?

Oh and the directions were all in Japanese! (I think)

But very good pictorial directions.

Were we still in? 

You bet!!

This is how it came. The shell was the only thing put together.

Made out of thin, light balsa wood and painted the most beautiful vintage blue!

We put in the window frames and put together the little box thing by the trailer hitch...

Window boxes...check!

After a few days of sniffing airplane glue and making tiny curtains, pillows

quilts and lawn furniture we were making progress...

But our project would have to wait until we got back from our road trip.

We brought it with us to show a few friends who we were visiting

and took a few pictures of it at our campsite for fun...

 This kit has everything!

Just wait till you see part 2 and the finished product.

But for now I'll leave you at the halfway point...MUCH more to come

 

Feeling small, looking big...

I feel there are some places you should take kids.

Sacred ground.

Areas of miracles and wonder.

On my camping trip with the girls, not only did they

stand at the edge of Vancouver Island,

but I also wanted them to see a place of great importance.

Avatar Grove is a small stand of ancient trees, which was in the

path of the logging companies but was saved by various groups

of those who believe in conservation.

 They scrambled through the woods and I told them how old some

of these trees are...thousands of years old.

Maybe not now, but one day they may grasp the concept of the great trees...

...hopefully they add this place to their list of places of sacred ground.

But for now, they had seen the trees, it was hot and they and Griffin

 just wanted to find a place to cool off.

We found just the spot under the high bridge over Gordon River.

This beautiful swimming hole, all but deserted was the perfect spot, except for one thing...

No, not piranhas! The water was FREEZING!!

Straight from the mountains, this river will take another month to warm up.

Griff was pretty happy though, he'll swim in any temperature!

All in all the trip was a joy.

Filled with new discoveries, old friends, giant salmon berries

and loads of love.

(see you in a week!)



Away we went...part 1...

There are some things which are chiseled deep into memory

and for me, a lot of those cherished moments come from my childhood.

When my sisters girls came this summer, I wanted to do something different.

So we packed up the van and took the winding road out to the wild west coast

of Port Renfrew. It's a tiny community that is frequently cut

off in winter storms and has the most beautiful stretch of beach around.

After an hour and a half drive we arrived at our campground.

It's run by the local Native Band and sits at the mouth

of the Gordon River...

Now, as many of you know, going camping is actually a lot of work and it took us a while to

get set up but we found a nice little spot and  made up our  home for the night...

Then it was off for a walk up the road...

 We brought along my friends daughter whom the girls have got to know and love over the last few summers. Remember those kind of friends?

You would only see them a few times a year but it was like you never missed a beat.

The chatter was constant, the giggling endless!

We took a stroll down to the shore for firewood.

This is one of the best driftwood beaches around...

 Stephanie and I walked ahead as the older girls huddled behind a windbreak.

From this point, if you took a boat straight out, you would eventually get to Japan.

There have been a few items washed up on shore from the tsunami which hit a year ago

but we weren't finding much except local rusty boat parts...

Oh, and  a great swing!

The big girls finally joined us and we made our way along the sand and logs...

 ...finding the bouncy ones is the best! log horseback riding!

And you know the best part about camping?

The campfire!

There's something primeval about it...everyone wants to tend it...to gaze into it for hours...and

the all important telling of ghost stories!!

Stephanie embarks on her own thrilling tale...

After I told mine, the girls started to get a little jumpy, looking behind their backs

and whispers of  "did you hear that?" and "what's that over there?"

so I figured we should change the pace and lighten it up a little...literally!

Sparklers!!

The big girls slept in the tent while Stephie and I and Griffin made our cozy

little home inside the van...

Tomorrow, we head out for adventure...sweet dreams.