Kids at Gymnastics

A few weeks ago Cohen and Kyah went to a birthday part at the local gymnastics gym. Chelsey said they had a ball so we signed them up for a week of "Gymnastics Camp." It was last week and when I got home from work the kids were always stoked to show me what they learned and tell me all about. I was kind of jealous that I did not get to see them in person so I sent Chelsey out with the camera so I can get a few shots. The video below is what she came back with; some extra footage has been added from last Saturdays "Party in the Park."

Kyah puked right before we left so she was not to keen on the bouncy castle.

Saturday Silliness

Below is a video of our Saturday. Chelsey was at the Harrison Dragon Boat Festival so the kids and I scooted out there for a visit and to watch a race. The team Chelsey is on, The Pirate Paddlers, came 9th out of 61 teams so they did pretty damn good. After our visit we went back home for a little Slip N' Slide action and to "kind of" clean my truck.

The video is of one of the races and the kids on the slip and slide. Chelsey's team is in the green boat and Chelsey is the second in from the back.

Tuk El Nuit Lake - Day Seven & The Drive Home

Yesterday was our last day camping at Lakeside Resort on Tuk El Nuit Lake so we thought it would be the most fun to spend the whole day at the lake. While it was cool in the morning the day turned out to be perfect with lots of sun and heat. The kids had an absolute blast playing in the sand and water all day. We made lots of castles and volcanoes and spent lots of time in the water. 

In the morning I went fishing again, without the camera, and caught my self a nice little trout. Although I did not get a picture there were enough people on the beach who heard my happy cheers to vouch for my success; Chelsey actually saw the fish when I held it up so you know this is not a fish story.

As a special treat for the kids, and me, we went to Tickleberries again for ice cream after dinner but this time we were smart enough to get the small sizes. The weirdest part about our trip was that I took four pairs of clean boxers, we were gone for 7 days, I did not do any laundry and I still came home with one pair of clean undies...Weird

Our drive home today was pretty uneventful other then the fact we scooped up some more geocaches and checked out the Hope Slide.We also picked up a cache at Bromley Rock Provincial Park so we can scratch another provincial park off our list. It was a pretty boring park unless you are into camping on the river shore; with the kids so small I think we will stick to the lakes. For lunch we stopped at the Manning Park resort area and the kids were stoked to see all the gophers running around taking nuts from people.

Enjoy the pictures and we are already looking forward to next year; who's coming with us?

Tuk El Nuit Lake - Day Six

One more day, two more sleeps and we have to go home; so sad. We have had lots of fun here and Lakeside    Resort is super family friendly; this kids are loving it here. 

Today the weather was off and on again so after our morning playing at the beach we went down to Osoyoos to grab some geocaches and check out another winery. We went to Haynes Point Provincial Park so we could knock another park off our list. According to British Columbia Magazine this is the hottest provincial park in BC, being in Osoyoos it would make sense. It is a pretty small park but we had fun wandering around looking for a geocache and playing by the water. 

After lunch we headed back towards home and grabbed a couple geocaches on the way back. We also stopped by Road 13 Winery as Chelsey is a big fan of their wine. The kids liked it there as it is built like a castle and there were two sausage dogs inside. 

Today was penny candy day and pie day at the "resort." Since we got back too late for the penny candies we went to the corner store and let the kids pick out a bunch of nickel candies. Luckily we were not too late for the home made pies and we were able to pick up a nice apple pie. We finished the day off with more fun at the beach and chicken burgers for dinner. Cohen is feeling much better but we are all getting bit by the skeeters now. 

No one came to steal our booze last night so no word on whether the alarm system worker; we will have to try again tonight! Forgot the memory card in the camera again so pictures are limited...

Tuk El Nuit Lake - Day Five

Another fun day at the lake today but this one started a little early, as in 2:07AM. There are signs around warning people to lock up their booze as I guess the local kids like to have a few. Last night I heard foot steps outside and then saw the light from someone opening our fridge. I got up and peeked over the door through the screen and saw some dude with his head in our fridge. The conversation went like this:

Me: Hey dude whats ups?

The Kid: Aww nothing much, just chillin'

Me: Havin' a few beers eh?

The Kid: Yeah, just one...

The dude then grabbed one of my beers and took off. The people in the Cabana next to ours had some of their booze taken too. When I looked outside to see where the shit ran off too they were already down by the beach and I wasnt too concerned about one beer anyways. That being said, I rigged up a wicked alarm system and if they come back tonight there will be golf balls bouncing everywhere.

Today we took off to the States to grab some Cherry Coke, some bubblegum, a $5 six pack of beer and our very first Geocache in the U.S. of A. We also went down to try and get a cache a Lake Osoyoos State Park but we learned it is no longer a State Park and is now a city park. After a few hours down there we scooted back to the camp site as Cohen was not being himself.

Poor Cohen was very whiny the whole morning and was not being super happy. He slept the whole drive back from the States and when we got home all he wanted to do was lie in bed. After seeing he had a fever and that his glands were a bit swollen Chelsey took him to the doctor; turns out the little dude has Strep Throat. It is all good though as he was his chipper old self by dinner time. Hopefully he is happy tomorrow!

After dinner we roasted some marshmallows at the camp fire then went  to check out the Wednesday night Karaoke here at the site. It was mainly kids singing but it was still a train wreck. Not too many pictures today as we were more concerned about Cohen then pictures...

Tuk El Nuit Lake - Day Four

Day four of our 2011 Tuk El Nuit Lake camping trip started off a tad wet. We awoke to a stiff breeze and some rain but it was not enough to keep Cohen and Kyah away from the beach and the water was still warm which made it even better. Today was the sand castle competition and we chose to make a sea turtle with some babies and some eggs. Chelsey was in charge of the eggs as she has a knack for making sand balls and the kids and I built the turtles. I thought we had a good chance of winning but we lost out to a rather impressive bat mobile; I guess we will have to step up our game for next year!

Today's visitors include the Middlemiss clan and Chelsey's aunt. While I was lucky enough to go golfing at Fairview Mountain Golf Club the kids all played together and had a great time as the weather cleared up a bit. They all rented a canoe and paddled the length of the lake; I guess Chelsey is trying to stay in good Dragon Boat condition. 

I chose to golf Fairview Mountain as it is often ranked as one of the best courses in Canada. After playing it I could see why. The conditions were perfect and the course was quite difficult for a duffer like me; that being said I still had a great time.

I rushed back to help Chelsey get the kids in bed but to my surprise it was going to be a late night. Cohen was dying to jump on the turtle castle so as soon as I got home all the kids got to destroy it. Then Chelsey and her cousin built a pretty good camp fire and we endulged in some smores. It seems Chelsey was not content with just the campfire as when it came time to cook dinner Chelsey and her aunt tried to burn down the cabana; luckily they did not succeed as my golf clubs were in here. 

After that busy day the kids went to bed super good...Yay! Pictures are limited today as we forgot to put the memory card back in the camera. Enjoy what we have...

50 Things to do in BC Before You Die: #14 - Go Tubing in the Okanagan

Great day today camping at Lakeside Resort on Tuk-El-Nuit Lake as we whipped up to Penticton and hammered #14 of our 50 Things to do in BC Before You Die list. I awoke at the crack of dons ass and tried my hand a fishing again; I had no luck but it was awesome being out there on the dingy first thing in the morning. After breakfast we went down to the beach for a quick swim and to play in the sand. The kids love it so much that it is hard to get them to eat their breakfast as all they want to do is go to the beach, nothing wrong with that though.

After playing at the beach we had a quick lunch and headed off for our tubing adventure down the channel in Penticton. The kids were scared at first but once we got going they loved it. Even Chelsey said she was a little hesitant as she was unsure how it would work out but once we got moving she had a blast too. Chelsey wanted to go again but I had to boycott it as I was worried about too much sun; yes I am a baby but it was in the low 30's today. On the ride back to get our car we saw a water park so obviously we had to hit that up before we left Penticton; as always the kids had a blast there.

On our way back we made a stop at world famous Tickleberrys for some of their ice cream. Me being me I ordered the double scoop which actually turns out to be 4 or 5 scoops and the damn thing was bigger then my head. We got the kids child cones which were also massive so needless to say it was awesome. Since it was so hot outside it was a struggle for the kids to eat their ice cream before it melted and they sure did a good job. Enjoy the pictures...

Tuk El Nuit Lake - Day Two

Day two of our trip was lots of fun. The kids awoke at 7:30, 8:00 for Cohen, and we enjoyed a nice breakie of eggs, bacon, sausage and toast; better camping then what I am used to. We spent the majority of the day and the lake and had a blast. We did scoot out to check out Jackson Triggs winery and I must say I do really enjoy the ice wine; Chelsey, Colleen and Darcy checked out one other spot and I took the kids back to the campsite. 

We realized we have to adjust the kids schedule a bit as by 5:00 they were ready for bed, which never happens. By 7:15 they were both asleep which also never happens! Tomorrow we may try and knock something else of our 50 Things to Do List and go tubing down the canal. Enjoy todays pictures...

Tuk El Nuit Lake - Day One

Today is the first day of our week long "camping" trip at Tuk El Nuit Lake here in Oliver. We rented this cool little cabana thing and so far it looks great; even has free Wi-Fi. Chelsey used to come here as a kid so she thought it would be fun to take our kids; I think the kids and I will have a great time, still not too sure about Chelsey! Just a few pictures today for you to all enjoy...

Cohen Slipin' N' Slidin'

We picked up a Slip & Slide for the kids a couple of weeks ago but the weather has been so crappy we have yet had the chance to pull it out. I remember how much fun they were as a kid so I was pretty excited to crack this puppy open. Poor Kyah has an ear infection so she was not too stoked to give it a shot but we will get it out for her again soon.

Anyone who has been lucky enough to spend time with our twins knows that they are unique in their own ways. As funny as Kyah can be, Cohen is especially a very funny kid and super cool. His expressions and attitude always make me laugh and I know when we look back on this video we will remember this is who Cohen is, I just hope he doesn't change too much as he gets older! The pictures from the opening credits are below the video...

Promontory House Fire

Here is a couple shots of the fire this afternoon across from Promontory school. I will upload some video later tonight which was taken before these pictures. The fire was pretty big at the start as we were able to see the flames from our balcony. It took me some time to get the camcorder and then the camera out as we were out front on the slip & slide; more on that later too!

5 Geocaches and a Mountain Top

Today Chelsey and I got a baby sitter for the twins so we could go for a hike up Elk Mountain. I have wanted to do more hiking and get into the back country more but have been too cheap to pay for a baby sitter. Realizing everything can not wait until the kids are old enough to do it with me I figured we should just suck it up and it was well worth it; a few more years and the kids will be able to do most things with me anyways. 

The hike was 8km return with an elevation gain of 674 meters and the peak was at 1304 meters. I took the GPS with me to track our trek but I still need to figure out how to upload it to Google Earth. Lucky for us there were Geocaches the whole way up and we were able to pick up 5 on the way, including one right by the summit - our total is now 45 found!

One of the things on our 50 Things to do in BC Before You Die list is summit a mountain. While technically this hike would qualify I want to do something more challenging before I cross that one off our list. Chelsey on the other hand, would probably be happy to cross it off now. Lots of pictures below for you to all enjoy; they do not do the view justice...