Rain Camp

Jeffrey and hot dog.

Last month we went camping.  In the rain.  November is Vancouver's rainiest month, and the Scouts have a tradition of camping this month and calling it their "Rain Camp" and usually they do in fact get rain.

On the Friday after Thanksgiving, we arrived at about 6 pm.  It was very dark by then, so we had to wander around the campgrounds with flashlights looking for a good spot.  I was impressed that we were not the only ones there.  We were, I think, the only ones there without RVs.

The style for camping during rain camp is in hammocks.  Self-made hammocks.  Fortunately, the old scout master came along to help us set up the hammocks, which are made with a 50 ft. rope, a blanket, and a tarp.  The tarps completely cover the bags and as long as the bags stay up, they are completely dry.

When we arrived, it was dry, but by 9 pm we were getting a steady, but not hard, rain.  Fortunately, we were about done setting up then.  We enjoyed some hot dogs roasted over the fire, some cookies, and then made a beeline for the hammocks.

Keeping the fire alive

I actually brought a tent, since I was worried about there being enough trees, rope, etc.  I always forget how uncomfortable sleeping on the ground is.  And it was near impossible to get warm.  It was in the low 40s at night, which is not as bad as it could have been.  But having grown up in Florida, I am not used to any kind of cold-weather camping.  And I am using the same sleeping bag I have had since I was 12, and it is sporting some holes, so I'm not surprised I was cold.

The rain continued  most of the night.  I also realized at 3 am that our site was not far from a railroad.  Of the 10 boys that came, 7 went the hammock route, and 3 stayed in tents.

Jeff inside his bag under the tarp

Even though the sun would not come up until 7:30 am, and even then it would be foggy, boys started getting up at 5 am.  "I was bored" was one's excuse.   We got the fire going since the rain had finally stopped.  One bright lad had left his shoes outside his tent.  The bacon was a big hit, but I was the only taker for the eggs.  They spent a lot of time roasting potato chips over the fire.

Light did finally arrive and we realized we were right next to the ocean.  Surprise!  The campground guy came around and looked at our condition and didn't charge us for the night.  One small win!
We then packed up all the gear and headed back and by the time we left it was raining again.  Overall, a very soggy, cold night out.

The War of 1812

One of the more surprising things of moving to Canada has been the frequent references to the War of 1812.  Americans, if they know anything about this war, know the following:

1. the White House was burned down by the Brits.

2. Francis Scott Key was inspired to write "The Star-Spangled Banner" after seeing the flag still flying in the morning after a serious bombardment.

3. The U.S. won one of its most decisive battles after the war officially ended (word traveled slowly back then) thanks to Andrew Jackson in New Orleans.

4. Also Americans are pretty sure the war was between the U.S. and Great Britain, not Canada.

Ok, so yes, Americans did invade Canada and sack York (present-day Toronto).  Americans mistakenly thought Canadians would greet us as liberators, but they didn't find too many takers.  The invasions ultimately failed, and some credit it for forming a national identity for Canada.

Canada as a country didn't come into being for another 50 years - July 1, 1867.  They did, however, spend $30 million on the bicentennial celebration in 2012, which may explain why it is fresh on the mind of many a person.

So now you know, and knowing is half the battle.

Baseball

In the land of futbol (soccer) one of our favorite Saturday activities was getting together to play a little beisbol (baseball).  We were lucky to have a good group of kids the right ages to make it happen.  Some of our regulars were the McKays, the Freestones, the Bolinagas, the Curtis boys, the Gilberts, and a few others.  

With the Gilberts and McKays

The best part about baseball was that it was almost always great weather - early in the morning.  The field was often muddy, but from 8 am to 10:30 am we usually were able to get in a few good innings.  Then we usually hit the pool to cool off.

Maggie representing the Under-8 crowd

Blaine - the little Giant

Abe - in Utah Red

Enjoying some shade

Lucy getting some base running advice

Diego at bat

Laird gets some tips from Miguel Bolinaga

In St. George playing more ball

Laird's Baptism

May 5, 2013

Moving

One major downside to being in the Foreign Service is moving.  A lot. After two tremendous years in El Salvador, we weren't even moving to a different continent.  Staying in North America, but shifting up from tropical to near-tundra.  Ok, yes, Vancouver is the warmest city in Canada.  So we're wimps!  Here is the timeline on this beauty of a move:

May 20-22: Pack-up of our belongings in El Salvador.  Beginning of living-out-of-our-suitcases lifestyle.

On the BYU Cougar in Provo

May 31: Flight from San Salvador to DC.  Mercifully, a direct flight had started a few months before the flight!  Bless you United!

June 2: Day trip to New York.  Never, ever drive to New York City if you can help it.  The tolls will alone will set you back a paycheck, and the traffic is killer.  We rolled back to Virginia at 4 am the next morning.

On our way to my birthday dinner (it closed before we got there!)

June 12: Flight from DC to Utah.  Another direct flight!  2 for 2 United!  Long day.  Especially when I realized that the rental car place closed and I hadn't told them I was coming late.  Whoops.  All kids are jet lagged and dropping like flies.  The rental place helped us out though, and even though they gave away our Grand Caravan, they hooked us up with a Durango.  We barely squeezed in!

June 13-15: Provo, UT, with the indefatigable Uncle J and Aunt Rhonda!  Great hosts.  Love Provo!

June 15: Drive down to St. George.

July 8-10: Road trip to Las Vegas.  St. George is sure a beautiful city.  And warm.  Almost every day was over 100, and a couple of 110 days.

July 16: Pack up the car to go back up to Provo.  Going on 60 days living out of the old suitcases!  Stay with Aunt Ruth and Uncle Ed and drop by to see the Hansens.  Love the Broadbent fam!

Fireworks with the Monroes on the 4th.

July 17: Fly to Vancouver.  Okay, United, 2 for 3.  Major strikeout.  Apparently the puddle jumper to San Fran always gets delayed by fog, so we showed up several hours late and of course missed our connecting flight to Vancouver.  Many hours in SFO later, we finally get on another one.  Note: Never change currencies in an airport! Luggage does not come with us, so we make it to our extended stay hotel at almost midnight and drop into bed.

July 18: Luggage arrives half-way through my first day at work.  Fortunately, my hotel is close, so I can go home and change.  The hotel does miraculously have three bedrooms but it is super tiny.  Also, no A/C.  Houston friends, yes some places do not have A/C!  Wouldn't be so bad, but it is a very sunny July, and our windows face the west.  Some very warm, sunny evenings!

July 31: Retrieve car from shipping company.  It is missing a stereo/DVD system.  Boo.  Our (unwilling) parting gift to El Salvador.  I spend all day trying to get the car up to Canadian specs (daytime running lights?  What is the point of having lights run during the day???) so they will let me drive it.  I then spend more on car insurance than I have in the last 5 years combined for a single year's coverage.  At least we finally have a car and are done with 2 months of rental cars.

August 1: Move into our house and get millions of boxes, but no furniture.  Furniture shipments somehow got a late start out of DC, and won't show up until later.  At least we are no longer living out of suitcases!

Hiking in St. George

August 15: Baby is born.

August 20: Furniture arrives.  We find out the morning of.  We'll take it!

That was our summer adventure of transition.  Whew.

Levi William Broadbent

After less than a month in Canada and only two weeks in our house, we trekked over to Lion's Gate Hospital on late Wednesday night.  Early on Thursday, August 15, Levi William was born.

Welcome to Canada!

Such a sweet boy.

Monroe Party Time

If there is one thing the Monroes excel at, it is packing a lot of activity into a short amount of time.  For the 4th of July weekend in St. George, they were there for a tour de force:

Baseball in the morning

Music

Fireworks

Boating

More boating

Still on the boat

Hiking

River walking

Living it up with the Monroes!

Past and Present

We greatly enjoyed having the McKays live nearby us in El Salvador.  We had great compatibility between families.  Here is a picture from Christmas Eve of 2011:

And 18 months later, meeting the McKays in Washington state in July of 2013:

Summer of (St) George - The City

Many people thought St. George was an unusual place to choose to spend the summer, especially as we had no family there.  After all, the temperatures were regularly above 100 (a few days around 110) in the summer, and it was miles from the beach.  But St. George has a lot of things going for it:

1. Not too far from San Diego and Salt Lake.  San Diego had the Monroes, and Provo-Salt Lake had plenty of friends, family, and the BYU.

Go Cougars

2. St. George is very close to Zion's National Park, and we had been wanting to go there for a while.

St. George Temple

3. For a summer vacation rental, St. George has great prices!  Peak season is winter/spring, and people actively avoid St. George in the summer. 

It's a great place, and if you have a few weeks to spend in a random place, think of St. George.

We spent a lot of time in the pool.

Jacob Hamlin Home

Hitting the batting cages

Some family fun

On the way to my birthday dinner.  Wound up closing before we got there.  Settled for McDonald's.

The Many Faces of James

Perhaps no child is quite as photogenic as this boy:

Turning 3

Yoga with a new haircut

Chilling by the pool

Batting Practice Boy

Driving the Boat

Cruising the Town

Been a long day

Beach serious

Proud Brother

The Swimmer

The Knight

That's all folks!