the busyness of spring... (revised post)

June is always a busy month for us. Part of that is due to the fact that we have all of the "boys" birthdays to celebrate. Dad Esau's is June 6th, Jon's is the 10th, Konrad's is the 20th and Erich's is the 25th. (Happy Birthday to Erich today!! Hope you have a great day!)

We had a bbq at Erich & Naomi's last Friday to celebrate Konrad's birthday but seeing as only Mom & Dad E. and Jon & I could make it, he'll be having another party in July. The evening was filled with yummy summertime foods, gifts and lots of laughter.

As I sat and watched Konrad play with his new scooter and other birthday toys, I was overwhelmed at how quickly he has grown up. I moved out here just a month before he was born and I remember the anticipation of his birth as if it was only yesterday. I can hardly believe he's already 4 years old. So much has happened over the last few years. So many wonderful memories. Such intense joy he has brought to our lives.

But apart from lots of birthday celebrations, there are quite a number of other things to look forward to as we draw closer to the end of this month. We're heading to Whatcom Lake (just outside of Bellingham, WA) with the rest of the extended Esau family this weekend and are anticipating a time of relaxation, games, food, boating, laughter and rich conversation. All of which I hope are accompanied with LOTS and LOTS of sunshine :)

Then, when we arrive home on Tuesday, my brother and sister-in-law, Craig & Jen, will have arrived from Saskatchewan for their annual summer visit. I absolutely cannot wait to see them. They'll be here for 2 weeks and I was able to book time off work for the last half of their visit, so I'm hoping to fit in as much with them as I possibly can.

And last but not least, (well... its not in June but still in the not so distant future) we'll be taking a trip over to Vancouver Island to see my wonderful friend Kathleen get married. Her and Jack are tying the knot in Courtney so I'm sure it will be a beautiful setting for a wedding. The wedding is on Sunday, July 13, so Jon and I are hoping to make a weekend of it and take the ferry over on Friday night or Saturday morning. Maybe spend a little time at the beach and tour around, since the only island destination we've been to is Victoria. We're really looking forward to it.

Well, I better get going. Gotta get to a hair appointment. Perhaps the next pictures you'll see of me will come as a shock... :) Or maybe not... haven't decided how "gutsy" I'm feeling yet and whether or not I'll chop off lots or just a little. Guess you'll have to wait and see :)

******REVISION TO POST****** (before and after shots)

The Island...

My parents took Aunt Mo over to Vancouver Island last Friday so she could see Victoria before she left. Jon and I were able to catch the morning ferry over on Saturday and joined them for a day of exploring and enjoying the beautiful sunshine. We started the day with a quick visit to quaint little Sidney. I had no idea a town could be so immaculate. Everything seemed so pristine and perfect. Here we are posing with the town's seaside scuba diver...

The drive into Victoria was absolutely beautiful as well. Jon and I had only been to Victoria one other time and it was in December 2005. Things looked so much better this time around, with the lush green grass and flowers blooming everywhere. It also helped that Dad took the "scenic route" into town and it allowed us to see some of the amazing waterfront residential areas.

Our next stop was the Craigdarroch Castle. I won't get into all the history behind it but if you're ever in Victoria and enjoy old Canadian history, this is a great place to stop. The castle was huge (over 25,000 sq/ft, if I'm not mistaken) and the architectural details inside and out were absolutely incredible, especially considering it was built in the 1800's.

View from the top of the castle...

We had a delicious lunch at a little pub called the "Sticky Wicket." They make a mean BBQ pulled pork sandwich :)

The rest of the afternoon was spent down at the water. Although it was fairly windy, the sunshine kept it from feeling too cool and it was the perfect way to end a great day.

Mom and Aunt Moira hanging out on the rocks...

I had originally thought that a day trip to the island wasn't worth the time it takes to travel there, but I'm really glad that we opted to go after all. It was such a relaxing day and a good chance to spend more time with Aunt Mo before she heads home to Johannesburg. Her flight leaves tomorrow night and I think its safe to say that we're all dreading the goodbye. Saying goodbye is never easy but it is especially tough when its family and there's no certainty of when the next visit will be. It has been such a tremendous blessing to have her here and I just pray that it won't be long before we see each other again.

Aunt Mo... we love you so much and can't tell you enough, just how wonderful it has been to spend time getting to know you better over these last few weeks. The time has passed much to quickly! You fit into our lives so perfectly and we wish you didn't have to go. Please know that we will be praying for you daily. You'll never be far from our thoughts and the memories we've made over the last month will remain cherished in our hearts. Take care and hopefully we'll see you soon! Much love...

Winter wonderland... in June??

Every year the Esau women get together for a little "getaway" weekend. This year we went to Big White (just outside of Kelowna). Unfortunately, I didn't get too many pictures of the occasion but I will add the few that I did get, and of course, an adorable video of Ava being her cute little self.

We were surprised to wake up to this sight on Saturday morning...

We actually got quite a bit of snow. Especially considering it is June!!

Calvin was the only guy that was allowed to join us ladies... and was a huge hit, as always :)

Ava and Calvin woke up EARLY on Saturday morning (as in, 4:30am!) so needless to say Ava was ready for a nap by 10:30am. She and Susie fell asleep together in our room. Too cute!

This was a common sight throughout the weekend as well. Lots of knitting, sitting and relaxing...

My wonderful sisters-in-law preparing our lunch on Saturday...

We finished off Saturday by heading into Kelowna for shopping and dinner out. We ate at a tiny little place called "Mama Rosa's" and though the food was excellent, it was pretty crowded when our group of 15 showed up.

After supper we got ice-cream and walked along the waterfront. It ended up being a gorgeous evening, complete with lots of sunshine and wind :) I stole a few of these pictures from Naomi's blog seeing as I forgot my camera at the condo...

It was a fun weekend and I must say it was pretty neat to be able to say I spent my June weekend in the snow :)

Happy Birthday Jon & Aunt Mo!
Love you both so much...

Not only do Jon and Aunt Mo share a birthday, but they also have a lot of the same interests. That's why this cake was absolutely PERFECT for the birthday celebration! They're both such "handy" people and love anything that involves tools and building things.

Othello Tunnels

We finally got around to seeing the Othello Tunnels in Hope last weekend. Neither Jon or I had seen them in all the years we've lived here but seeing as Aunt Mo is here and is trying to fit in all the site-seeing, we made a day trip out of it as a family (except for Craig & Jen... wish you guys could have been there!!!). The afternoon started out with a picnic at Kawkawa Lake...

Then it was off to the tunnels. Jon found a steel pipe sticking out of a rock and proceeded to "pull it out." A reenactment of The Sword and the Stone perhaps... :)

The newlyweds... Viv & Rich

Mom & Pops...

Boys will be boys :)

Sheer strength people, sheer strength. I even surprised myself... :)

If you've never seen the tunnels, I highly recommend you take a little trip out to Hope to see them. Its worth the drive, especially if you have gorgeous weather like we did. I took a short video to give you a sneak peek. Not sure how clear it will be but here it is anyway...