Canada!

When Pat asked if I wanted to go to the Calgary Stampede, I thought it would be fun, but what I was most excited about was Calgary's proximity to Lake Louise and Banff, two places that I had wanted to see!!
 And so I dropped the kids off with my parents, had a very long journey to get there, but when I made it to Lake Louise, I felt like it was all worth it! It was one of the most peaceful, beautiful, places I have been!  And one of the best spots to spend my birthday!!
 After Lake Louise, we headed to Banff, and then to Calgary.  I had a great time at each spot! I was so grateful to have a break from the kids, spend time with Pat, and see new sights!! So much fun!

I couldn't get over  how beautiful it was! And couldn't wait to get there the next day to see in with different lighting! 

Every direction we looked was gorgeous!! 

We made our own  happy hour in the Lake Louise village with our cups of wine:).  We couldn't get over how pretty everything was! Then we grabbed dinner in the village at "The Outpost".  

The next morning. . .. 

We headed over early for a hike! You can see our shadows:).  We're so big!! 

Pat probably thought we'd never make it to the hike because I wanted to stop and take so many pics!! 

More pics after the hike!

I love this place!

BANFF. . . . .

We didn't spend as much time in Banff, but I loved driving through the quaint village, and going to the "castle"! It was so amazing! 

This was our view from our lunch at the hotel!

We took a drive so we could see the hotel from a distance.  It is so spectacular!! 

Calgary. . . .

Our first night there, we ate a a guy's house which overlooked the Stampede, (which is to the left of the stadium), and the sunset behind the skyline was so pretty!

So fun to wear a cowboy hat all weekend! The chuck wagon behind us was the one were were cheering for! 

The chuck wagon races were interesting.  We had great seats, but I had a hard time getting into the races:).  It was fun to talk to people around me, though:). 

Time for the rodeo! Again, loved wearing cowboy boots and a hat! And the rodeo was pretty cool! 

You can see the Calgary skyline in the background.  The stampede is right downtown!

We went to mass, then walked to a  really neat restaurant on our last night! 

I have to give credit to my parents for helping us make it happen! I knew that it would be a lot for them to watch three kids a baby for four days, and so appreciated them taking it on! The kids loved their time with them and their cousins! And I'm grateful for my siblings, as well! They all were there, or in Kyrstin's case, at the Giants game with them during the week, so it made it fun for the kids to see all their cousins and aunts and uncles!


This is a picture from one of our stops on the way home.  I'm always so impressed with what good sports they are to make the big drive! We actually enjoy our road trip most of the time!