Christiansen boys!!!

We are lucky to spend some time in Rochester, VT at Wayne's brother, Norm's house, so we got to see cousin Chase, and Aunt Barbara again. Their house up in the Green Mountains is big and lots of fun with tons of toys, a turret, and a jacuzzi. We got our van stuck trying to turn into their snowy driveway, and it was our only semi-worrisome incident with the van so far. I got to go snow shoeing with Barb one day around her friend's farm and the "big" boys played hockey another day as well.

Sweet Caroline

We made it to Burlington, Vermont, and I visited my friend from Goucher, Caroline, whom I hadn't seen since her wedding--I don't know how long ago. It was a great reunion, and here we are having fun with her kids, Carl and Elizabeth. You can tell Elizabeth is in one of the pictures because of her girlie tights...

Freezing in Montreal

We spent Tuesday and Wednesday nights in the van, 1st at a Canadian Walmart, and then at an RV park that said it was open year round, but wasn't (so it was free). Since we can't put the top up anymore on the van, we are all sleeping together "downstairs." It gets a little crowded especially with Joe thrashing around. However, it does stay warmer, which was fortunate because we hit a snow storm in Montreal. This has changed our plans to go to Quebec City and we headed to Vermont today.









The provinces of Ontario and Quebec speak mostly French, so it has been fun and challenging. Wayne's knowledge of French is mainly the names of hockey players and actors (" Guy LaFleur" and "Gerard Depardieu") and mine is equally as inadequate. "Merci" and "Bonjour" can only get you so far.

The weather was so icky yesterday, that we were unable to actually see tall buildings in the city! So we spent the entire day at the Montreal Biodome, a cool zoo-type place that showcased different ecosystems. Tyler and Joe could have stayed forever. Then this morning we went to the Montreal Insectarium which was very fascinating. They had live beautiful scarab beetles, stick and leaf bugs, scorpions, this amazing ant exhibit, and also spiders.

Being in Montreal makes you feels like you are in Europe, and like everywhere else we've been on this trip, I can't wait to return. I feel like we missed out on too many things already...

Niagara Falls

We spent two nights in the Canadian side of Niagara mostly to spend a day at the Fallsview indoor water park--way fun and fortunately not busy while we were there. Tyler was able to ride almost everything. Wayne and I actually have been to Niagara Falls over ten years ago, and also in January. I'd sure love to see it not frozen.






But it is very beautiful in the winter and the closer you get to Horseshoe Falls, the mist from the falls freezes all over the railings and buildings and anything close by.

Niagara has changed a lot in ten years, and has casinos, a ferris wheel, haunted houses, and Ripley's Believe or Not-type attractions. It can definitely suck all the money out of your wallet if you aren't careful, especially with little boys. Thank goodness Tyler and Joe can't read yet.

Ann Arbor

We weren't ready to leave Michigan yet, and had to spend some time in Ann Arbor, home to Wayne's alma mater, University of Michigan. The kids and I were subjected to a tour of Wayne's frat house, other fraternities and sororities, and all the bars where he used to hang out. He did show us other buildings where he may have had classes. Actually, it was a lot of fun driving around campus, and we tried to sneak into all the sporting arenas.  The football field was definitely off-limits and we were kicked off the Yost Ice Arena rink.

And, fortunately for me, Ann Arbor is home to the world-famous Zingerman's Deli, another must visit-and-eat destination for me, where we grabbed lunch and sampled olive oils and breads.  This place was fun, even for Wayne, or so he said. Seriously check  out www.zingermans.com for foodie fun.

Goodbye, Grand Rapids

Grand Rapids was a lot of fun, but now it's time to move on and continue our trek. We feel fortunate to have had a chance to sleep in a real bed, cook on a real stove, watch some TV, join the YMCA for a week, watch a Grand Rapids Griffins hockey game, and play in the snow---lots of it... We got to spend a nice time with family and Wayne's high school friends, the Tols and the Krupps (Hi, Carly!). Thank you all for your hospitality, and Grandma and Aunt Jen we will miss you!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

On New Year's Eve, Wayne and I ran a fun 4 mile road race, called the Resolution Run near Reed's Lake in East Grand Rapids, so we are all ready for 2009. We had a pretty calm rest of the day, because we were a bit TIRED... We went out to eat with Grandma and her friends, the Markhams and the French's which was relaxing, and then Tyler, Joe and I crashed before 10:00 p.m.


We are looking forward to another great year and hope it is productive and fun for all our friends and family!