last call for wonder

We left Winnipeg this morning as it was beginning to rain again. How thankful we were for a day of sunshine yesterday! Breakfast this morning was Safeway donuts, not the healthiest way to start the day but the quickest. Trans-Canada Highway took us right downtown Winnipeg to leave the city. We actually enjoyed one more stint downtown, even though we hit some rush hour traffic. Joseph informed me on the way out that he would enjoy living in Winnipeg. I didn't say a whole lot....... :) About .5 hour outside the city the rain stopped and the sky opened up to grace us with sunshine again. We had barely crossed the Ontario border (shot guns were fired ) when the surroundings felt Northern Ontario, it all happened so quickly. Rocks, lots of lakes, beautiful forests and our favourite birch trees! Even though there was a lot of driving today, there was plenty of good energy for we all felt like we were close to home. As Abigail put it in a text home to grandma “we are in Ontario now, so close yet so far!”. One thing I love about Ontario is all the pull offs for restrooms and picnics. Today I was able to make sandwiches on a picnic table beside a beautiful lake instead of in the back seat on a cooler lid. What a treat! Our driving time (8.5 hours) was spent today napping (the kids swam and did the water slide until 10 pm last night) and listening to Jack London's A Call of the Wild. Great day, great trip. Joseph and I periodically look at each other and say in awe “we're doing it, we're actually doing it, our long awaited road trip!” We are so thankful for this opportunity. Thank you God.

on the left side of my door is a bundle of maps for every state and province we've driven through, today Katrina asked for the bundle one last time, only this time it was our Ontario!

we pulled over in a secluded rest area along a blue lake, Katrina took sandwich orders, and others explored on foot

I found another message left for me, and appropriated it into present tense of enjoying the moment together.

with such clear and available water....some dared to waid in and feel it between their toes,  others were excited to find a "crayfish kitchen" from the local raccoons... 

predator and prey takes on a whole new meaning in "musky" country, most lures were larger then the fish we would have kept, and cost an average of 30.00-50.00 each...but we were told by the person in the store that it was an amazing sport, we went away wondering...and looking up at any mounted monster we could find before we kept driving.....

Today was the first day in almost a month that we have been in Ontario. Over the course of the ten hour day we saw many changes that included hills starting to form out of the flatness of manitoba. One thing that I enjoy about Ontario is that it feels accessible where the rocky mountains were so big, that it almost felt unreal where these cliffs are beautiful but they are formations that feel down to earth. Down to where we are on the ground,  not just huge mountains that feel realy far away. I am excited about coming home and tomorrow we are going to the largest suspension bridge in North America.


-Joshua-

as we drove next to this car, we could not help but wonder what was smarter, not running out of gas between gas stations with signs about purchasing something before we use the wash room...or adding fuel to a fender bender?