Oh Canada!

This past week was fraught with adventures for us! And, they were the best kind because not only did we get to do fun things, we got to do them all with family! We kicked off our adventures on Friday afternoon with lunch at Mimi's Cafe (www.mimiscafe.com) with our friends Matthew and Beth who are on their way to a new adventure in New York. We’re thrilled that they’ll be able to enjoy each other’s company more (now that they won’t each be commuting an hour one way!), but we’re definitely sad to see them go because *we* won’t be able to enjoy their company as easily! Nevertheless we wish them well in their new venture and look forward to visiting New York!

After lunch on Friday, we returned home and packed for our flight the next day. We would be traveling to Detroit where we would stay one night and then venture over the border into Canada for a visit with Mark’s grandmother. When we arrived in Detroit, we made our way to the car rental agency where we got more than we bargained for! Since they were out of mid-sized vehicles, they upgraded us to a Chrysler 300 – a very nice luxury sedan with leather seats, satellite radio and such a smooth ride that when we returned home and drove our car for the first time in several days, MeLissa was wondering if there was something wrong with one of the tires since the ride was so bumpy!

Once we had our vehicle, we headed toward Mark’s Aunt Connie’s house where we would be staying the night. While there, we met Uncle Dickie and Dominick. We all headed out for a late dinner and then returned to the house where we enjoyed discussing a variety of topics with Aunt Connie. It was a great start to our vacation! The next morning, we enjoyed a yummy breakfast and then said our good-byes and headed up the road to Canada where we would visit with Uncle Timmy and Grammy!

Once we finally made it across the border into Windsor, Ontario,(we experienced some delays due to our confusion over road signs and such), we visited the visistor’s bureau to see what there was to do while we waited for Uncle Timmy and Grammy to arrive. When they did arrive, it was fun to see how surprised and excited Grammy was to see us since she hadn’t known we were coming to visit.

We all piled into our respective vehicles and headed to Kingsville, Ontario, where Grammy lives. We all chatted for a little once we arrived and then Mark and Uncle Timmy took a trip to visit the docks while Grammy and MeLissa relaxed and enjoyed each other’s company. It had been a few months since we'd been able to have a nice chat so we had a lot of things to talk about!

Later that day, we were able to see Aunt Inie and Aunt Faye. They were thrilled to see how tall and handsome Mark had grown to be. They hadn’t seen him for such a long time! And, they were also happy to meet MeLissa since they had only been able to see her in the wedding picture that they had received in their Christmas card! We all took a little jaunt out to grab some dinner at a restaurant in town and then, Mark, MeLissa, Aunt Inie and Aunt Faye traveled to Aunt Inie’s house where we could share our wedding video.

When we arrived at her house, Aunt Inie called Cory & Mary Ellen and Jodie & David (Mark’s cousins) to see if they could come for a visit with us. Everyone came over including Katie and Crissy, Jodie and David’s daughters. They were all very happy to see the wedding video…some were even close to tears! We enjoyed each others company for a good while and then we all returned home for a good night’s rest.

The next day, we traveled back to Windsor to visit the chiropractor and Devonshire mall for a bit of shopping. MeLissa was surprised and excited to learn that Northern Reflections, the retail store she had worked in during college, was still in existence (she had thought they had closed their doors years ago!). She learned that the store had pulled back its operations and was only found in Canada and a couple of US locations. She made good use of her find and walked out with a couple of new outfits to enhance her wardrobe. We also made a quick stop by Hooters to grab a hat for Uncle Max who we knew would appreciate it. While we were there, we paused to allow Mark the opportunity to pose with the Hooter's Hum-V which they had given away recently.

That night, after a trip to the grocery store, MeLissa made Grammy and Uncle Timmy dinner with help from Mark, of course! Everyone was delighted with the culinary offerings and enjoyed the opportunity to relax and enjoy each other’s company. Following dinner (and clean-up, of course), Mark, Uncle Tim and MeLissa watched “Be Cool” and then headed off to bed.

Tuesday would be our last full day in Ontario and we made good use of it visiting with family members. Aunt Inie and Aunt Faye were accompanied by Aunt Ann and her daughter, Mark’s cousin, Robbie. It was fun hearing stories they told about growing up and raising their families. Watching for squirrels was also amusing! We headed to King’s Landing for lunch, for which we were joined by another Aunt Ann – you can never have too many! After lunch, we said good bye to Aunt Ann and Robbie and hello to Mary Ellen who joined us for more story telling!

When it was time for everyone to head out, Mark, Uncle Timmy, Aunt Faye and MeLissa all piled into the car and headed to Jack Miner’s to see the geese and other birds that live and visit there. Jack Miner was the pioneered the tagging of waterfowl so that their migration could be tracked in 1909.

After having a good gander (ha ha!) at the geese, ducks and peafowl, we ventured to Leamington, home of the Heinz factory where Aunt Faye lives. After visiting for a while at her house, we returned to Grammy's where we decided to take a little walk. On our way, we caught site of this beautiful Blue Jay.

The next day, we packed up and headed back to Detroit to fly home. We were sad to leave Canada and all of our sweet relatives behind! We'll be visiting again soon we hope. Once we arrived in Detroit, we had a little extra time so we took the opportunity to eat lunch and to explore a few areas of Detroit in our vehicle. Then it was off to the airport and back to California for a couple of days....until we headed off for our next adventure.