Hockey arenas, outdoor skating rinks and bright sunny walking trails will define our winter this year. Because we know Con's access to hockey will be extremely limited next year, we have said yes to every hockey opportunity Con has been offered. He plays on two teams and is an affiliate player for the playoff season. He has been maintaining a DAILY ice time streak for a while now. My brother has a line on ice time in California, we've found some mega malls in Thailand with skating rinks, and we plan to pack our mini sticks for the North American road trip.
It is this love of sport that we are banking on, to provide spontaneous play opportunities with little strangers. We are planning to buy soccer balls wherever we go, to play with and then gift them away before we leave. I imagine making a little flip book with pictures of the kids we have played with, all holding a new soccer ball that has become theirs shortly after meeting my kids.
Trip planning update: On our walk yesterday, Con said, "I feel so much better when I am outside. Why is that?" Ben and I laughed because, although we sometimes struggle to get out the door in a timely fashion, we too know that we are our best selves when living outside. We told him it was genetic.
The first part of our trip that has been planned to live outside. It is our 10 day canoe trip in Temagami. We are hoping to start our trip up at Mowat's Landing on the Montreal River, Lady Evelyn Lake and travel down through the resilient forest burns (hopefully getting some blueberries), hike through the Old Growth forests (definitely feeling the comforting, towering greatness), and paddling/portaging our way to the Town of Temagami (visiting our friends @TemagamiOutfitters) before continuing North and West.
After a quick stopover with lifelong friend SK in Thunder Bay, it won't be long until we are met by some Guelphites for a Quetico Canoeing Adventure! This is the home of Con's first canoe trip (17 months old), although he will not be visiting the same lakes, as we plan to enter into the park further west than before. We plan to spend some quality time with the Thunder Bay families because they are beautiful and because... we can!
Instead of starting the school year, we will be gallivanting west still. Next stop Caron, Saskatchewan. This is where my grandfather's family farm was before they moved to Ontario. It is a small town on the Trans Canada Highway, so we'll stop and check it out because... we can! If you have any particular must-sees between Winnipeg and Dinosaur Provincial Park , please let us know. We are looking for and loving the idea of connections across Canada.
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