Banff

While we were in Revelstoke we decided to take a quick trip to Banff. The last time Josh and I were there was when I was pregnant with Maddy. Now that the kids are older, they were able to handle the long drive with relative ease. Maddy was very excited to be there because her Maplelea Doll "Taryn" is from Banff and I was hoping to get a nice picture of Maddy and her doll. In the first picture below, you can probably see that Ethan could sense something was up with all the pictures Jeh-Jeh was having taken.

Here he is trying to completely block Maddy from view in the picture. Haha. He cracks be me up!

After we checked into the campsite we drove into town for dinner, followed by an ice cream for dessert.

Then it was back to the campsite to get ready for marshmellows. I'm sure the kids felt like they hit the jackpot that night

The next morning we went into town again for breakfast and then I wanted to take the kids to a special candy store. 

When I was about 10 yrs old, my family came to Banff to go skiing. Completely out of the ordinary, my parents took us in this store and told us we could choose whatever we wanted, as much as we wanted. We were CRAZY excited and as an adult I don't remember much about that trip, but I vividly remember that time in the candy store. We weren't brave enough to do the 'as much as you want' part, but we did say to the kids that they could pick out anything they wanted. It was fun, we'll save the big time for when they are older and can remember it. I posted this picture for my brother and sisters. The second I poked my head in the store, I knew it was the same one. I wonder if they recognize it too. It looked exactly the same!

We then went to Lake Louise. It was as gorgeous as ever.

We rented a canoe and took the kids out for their first canoe ride.

 Back in the car for the long ride back home to Revelstoke.

 It was a quick trip and not really what I'd consider camping, but it was still a lot of fun. I look forward to summers in the future when we can do some real hiking and exploring of the Banff area. It really is beautiful and I can see why people come from all over the world to see it.