Oh Canada....

So I'm on the plane home from vacation right now using my travel time to write this blog for all of my loyal readers...all two of them. :) We just spent a fabulous time in Vancouver, Whistler, and then one day in Seattle with our good friends Luke and Sara. It was so much fun and so relaxing. We didn't make too many big plans as far as what to do before we came so we just kind of flew by the seat of our pants and saw the sites that were recommended to us by friends and other people we met along the way. (By the way there is a man snoring right behind us! haha!) We started by meeting Preston's parents in Dallas to drop off Chase and then fly to Seattle. (I'll post pics of Chase's week later.) In Seattle we met up with Sara and Luke and we rented a car and drove up to Canada. We stayed 3 nights in Vancouver at a great hotel with a view. We had used Priceline for our reservations so we ended up with a killer deal. Luke is the master of getting upgrades and free stuff so we ended up being upgraded to the concierge level and having access to the lounge that had a great view and snacks all the time. Sweet! We shopped, went to Stanley Park, went into the mountains and walked across a suspension bridge, went the Aquarium, and ate A TON! After that we caught a bus up to Whistler (which for those of you who don't know is one of the largest, most popular ski areas in North America). Obviously we didn't ski since it's July. Apparently their summer sport is Mountain biking. It was so weird to just walk around the town with all these people with full body pads on and their bikes. They were all dirty and muddy most of the time with various visible injuries. We did rent bikes but stuck to the paved paths at the bottom of the mountain. Whistler was absolutely amazing...so beautiful. It was very apparent that people's hot/cold tolerance was relative to where you are from. The locals wore shorts, tank tops, flip flops, etc. Those of us from the South who just came from 90 degree weather were cold and wearing our sweat shirts and pants. ha! The highlight of our trip was our Zip Trek through the forest. So awesome! I highly recommend going on zip line tours when the opportunity comes up! (see pictures below) We only spent one night in Whistler and rode a train home. The train ride was great and I think train travel is one of my favorite ways to travel now. The view was awesome since we chugged right along the coast and also through a canyon. That evening back in Vancouver we went to a national fireworks competition. We saw Spain's show and it was amazing. I've never seen fireworks like this. Another highlight of our trip was our star-struck moment as we were leaving the fireworks crowd. We stepped in this cupcake shop and guess who was also there!? JAN from THE OFFICE! If you don't watch "The Office" you won't care but all four of us love the show and it's actually Preston's and my favorite show. Check out her pic with Luke and Preston below. She was really nice and we talked for a while. She was with her two daughters buying them pink cupcakes with sprinkles. She even asked us to watch her stroller for a second...which leads me to believe that we're totally best friends now. The next morning (yesterday) we drove back to Seattle and went to the Market which was really cool and ate at a couple of really great restaurants for lunch and dinner. Then this morning we flew out which is where we are now. Chase will be waiting for us at the gate with MiMi and PaPa and I can't hardly wait to see him!!!!

Us in Vancouver

We rented bikes and rode around Whistler
That's right folks! It's Jan (aka Melora Hardin) from The Office!
The Market in Seattle
More Market Pics
The first Starbucks ever
This pic depicts what we really did the whole time we were on vacation...eat!
Just before the zip line tour!

Me on the zip line
Preston showing off his skills on the zip line!
On the train from Whistler to Vancouver
The train
Suspension Bridge
A stop on our way to Whistler by bus
The crew.

Oh and by the way the beginning of my trip was filled with hours of reading the latest Harry Potter book (I will post NO spoilers here for those who haven't finished). It came out the day we left on our trip (but OF COURSE I went to a book store party and bought it at midnight). I informed Preston that I would not be talking to him as we drove to Dallas or as we flew to Seattle. I finished it within 3 days and was pretty sleep deprived. Sorry if I ignored you guys! It was sooooooo good. I highly recommend the series to anyone. (Keep in mind that you have to read all 7...start with year 1.) Did I mention that it was soooooooo good? Here's a nerdy pic from the midnight party with my HP friends: