Today we got off to a healthy start with a swim and gym session at the motel.  I knew the motel in Shelby, where we were spending the night, has closed their pool for renovation so there was no need to hurry there; instead we chose to make use of the facilities we had available to us before driving for the day.  We had a long drive ahead as we were detouring a good distance...

We enjoyed a slow start to our days in Mandan but Sandy and the kids would all rush out the door to work and school.  We’d enjoy breakfast with Steve and Evan and then work out our plans for the day.  On Thursday we headed into downtown Bismarck to see the Capitol Building and to meet Sandy at work.  We took a tour of the Capitol Building and the adjoining Heritage Centre. ...

Love it or hate it Halloween in America is quite an experience.  This is my third ‘real’ Hallloween; Harris and Steve’s second and Patrick’s first.  Halloween in America is a family affair and lots of fun.  Yes, it can be a little spooky for younger children but generally great care is taken to shelter little ones from anything too scary; unless of course they have older...

We set off early today as we had a long and probably not a very riveting drive to Mandan, North Dakota.  Our motel offered a basic breakfast of cereal, muffins and toast so we filled up; packed the car and hit the road.  It was cold outside, the roadside signs indicated it was -7C.  The sun was still rising as we left Regina for the USA border.  We saw numerous flocks of...

The alarm went off at 6 am in our attempt to get up early and hit the road early.  Hmmm, the snooze button got pushed a couple of times before I got up, purely because I wanted to get the best donuts (which I did)!  Once I was up I couldn’t go back to bed so I worked on the website in peace and quiet and did some exercise to wake me up.  We were out the door and on the road...

Another day in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.  I’d love to hear a toddler trying to spit out that mouthful.  It is fun to say.  So, anyway we were spending two nights in Saskatoon so today was a local sightseeing day.  The boys were excited because we weren’t driving anywhere (far) today.  Huh, just wait for the next 2 days, we’d make up for that.  Today we started the day with a...

The Econolodge offered a basic breakfast of toast, cereal and a selection of cakes and muffins for breakfast which wasn’t too bad.  I went for a run around the block in -2C weather with a slight drizzle.  When I got back the boys had started some homework and we commenced packing gear to hit the road again.  Suddenly Harris declared, “It’s snowing!”.  We all raced to the...

Brekky in the hostel and then out the door to start our journey to Lloydminster, a town bordering both Alberta and Saskatchewan.  As we were staying in the Old Strathcona area of Edmonton then it was nearly compulsory that we stop at the Old Farmer’s Market on the way out of town since it is only open on a Saturday.  The market is indoor, as you might expect of a market...

Our last day to get out and about in Edmonton and we declared not to go to WEM.  After a walk I decided that we needed to drive to the downtown of Edmonton to at least have a look, even if we didn’t get out and walk around, and then we could find a playground for the boys.  So that is what we did. I had some addresses for parks so we plugged those into the GPS and we headed...

Our day begun with our own breakfast in the hostel in Edmonton and then I set off for a walk to the Old Strathcona district just a block away from us.  This is an ‘old’ area of Edmonton, which really isn’t that old but is by Canadian/Australian standards.  The 100 year old buildings are now home to cool coffee shops, clubs, bookstores etc and have ‘character’.  When I...