Canada Vacation

Pitcher Family Reunion

August 9-13, 2012

Payne Lake Lodge

Cardston, Alberta, Canada

In August, Matt's family went back to their roots--Cardston, Alberta, Canada--for a family reunion. Me and Matt and our kids flew into Salt Lake late Wednesday night and caravaned with his parents and sister up to northern Montana on Thursday. We met up with Layne, Ginny, and their families on Friday morning and began the reunion. The entire gang stayed at Payne Lake Lodge, and we spent most of our time at Glacier and Waterton National Parks.

Kaitlyn

Skylie on the car ride to Canada

Sky, Matt, and Kaitlyn at breakfast

Kaitlyn's Great-Grandpa Cahoon

Kaitlyn's Great-Grandma Cahoon
I am kicking myself for not getting pictures of Skylie with her grandparents and great-grandparents

Great-Grandma Pitcher

Papa, Braylie, and Skylie hiking Bear's Hump in Waterton National Park. Skylie hiked nearly every step of it all by herself.

Our gang atop Bear's Hump

Matt and Skylie on Bear's Hump overlooking Waterton

Sky, Addy, Ben, and Brayden during the picnic before hiking at Grinnell

Skylie and Braylie

Our family on the boat ride before hiking to Grinnell Lake in Glacier National Park

Matt with a a mustache? Maybe?

Perhaps the entire family could pull it off.

Skylie and Braylie at Grinnell Lake. These two became fast friends, and Sky still talks about her cousin often.

At Grinnell Lake--one of the prettiest places I've seen.

Our family with Grandma and Grandpa Cahoon at Grinnell Lake Lodge. Despite their age they hiked right along with us.

Matt's cousin, Kenny, graciously agreed to take the entire family boating Monday evening. Nana stayed home with Kaitlyn, so we got to spend some one-on-one time with Sky.

Matt, Tyler, and Layne had a wild ride on the tube.

Eventually Kenny succeeded in sending them overboard.

Laura and I enjoyed a much more mild ride with the little girls.

See Skylie grinning ear-to-ear? She was in heaven. (I remember when I was young my friend, Heather, would invite me to go boating with her family. Heather and I would go on the tube together, and I'd always be signaling a thumbs up sign to "Go faster! Go faster!") I think we've got another little dare devil--or two--on our hands.

Braylie, Skylie, Kohen, and Kael playing in the sand while some when boating  for one last ride at dusk.

A few highlights I want to remember are:

• Swimming and dining in Montana
• Talks with Matt's mom and dad on the car ride to Canada
• Hiking--a lot. Bear's Hump in Waterton and the Grinnell Lake Trail in Glacier are a few hikes I can recall
• All the quarters Nana and Papa gave the grandkids for finding cool stuff on the hikes (or for any other reason Nana could think of)
• Playing Minute-to-Win-It
• Picking berries 
• Braylie and Skylie watching movies in Brad and Laura's van
• Dinner at Grandma and Grandpa Cahoon's
• Searching for golden rocks
• The candy store in Waterton
• All the time and efforts Matt parents put into making this reunion run smoothly
• Boating with Kenny
• How loopy and funny Skylie became when she got so, so tired
• How sad I felt to leave. I had to fight back a tear or two. It is always hard leaving when I know it will probably be a year--or more--before we see family again.