My Trip to Chilliwack, BC: July 2012

Friday July 6, 2012

Met with Pastor Roberto and Maria at there house across from James. What a great people they are to open their home to me and have a time of fellowship and getting to know one another. Conversation was very encouraging and uplifting. Pastor offered to sit with me for two hours a day starting on Monday July 9, 2012. It is great to have people in your life that you can talk to and who are willing to put aside time in their schedule to help someone. I came back to James house and relaxed and was wondering what to eat. So i heated up some chicken and some squash pasta. It was like raviolis with squash in side. I know LOL I did eat and yes I liked it. But half way through it the door bell rang and it was Hugh coming to pick me up and take me to his and Sandras house. So i put the food in fridge and get my stuff together and head over to their house. Was a beautiful day sitting outside on their deck looking out at the Fraser River and the mountains in the distance. humming birds were out looking fior nector in the flowers. They are so cool looking and very small and very very fast.

Its about dinner time and and Sandra and Hugh say "Guess what we are having for dinner?" I said "Please dont do this to me!!" LOL "Are we having deer?" They Say "No, we are grilling Salmon!!" My face dropped and i got a not in my throat and I responded, "Ok, I will try it" GULP LOL They said if i want they would make me something else and i said no, I tried so many other new things I might as well keep going and try Salmon. So I am outside watching Hugh grill the Salmon, peppers, zuchinni and potates. Its looking and smelling really good. Its time to sit down to eat all eyes are on me LOL and we pray. All eyes are still on me and i dive in and take a piece of pepper, zuchinni and Salmon and insert in mouth ready to grab my glass of juice. LOL did not need a drink, I really enjoyed it very much. At the whole thing :) After dinner james joined us after work and had a great time of fellowship and dessert, watched sun set and then went home to sleep and get rested for the next adventure on Saturday. Ok here are pictures.

Sunset with Mountains and Fraser River

Saturday July 7, 2012

Heading to White Rock. A beach area on the west coast right above the State of Washington. We are meeting James Mom, Brother Gordon and his Wife Lisa, and their kids. Its a nice area. The beaches are not like the east coast at home. Our beaches are white sand and feels good on your feet. here it like gray mud. And alot of rocks. But we had a great time talking and laughing as we ate hotdogs and chips and Pop (Soda to us) and watched he kids play in the mud. When we had enough of the beach we heade to James and Gordons moms house for dinner. She prepared meatballs in a special terriyaki sauce, green beans, Salad, and hot rolls. it was all delicious. We made our way to the patio and continued to talk and enjoyed Angel food cake with icecream and raspberry sauce. I had two of them. So Good!! and Tea. 11PM came and it was time to head back to James.

Sunday July 8, 2012

Went to Church and heard another great message from Pastor Lorne Lueck at City Life Church in Chilliwack, BC. He continued his message on Creating a Culture of Hope. After meeting and talking to people with in the Church James and I met Sarah, another friend i have made, at a small English pub that served Fish and Chips. LOVE THOSE THINGS!!! and the great thing was it s Unlimited Fish and Chips. So, we had great food and a great conversation about spiritual warfare and deliverance and our relationship with Christ.
After lunch went to James and i wasnt up to do anything except lay down. Was so tired from beiong in the sun all day Saturday and today Sunday was the hottest day its been since i arrived from New Jersey and to top it off I had a wicked bad headache. So i took a long nap and relaxed the rest of the evening.

VICTORY FISH AND CHIPS one word AWESOME!!!!!

Sarah
Trying English Soda

Me and James
An American and a Canadian (sounds like a Korny movie)

MMMMMMM I had five pieces. So Good!!

All Done!!!

Hope you are all enjoying reading and seeing what I am doing. Alot of what you dont see is me Reading alot: My Bible, and books to encourage and build me up and get me going in the right direction and Sitting with Pastors and talking. I am learning alot and really enjoying getting focused and back on track. Thanks to all myfamily and friends and all my new friends that i have made here for your prayers and encouragement. I have been shown nothing but LOVE. Thanks and more to come.

June 29, 2012
James, Kyle and myself left Chilliwack to go to Vancouver to spend the weekend. With all the rain we have been getting in Chilliwack we were all hoping to get some sunshine someplace else. The City of Vancouver is very beautiful but I will always be a die hard fan of New York City. James has been an excellent host and tour guide, making sure I see and take in all the beauty and sites that he is so proud of living near. Though the weather was not always perfect, being in the presence and company of two friends made everything perfect and filled with fun.
It has been a while since blogging and I need to really stay focused on keeping it updated. There was some much that we did this past long weekend that started on Friday and ended on Monday early evening. So lets get started on our long weekend getaway from Chilliwack.

James: Our driver, tour guide and friend

Kyle: Friend, passenger, navigator and Starbucks Junkie

Me

Before we actually got on our way we had to stop at cost co to get a few things and there is a dairy that has goats on the roof eating grass. i am not kidding look!!

Ok we are back on track and heading to

trip consisted of talking, looking at the surroundings and listening to Rush

This is a bridge that should be finished by next year. Its cool looking!!

Made it to Vancouver

MMMMMMM Pizza with peppers, ham, bacon, and pineapple

After walking around the pier and eating we made our way to the stadium to watch the BC Lions Football Game. This is the opening game of the season. They won the grey cup last year. This is an important game because it is were one of the key players #81 Geroy Simon can make the record of most recieving yards in CFL . What a great and fun night we had.

The singing of Canadas National Anthem OOOOO CAAAANAAADAAA............

The BC Lions VS. Winnepeg Blue Bombers

Half Time Show

Geroy Simon #81 caught the pass that made history in the CFL

Geroy Simon sets record of 15,154 recieving yards!!!! the crowd went wild, it was a great experience seeing history made in the CFL (Canadian Football League).

Geroy was the last player to leave field. he went around and said hi to the fans.

GREAT NIGHT OUT WITH FRIENDS

After the game we stopped to get ice cream and then drove around for a little bit. the rain caught up with us but we still had fun.

Vancouver at Night
Looking from Stanley Park

Lions Gate Bridge

Because of the rain and it not being really clear on the weekend, we are going to take a trip back to Vancouver when it is nicer out to take more picture. Cant wait because it is a beautiful city.

Saturday June 30, 2012

Woke up to another day of rain, but that didnt stop us from getting out and having a good time walking around the area outside of the City of Vancouver.

Lonsdale Quay Market

Tug Boats of course, every harbour has them. But these are Canadian ones

City of Vancouver in the rain

Crepe Escape

Orchards

MMMMMMM Fish and Chips
Kyle was different, he had chineese

Had to take picture of this because the smell reminded me of my Aunt Dee-Dee coming home from when she worked at the fish market when we lived in Queens, NY. She would chase my brother and I around with her stinky hands. Great memories!!

Fresh fruits and Vegtables. I wasnt in the mood for any of that LOL

This is my first picture i took in panoramic assist. Its made up of 4 pictures.

After walking around the Market place and taking some pictures, we got back in the car and drove to a Coastal Rainforest called Lynn Canyon. The weather was very fitting. What a great place to hike and enjoy the natural surroundings God created.

I dont know why I cant get these pictures vertical. Been trying for an hour. So here the are horizontal LOL

Ok time to move on, enough of trying to rotate pictures. GRRRRR

So, after the Rain Forest Park we go back to the hotel room and relax a little and wash up. We go back into the City of Vancouver and grab a bite to eat and make our way to the Queen Elizabeth Theatre to see:

Guess what song they are singing!!

CONCERT WAS AWESOME!!!

Check them out online

Queen Extravaganza

After the concert we walked around Vancouver and got milk shakes and headed back to the hotel. It was a long day. Got into bed and got some sleep for the next days adventure.

Sunday July 1, 2012 CANADA DAY

Ok, so on Sunday morning we have breakfast and load up the car and head back to Chilliwack. being that it is Canada Day, Canadas 4th of July, we didnt want to spend it in a place that was raining. so James decided that we are going where there is sun so we can watch fire works. So we go to Church, go back to James house to pack and pick up Kyle. We are now back on the road heading to Kelowna. The 3 1/2 hour trip was a beautiful drive. What a beautiful place Kelowna is, right next to the Okanagan Lake and surrounded by mountains. And to top it all off it was sunny and it finally felt a little bit like summer in the low 70s lol. We got to our room and got rested up a little and headed to dinner down town by the lake and then watched fireworks to celebrate Canada Day. Everyone is dress with white and red. James even got me a Canada shirt for the occasion. I must say, even though i had fun and enjoyed celebrating with friends and evreyone else that was around, the USA does a better job with fire works. Ok picture time!!

City Life Church

Pastor Lorne

Message was on: Creating a New Culture of Hope

Spoke from Romans 15:13

Pastor Lorne, what a great man!!

On the Road Again

The Town of Merritt is at the base of the mountain and behind the trees.

As you can see, the drive was very scenic and very beautiful.

In Kelowna along the Okanagan Lake.

Bread with Hummus, Olive Salsa, and I think a cheese dip.

My Nachoes
James and Kyle both had Pizza with pepperoni and mushrooms. GROSS!!!!!

After dinner at the Rotten Grape, we went to Starbucks and then we walked around and enjoyed the sunset.

OOOH A BUNNY!! LOL

Fire works started at 10:45

As soon as they were over we started our 1/2 hour walk back to the hotel to get a good nights sleep and be rested for Mondays journey.

Monday July 2, 2012

Good Morning!! Ok, got up, dresses at breakfast, packed, and James went swimming. Checked out at 12 noon and we are off again. Beautiful sunny day!! unlike the weather we have been having in Chilliwack and Vancouver, but like i said, we are having alot of fun. We head to down town to grab lunch before heading back to James house. We eat at a burger place called Gourgeous Georges. Really good burgers, but i got the kid size one cause i dont eat much. After lunch we drove around and went to knox mountain to take pictures and do a little hiking. The view was awesome of the city of Kelowna below from on top of the mountain. When that was over, back in the car and headed home. What a long weekend. Full of fun and quality time with two friends. Ok here are the pictures.