So we took a trip over to Vancouver, a ferry boat away this past weekend for a family vacation. We stayed in the
delta hotel in one of their suites. It was a great hotel! The kids ate free from the limited kids menu, which was a nice bonus, and everyone there was so friendly. The kids even got a welcome package of some toys when we checked in, and we all got homemade cookies - delicious.
First let me tell you about the ferry ride. It was brutal in a way. Our kids hated being on the outside decks, complained it was too cold, and they are too old for the play area. There is an arcade for older kids, which we took over on the ride back so the kids could pretend to drive the cars, but it is meant for kids older than ours are. So entertaining a 6,5,4 and 3 year old got to be difficult. We fed them snacks that we had brought, wandered around a lot. Craftymama took in the gorgeous views, and missed the ocean even more.
We unloaded and first went to
stanley park. It's this great big park with numerous things to do. We ended up at second beach, as it had two playgrounds, a big open field, the ocean, and well, after driving for 15minutes looking for somewhere to go in the park we stumbled upon it. Parking was insane, both in cost and in method - but we figured it out. The kids had a great time playing on the fire truck, swinging on swings, and enjoying the ocean air. We were lucky, the rain held off and the sun poked its head out a bit warming the area a bit.
Then we headed off to check into the hotel. As I said, we were greeted awesomely! We went up to out room, on the 14th floor, and it was amazing. A separate room with two double beds for the kids, and a pull out couch for Andrea and I. There were two tv's, which we made use of in the evening, and a small fridge to store the food we had brought from home. We went out for dinner at the hotel that night and then tucked the kids into bed.
The next morning we took the skytrain to
Science World! The kids loved the skytrain so much, and our hotel was 2 blocks away from the station so it made getting there even easier. The cost was insane, about $110 for all of us and two were free, we hoped it would be worth it. We went to all the exhibits, and had a momentary melt down with LittleR wherein she had to be taken outside as she was screaming so loudly that she wanted to go home. The kids loved the water and ball area, as well as the large scale marble run. Also hits were the giant floor piano, the tree house, and the bubble show!
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| In a space ship |
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| The screaming |
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| Playing with the human body |
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| THE GIANT PIANO! |
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| Trying to grab an apple |
We headed back to the skytrain and road it around past our station as the kids loved it so much. M actually fell asleep on the train, and K looked bored and like she had been riding it for years - but they all claim it as one of the highlights from the trip.
We went back to the hotel, had snack, and let the kids play while Craftymama and I recovered from that experience. Then it was off to a local yarn store! So exciting for us, but not for the kids. I would like to point out here that we did not piss anyone off driving in vancouver - no one honked, no one tailgated and all was well. Go us!
That evening we gave the kids baths, which they were quite excited about as it was a new bathtub, and tucked them into bed. Craftymama and I unwound that evening and tried to get a decent nights sleep on that pullout couch to no avail.
The next morning was checkout time, so we packed all of our things, and headed off to the giant library that was 3 blocks from the hotel. We found great parking right across the street, grabbed some coffee from Starbucks, and headed in. It was so big and so overwhelming. The kids section is an entire floor. You could probably fit the Duncan library into half of the kids section! The coloured, played with trains, read a few stories and then we were back off to the ferry for home.
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| M playing with the trains at the library |
It was a great trip, and one that will be remembered for many reasons. The kids had a blast and hopefully created some memories that will last them a while if not a lifetime.
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| Recovering |
We unloaded and first went to stanley park. It's this great big park with numerous things to do. We ended up at second beach, as it had two playgrounds, a big open field, the ocean, and well, after driving for 15minutes looking for somewhere to go in the park we stumbled upon it. Parking was insane, both in cost and in method - but we figured it out. The kids had a great time playing on the fire truck, swinging on swings, and enjoying the ocean air. We were lucky, the rain held off and the sun poked its head out a bit warming the area a bit.
Then we headed off to check into the hotel. As I said, we were greeted awesomely! We went up to out room, on the 14th floor, and it was amazing. A separate room with two double beds for the kids, and a pull out couch for Andrea and I. There were two tv's, which we made use of in the evening, and a small fridge to store the food we had brought from home. We went out for dinner at the hotel that night and then tucked the kids into bed.
The next morning we took the skytrain to Science World! The kids loved the skytrain so much, and our hotel was 2 blocks away from the station so it made getting there even easier. The cost was insane, about $110 for all of us and two were free, we hoped it would be worth it. We went to all the exhibits, and had a momentary melt down with LittleR wherein she had to be taken outside as she was screaming so loudly that she wanted to go home. The kids loved the water and ball area, as well as the large scale marble run. Also hits were the giant floor piano, the tree house, and the bubble show!
Ahh the giant piano....
ReplyDeleteikr - the kids loved running back and forth on it, can't say they made beautiful music, but they did make a lot of noise!
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