A day and half after returning from our cruise, our dear friends Erica & Jim came out to visit us. They did a combo Seattle/Vancouver trip, so I picked them up from the train station on Thursday and they stayed until Sunday morning. It's been quite a whirlwind of making sure there are clean sheets, clean towels and Aerobeds with enough air the past few weeks, but it has been fun.
We had a great weekend, as we welcomed Vancouver's first official summery days and it was hot. We checked out Granville Island's Children's Festival, Capilano Suspension Bridge (again) and Grouse Mountain, whose resident Grizzly Bears are out and about. Melvin overcame the Grouse Grind with Jim, while still officially closed (twice this season), so he's becoming an expert. We were also lucky enough to take an awesome boat ride out of Horseshoe Bay on Saturday. We closed the weekend with dinner at Hapa Izakaya (pleasantly surprised by the food). I discovered Hapa Izakaya makes their own chocolate banana crepe mille feuille, so of course I was in heaven and will surely be returning specifically for that!
As with every restaurant/bar in Vancouver Saturday night, the 2nd Stanley Cup playoff game was being shown. Crazy Canucks fans everywhere, probably wondering why we weren't as excited as they were each time someone scored....
So Jim & Erica left early this morning and we attended a 1st birthday party for Julian and Amelie's friend, Gavin. He spent some time in BC Children's Hospital's NICU after his birth, so in place of a traditional birthday party, we did the Kids Fun Run to help raise money for the hospital. Team Gavin raised over $6,000 CAD.
Needless to say, we are exhausted! I can't believe I'm saying this, but I welcome the daily grind and routine...and the diet starts tomorrow! The Aerobeds will take a break until end of July when our next set of visitors arrive :)
