Panorama is feeling more and more like a second summer home. This year felt extra normal. Everyone knows the lay of the while land. We're not worried at all about kids loosing their way or being out when it's dark. It just feels like home. This year, everyone went for the whole week so there was no shortage of cousins or friends to be with.
We all arrive on Sunday July 19th around dinner time. One by one unpacking and settling in. Our drive was great.. insanely squishy, but great.
Day 2 was filled with biking and beading and cousin fun!
Brian and Steven did a white water paddle board river thing which ended early, with one lost paddle, one broken phone and a whole lot of "next time..." scenarios but Brian loved every second of it! Im glad they got to do that together and that really, they were both in one piece when they got out.
We played outside the whole entire day. just finding games and cousins and soaking in the BC sun. We even made slime .. which was equally chaotic and fun!
Grandma did hair tinsel in the girls hair and we finished the evening off at the candy cabin! Perfect day!
Day 3 was a little bit of a "life gives you lemons.. just make lemonade" kind of day. Bentley broke his braces late monday night and since he's on the home stretch of getting them off and under strict instructions not to break them, we had to have an emergency ortho appointment in Calgary. They booked us in for 3:20pm so we had to leave Panorama by 11:30am and we got back around 8pm.
Tuesday was the day we chose to do activities up at the top of the gondola. We made sure to get up there right at 10am so we could start as soon as they opened. Bentley really wanted to try the Timber Traverse and it worked out great! He was able to be up there for an hour doing nearly the entire course and going all the way to the top! It was great!
Bentley and I travelled back to Calgary in what felt like the longest car ride ever experienced lol we laughed about how it was possible for us to both feel like 3.5 hours felt like 8 hours on the way home.
We made it to his 10 minute appointment, got the job done, picked up drinks and chicken nuggets and headed right back to Panorama.
But then, we made the drive so so good! We stopped at two of the most beautiful spots on earth! I noticed this spot on our drive home and knew we needed to stop! It's called Honeymoon pass and if you blink you will miss it. We pulled over on the side of the road and walked down to the river and it was so so pretty!
Bentley chose a perfect spot called Olive Lake. The water was SO green and SO clear. It was stunning!! It was a short walk from the parking lot and we loved every minute of it!
I am so glad we did this together. Just us. Although driving back to Calgary in a 7 hour round trip for a 10 minute appointment wasn't ideal.. it really was a day we will always remember and everytime I see these spots, they will remind me of Bentley.
While we were gone, the rest of the family kept doing activities. Carter and Brian did the mountain coaster and Penny did the same obstacle course as Bentley did but with Lena and Lucy. She loved it and sweet Lena sent me photos!
For a day that could have been filled will annoyance, it was actually filled with perfect adventure for everyone!
Day 4: Ahh, the day we all LOVE!!! Lillian Lake Day!! The entire day from 9am to 3pm spent in this beautiful lake! This year, Carter caught a turtle!! Brian caught a snake!!! And Bentley (and Henry!) Caught SO MANY huge minos!!! It was amazing!
Day 5: We slept in and went back up the hill for everyone to finish the activities they still had tickets for. It was chill and easy going and great. Gus did 116 backflips in a row!!! He is amazing and Im sure next year he will try to beat it.
Our family went to do mini golf and it was so sweet when cousins randomly started trickling in to play with us. I loved that so much!
The day was still young in our Panorama holiday eyes so we headed over to the sport courts for more fun and after dinner we finished the night off with the Daisy Walk. 10/10 day!
Day 6: The goal.. stay in the village and enjoy every second of every part Panorama to its fullest... We did it.
Boys night/girls night turned into cousin night!
Day 7: Just repeat Day 6, because it was so so good, but add a water balloon fight before the sun goes down!
Day 8: Drive home in silence first thing in the morning thinking about all the responsibility you're going back to after your sweet Mother in law made everyone dinner every night for 7 days straight. Can I just be a kid again?!
Honestly though, Brians parents are so sweet to host everyone every year. They think of everything. Crafts, paddle boards, food and snacks, treats, endless hours of chaos and making all of feel like they're not even tired. They are THE BEST!! Thank you Mom and Dad Reed for another super fun week in Panorama!! We love you!!
