A Little Kimchi

-Kimchi and his new yellow raincoat. Thanks Beck.-

For those of you who have been asking how Kimchi is... he is fine. Well actually, he's been better than fine. He's LOVING his new life in Canada.

The flight to Canada in August went as smoothly as possible (thanks so much Katrina). Shortly after arriving, he traveled to Saskatchewan where he spent four months of bliss with Trev's parents, the grandkids and Dickson (their dog). When we arrived home just before Christmas, I was not sure who was more excited: Kimchi, Trev or I. We were relieved to find that Kimchi not only remembered us but that he was not holding a grudge for us choosing travels abroad over time with him.

And now, he spends his days sleeping lazily on the rug in front of the fire, jumping playfully from snow pile to snow pile in his acre of fenced yard and dragging his toys around a house that is twenty times the size of any in Korea. Yep, I'd say Kimchi has adjusted well and is enjoying his Canadian life.

The Possibility of Spring?

-Dawson puddle jumping.-

The weather has been gorgeous. White frost hangs on the early morning trees only to vanish in the mid-noon sun. Spring is on the way. There are no buds yet, no new growth, the grass is still brown and there are still large piles of white snow BUT there are puddles. Large, monstrous puddles. The kind that beckon everything from kids to cars to twigs and fishing line.

-Discovery.-

As we wind down this week and try to leave out 'wedding brain' behind we've been finding other activities to take the place of the long gone planning. And, puddle jumping with Dawson was just what we needed.

-Soaking wet but still smiling.-

The Flowers

-Becki and the Bouquet.-

Along with all things wedding, the tossing of the bridal bouquet was observed. While the young women stood eagerly awaiting Becki's toss, Trev lined up a few shots. Once again, the joy on Becki's face is unmistakable.

-The toss.-

-The catch...well, kind of.-

-Although one of the youngest in the crowd, Ava, was happy to be taking home her prize. Hopefully for Megan and Bri's sake Ava is not the next in line to be married :) .-

Happy in Love

-Becki and her girls (errr... and Dad). Gull Lake, Alberta, Canada.-

-The beautiful bride.-

Here we've posted a few shots of the bride and her girls (minus Amanda) letting off some steam later in the day. Both Trev and I were involved in the beautiful morning wedding ceremony, ran around like crazy during the chilly afternoon pictures and had significant roles at the sunset reception and so, here are just a few of the handful of pictures that we did manage to snap. Unfortunately we only captured pictures at the reception but fortunately they turned out rather well.

-Although we don't look like sisters we sure do act like sisters.-

We think that these shots truly capture the spirit of the day. Beck was in high spirits as can be seen in the shot above. As a sister and a best friend it did my heart good to see her so happy in love.

-Bri, Rachel, Megan Becki and Mom doing our best at some Korean poses.-

-And, we needed at least one serious shot.-

Almost...

-Beck's favorite picture, the Sears pose.-

The countdown is on and the wedding is coming up in less than a week. Becki, Mark and the rest of us here in Alberta are equally as excited for the events of their big day day as we are for the planning to be over. Even though their engagement was relatively short, the planning seemed intense. We can see the light at the end of the tunnel and are anticipating a beautiful day.

-Stanley Park, Vancouver. Canada.-

-A quick trip to the park after a morning of picking out wedding rings.-

Moon Shots

Up late one night I was intrigued by the moon and decided to experiment with my camera and lens. Here I've taken 7 photos in succession at intervals of 5 minutes to show the movement of the moon towards the horizon. The first picture was taken at 4:50am and the last at 5:20am.

-A misty shot of an early morning moon.-

Misty Days in Stanley Park

-An ancient tree near the cricket green.-

In the end of January, with no place to be and no jobs to be had we headed with Mark and Becki down to the coast. We spent a few relaxing days strolling in the parks, skipping stones in the ocean, sipping on Starbucks while checking out the latest at Tiffany & Co. and reveling in the fact that we could once again enjoy true Korean cuisine. It was a nice break from the -40 winter winds of Alberta and the headache of finding jobs.

-Lamp on Lion's Gate Bridge.-

-Becki and Mark on a misty beach.-

While in B.C. we also had a chance to visit with my family and catch up with a few old friends. It was great to have early morning breakfast and coffee with Grandma and Grandpa and listen to their tales of long ago. We were delighted to have met Eric and Mary's newest addition, little Isaac. And, it was healing to be able to stay with the Phillips family and formally say goodbye to Sean, our cousin taken too soon.

-Totem pole.-

-Becki and Mark.-

-Trevor always claims that birds have no sense of history,
this proves it.-

-Under the Lion's Gate Bridge.
One of our favorite shots taken on this trip.-

Winter in the Rockies

-Frozen Ford.-

I've posted a few shots from our recent trips to the Rockies. I feel that they capture the wild beauty of life in the mountains while portraying the chilling temperatures of the Canadian winter.

Note: They are best viewed while wrapped in a warm blanket and warming your hands around a steaming cup of hot chocolate.

-A very snowy Mount Abraham.-

-A charming church. Nordegg, Alberta.-

-My mountain-man.-

-Snowplow.-

-During our time in Asia, I forgot that warnings act more like invitations to people like Trevor.-

-Mount Michener.-