Dave goes Backcountry

As much as this year has not been a great one for not having much snow in the mountains, it also makes for much safer backcountry skiing conditions.
Dave headed out today with Marc Binkley and his friend Mason for a day of hiking and skiing--they got some great photos (more to follow)...

Family Day Weekend in Fernie

Hiking the "mountain" with the girls: Lucy (up top, pink hat) and Victoria (bottom, blue hat)

Ryan posing...

Dave is getting great on his skis too!

Lucy is getting great on her skis!!

Sitting out by the outdoor fireplace...

Ryan's "pretend" wife for the weekend does NOT look impressed! (Sorry Mel!)

We were lucky enough to spend Family Day weekend this year with the Wrigglesworth and Strom families at the Labine's home in Fernie (well, Mel and Ryan and the kids at least...). It was a great weekend on the hill, as well as at "home" where we got a taste of the "Brady Bunch" life of having two almost sets of twins: Victoria Strom and Lucy Wrigglesworth (who are both about 3: Lucy's birthday is tomorrow!); and Oscar Wrigglesworth and Bennett Strom (who are both about 1: Bennett's first birthday is today!). We had a blast with the kids, and of course it's always great to catch up with Mel (okay, and Ryan too!). Thanks so much to the Labines for hosting us!

(More photos to follow of the kids...)

Our new fireplace...

Our new (electric) fireplace sure changes the look of our downstairs room--and it's much cozier too!!

Girls weekend: Canmore

Here's my most recent attempt at cross-country skiing: at the Nordic Centre in Canmore with friends Kelly and Cathryn. We had a lovely little girls' weekend, staying at PJ's cabin (which is now sold, sadly!) and enjoying some relaxing time breathing mountain air, testing out the hot tub, and tasting local cuisine. It was Cathryn's birthday, so we celebrated in style, with Erin and Genesia joining us for dinner and a low-key night back at the cabin. Thanks girls for a fantastic weekend!!

Hot tub!

Sage Bistro for dinner: Erin, Kelly, (me), Cath, Genesia.

Erin tests out the bunkbeds!

Relaxing at the cabin...

View out the bedroom window in the am...

More baby news...

Well, coincidentally, Tannis and Steve and Joe and Natasha both welcomed their new babies into the world on Friday, January 30th...

Here is Grace Gaffney: Tannis and Steve's long-awaited beautiful baby girl.

Niya cuddles her new baby brother, Jagger (Joe and Nat's family).

And here are Andrew and Melissa Duncan with their new baby girl, Violet Grace.

Friends from Guelph Eric and Marcie Monteith are also newly expecting: congratulations!

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(For those wondering/asking: no baby news for the Brewins right now :(

Welcome Ruby Holliday!

[FYI: We're going to get into some serious baby blogging in the next few months, as we have lots of friends who are expecting and/or recently had babies...]

Our friends Chris and Marla Holliday (friends from Guelph days who are also living in Calgary) recently had an early surprise when their daughter Ruby was born a few weeks early.

They are keeping an up-to-date (and entertaining) blog of her progress, that gives you a good idea of the wonderfully relaxed attitude they have towards the whole ordeal...Chris has a great sense of humour (although I couldn't figure out if his reference to "belly-ruben" was serious or not?)

Anyway, here is their blog: http://chollida.com/blog/

In other baby news, Tannis and Steve are scheduled for their C-section on Friday afternoon, so we are all waiting patiently to meet their new little one. Dave's cycling partner Joe's wife Natasha is also due any day now...

And now that it's common knowledge, we are thrilled that Amy and Jason are due in July: a new baby brother or sister for Nadine!

Other summer babies include Frank and Desiree and Adam and Val!! We look forward to hearing updates about these exciting additions!

Mom and Dad Brewin's trip to the British Virgin Islands

Here are a few photos from Mom and Dad Brewin's recent trip to the British Virgin Islands. They spent 2 weeks sailing the islands with a few other couples, and as you can see from the photos, had an absolutely wonderful time. So glad you had such an amazing trip, and can't wait to hear (and see!) more about it!!

Emerald Lake: Jenn and Tom's Wedding

Skiing Lake Louise with Tara

Tara is here for a visit/work trip, so we had a wonderful opportunity to try out the slopes (and "spring skiing in January" temperatures) at Lake Louise. Here are a few photos from the day:



My beautiful sister-in-law, enjoying her well-earned "apres-ski" dinner...

My beautiful husband doing the same...
Moi!

"Catching some rays" in the warm sunshine...

Atop the gondala...