Blogging from The Rockies tonight...and having a fantastic weekend. We arrived on Friday eve here in Canmore and are staying in the same 'condo' which is gorgeous - 3 bedroom, 2 bathroom, complete with fantastic views of the mountains and the condo is luxurious inside. Lucky us! (We will bring you here when you visit!) So friday eve was a family eve with delivery pizza - the kids were soo excited that someone was actually bringing a pizza to the house they were queueing at the door for it! Yesterday, we went looking for Grizzly Bears along the river in Banff - the kids thought that we were on the trail when we found some Gopher's Poo (which we told them was definately bear poo!) but were then fear sticken that they were going to be 'bear lunch'!.... We then headed off to see Lake Minnewanka (have been waiting all weekend to write that!) which was really beautiful, but it was soo cold we didn't stay too long. In the summer you can take a boat trip on the lake which is defiantely on the 'to do' list. Last night we all went to see the Canmore Eagles play ice hockey (picked up a few tips!) - a really good fun night out. The funniest bit was when the local pizza firm brought in a free pizza and the whole crowd went nuts fighting for it! (Sod the hockey!) Today we went back up Sulphur Mountain in the cable car and then went ice skating at the local rink afterwards. Olivia at last went on the ice and loved it. Ben was brilliant and was giving Leigh & I some tips on how to stop! (Git!) Charlie came on wearing his snow boots and ran around the rink (atleast 3 times!) using a frame - he was so happy! The plan is to head home tomorrow....but we might just stay an extra day....watch this space.....!

Definately getting colder here....no sign of snow yet though. So windy today the 10 ft trampoline has blown across the garden! Quiet week - kids at school, Leigh on the Prairie - same stuff, different country! So not much to blog about this week. Leigh's excercise finishes tomorrow; no more 'Med Mans' for the winter, so home life should at long last become a bit more stable. It does mean that we can now escape alot more over the long winter weekends; this weekend we are heading back to The Rockies which we are really looking forward to & we have a weekend in Calgary booked up for November. We are staying in the same 'condo' in The Rockies which is fab and I expect we will notice the drop in temperature. Ben & I are still playing hockey - we won our game again last week and I am playing again on Wed's. Ought to mention that my son got 'Sin Binned' during his training on friday for trying to start a fight with the kid who had just accidently knocked him over....(not sure whether to be worried or proud!) Leigh (or should I say 'Maverick'!) will be getting alot more 'ice-time' now he is off the Prairie. So next weeks blog should be alot more interesting...... Just leaves me to say a BIG 'HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my MUM'! - Have a fantastic day & we will Skype you tomorrow xxx Won't publish your age on the World Wide Web, but can't believe it's been 10 years since Leigh & I called you from Barbados on your 50th birthday!

Where has the week gone....Miraculously won our hockey match on Weds eve 3-1, though I'm not sure how much I contributed to the game! It was good fun though. Ben continues to improve on the ice and is really enjoying his hockey training. Olivia is still deciding whether to give it a go or not....she has a couple of weeks to decide and is going to keep us all guessing! Olivia has her first full day at school tomorrow (hip hip...!) She is more than ready for it - infact she has been from day 1 but as the Schools here do not have an Autumn half term, they are eased in gently as its a long time until the Christmas Hols. Charlie is very well too (feel I ought to give him a mention!). He is still going to nursery every morning and really enjoying it. Infact as we near the nursery I can't see him for dust! - no tearful farewells from any of my kids (starting to get a bit paranoid!). The weather here is still very warm and sunny, 22 degrees today so I think it will be a real shock when the cold weather really does set in.... In the absence of any new photo's this week I have included a photo of me & the children at Lake Louise in The Rockies. Also see footage of Ben below at hockey school this week. It's not obvious at first which one he is (he is not the one skating off at the begining), but you will have no doubt which one he is by the end of it!

Hello! Another pretty busy week. Leigh has been out on the Priaire a fair bit, but he has had most of the weekend off so we have had some nice family time. We got to watch the rugby too (what a great result!) and we have been out and about in Medicine Hat. Got the kids kitted out with snow boots, which are insulated to wear in temperatures as far below as -30! I shall go and get some for myself and Leigh (am already thinking of stitching him up with some big furry ones with wooden tennis bats attached!). Ben continues to improve on the ice. He is doing really well. We took Ben & Olivia on Saturday morning to the rink. Ben got invited to stay on for another session with the older group and Olivia flatly refused to get on the ice at all! It all started to go wrong for Olivia when I produced these black knee and elbow pads, which clearly weren't 'pink and barbie like'! Even the gorgeous white ice skates I got for her (luckily 2nd hand!) would not persuade her! Hopefully she will go next time. She say's she hasn't decided yet and can I stop going on about it!! Thanksgiving day today. Took the kids into Med Hat for a walk along The South Saskatchewan River - really pretty in the 'Fall'. Ben skating again tomorrow. I'm training Wed's and have my first match on Thurs. Yikes!