Lifestyle + Littles Blog
Checking off another bucket list place for us to visit this past weekend, Osoyoos! We’ve always heard so much about this place and finally got the chance to visit with Watermark Beach Resort. It was a quick three hour drive from our home and it always amazes me the different kinds of terrain we come across travelling around British Columbia. We entered into a very desert like community filled with wineries and Okanagan Lake. There is just so much surrounding this cute little town!
Well, as a family travel blog, this year has really taken a turn. With little travel but a big itch to explore we really started to pick our brains in search of something fun, travel like and close to home. We nailed it. A night with The Hilton Vancouver Downtown with the little ones and exploring Robson Street. One of my favourite streets to walk on in Vancouver. There is just so much to do and see!
…Happy Belated Thanksgiving!
We hope you all spent it well and enjoyed all the food and family time. Drew, myself and the kids did something a little different this year and went away on a little family trip to The Cove Lakeside Resort in Kelowna. We had the perfect opportunity to visit some of our family from Nova Scotia there while they were passing through. So we tossed in our traditional turkey dinner and headed for some family time & sushi!
…Oh Victoria, you’re beautiful! And wish that our trip had been longer. But we certainly did manage to fit a lot in our 24 hour stay. The four of us had been planning this trip for sometime now and finally the stars aligned and we made it happen. Next time making it happen a lot longer.
We squeezed this quick trip into two days because while there we got to meet some new puppies, one which will be coming home with us very soon. So it was our visiting weekend. Lucky for us we got to make it a fun family vacation to Victoria. We absolutely love Vancouver Island and take any chance to go visit. Victoria had been one location that we haven’t been to and thankful we got to absorb it all in.
I mean really, we are quite happy if the only things we do there are explore the trails and beaches. But you know us, we like to keep busy and to us experiences are way more rewarding for our family than stuff and things.
These memories our children will grow up knowing for a lifetime to come! Now, let’s get to the good stuff….
For years Drew and I have been desperately wanting to explore the Pacific and go Whale Watching. But every time it seemed like one of our littles were way to little to go aboard. Until now. We found a really awesome, well recommended whale watching tour in Victoria that accommodates all ages. Eagle Wing Tours is the best!
It was perfect. This boat was covered just in case it rained or became too cold. The kids could easily go inside or outside to enjoy the sun and ocean breeze. From afar we got to see a family of 6 killer whales, 2 humpback whales and lots of seals swimming in their natural habitat. Videos over on Instagram
Randomly, we stumbled into this awesome grocer and coffee place. The Rootcellar and The Coffee Project. Tons of great produce, lunches and just about everything to make a really delicious meal. We ended up going twice! It was great. Grabbing coffee’s on the way out. Our family does love picking up our own stuff before dining out. Totally recommend this place!
Gahhh, this place has been on our travel bucket list for awhile now Hotel Zed and so happy we got to spend the night here. It is absolutely the coolest retro-vibe hotel ever. The first thing that everyone loved when pulling up was all the bright colours. It was a show stopper. The pool, the waterslide and the hot tub.
Ping pong table and board games. Long boards and laundry room. Free parking & free coffee! I could go onnnn. Everyone is so chill and relaxed. So easy going. We loved the vibes and our stay here. We all slept like babies and some more than others!
Honestly, its in such a perfect location too. Right across from Mayfair Mall, not that far down from downtown Victoria. If you’re looking for a fun eccentric place to stay go here!
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The coolest spot! If you do go to Eagle Wing Tours you will have to go here. It’s such a cool little hidden spot we never knew about. Loaded with tons of parking. The water taxi is located here. So many awesome seaside restaurants to eat at. Ice cream. So much!
Everything is located right on the wharf along with some really pretty colourful houseboats and sail boats. We loved the energy in this cute little spot!
This is basically it, the most beautiful scenic drive ever. It really reminds us of Nova Scotia, back home if you just drive along the coast you end up finding the most beautiful beaches and spots to tour. Thats what we did. Went beach hopping along this scenic drive. Stopping to throw rocks and explore a trail. You just follow the signs…
Our final stop before heading home, Parkridge Doodles. We have been connected with this sweet golden doodle breeder for sometime now and have completely fell in love with this place. The puppies, the owners, the love and quality. So good! So we decided to add a new family member…more on that coming soon…
We had the opportunity to visit and connect up close with the puppies and while there, of course take photos of puppies… so we did!
We did it all. Packed everything we could into this tiny little visit. And it was all worth it! We already have a million other places we want to visit when we go back….
{ Hotel Zed & Eagle Wing Tours were both gifted experience’s to enjoy}
Let’s be honest here, travelling with kids is not usually the most relaxing thing in the world. It isn’t always the easiest or the most thrilling. Trust me, we’ve been there! This recent Whistler trip just didn’t exactly go our way the entire time with kids fighting, rain, thunder & lighting, fire ban… etc. But there were a few things that went our way… our visit to the night walk Vallea Lumina, the fun tent experience, the lake just relaxing…
…A couple weekends ago we set our sights on Summerland Waterfront & Resort. We packed into the Honda Clarity and off we went! A scenic and easy ride it was. Kids got along in the back, it was awesome. This was our first time visiting Summerland and won’t be our last. We’ve come to grow quite fond of Okanagan Lake and the whole area throughout this beautiful place.
…The idea of a family road trip being eco-friendly is seriously music to any of our ears. When you add up all the costs and pit stops it can be a lot to wrap your head around. And let’s face it a family road trip is sometimes not the most relaxing thing in the world so why not cut off some of the stress! Right?
…Hello Summer vacations and setting free. Freedom that loving word that is attached to Summer for our little ones. That carefree no stress Summer that they long await for. Ohhhh to be a kid again… We want our little ones to remain little for as long as they can. To enjoy that kid freeing feel that we adults all miss so much.
…May Long Weekend!
Normally, we spend this time home working on the house, catching up on chores and just relaxing. But this year we were invited by Vancouver Mom to share a fun experience with River Rock Resort and Visit Richmond Tourism. To tour around this unique and bustling city full of secret little gems that our family fell in love with.
To be real honest, this was our first time really visiting Richmond. We’ve driven through plenty of times to get our butts to the airport but nothing like this. So needless to say we were really excited to try and see some new things. We of course started our little weekend journey by stopping into…
River Rock Casino & Resort
Beautiful! If we had to describe it in one word. It’s huge and it’s full of close by amenities. Which is always a huge bonus knowing you don’t have to walk far for things. The bus station, the skytrain station, pool & fitness centre. Huge ballrooms, Starbucks, the casino, a convenient store. Not to mention the Absolute Spa which I had the chance to visit for a massage. It was so relaxing and comforting in there. It was an absolute amazing experience at this spa.
There are also on site three restaurants The Buffet which we had the chance to try out one evening. Such great food and so many options to choose from. We filled up! Then you’ll also find Curve Lounge & Tramonto. All very amazing choices to choose from if you kind of want to stay close. And if you want to stay in you could always choose room service like us! Breakfast room service isn’t as fancy with kids as it is on movies though! haha Food was worth the craziness!
You’ll also find free parking along with Valet parking of course. I can’t forget to mention the poooolllll. I have to express my huge appreciation to River Rock Resort for putting so much love and attention into their family pool & hot tub. Our little ones played in it all night and day. It was a struggle to get them out. That’s how much they enjoyed it! With a 5ft seawater pool attached is a really fun rock waterslide. And off to the side real close is their hot tub! We loved every minute hanging out here. We came home so relaxed and refreshed with so many good things to say about our stay!
Saturday morning first thing we packed up and hit up the Steveston area visiting the Fishermans Wharf. Walking along the dock forever.. It was just so beautiful to see all the boats and view. We stopped for some Ice cream of course and visited the Seafood Market which was a dream for us! We love seafood! We also explored cute little shops along the strip and just enjoyed our time and the sunny weather.
Drew and I wanted to treat ourselves a little so in Steveston we found this cute little cafe and ordered some caffeine to keep up with the little ones. We defiantly recommend visiting this place. It was delish and the nicest vibes to.
If you love to learn a little bit about the area your visiting to you should visit the Gulf of Georgia Cannery. It was really cool to learn more about the West Coast Fishing industry today and in the past. We know a lot of East Coast Fishing being from Nova Scotia so it was neat to see the difference.
This was a super cool spot to check out with lots along the way to see! Again, beautiful views. The kids just walked forever Saturday!
I was looking for this place. I needed a little “mommy minute” So glad we found it to. It was absolutely stunning. Serving tea in ever way imaginable. It was gorgeous to. I recommend the Strawberry to!
Remember how I said everything is really close to the River Rock Resort?? Well this being one of them, the Richmond Night Market. It’s literally a rock throw away. Unreal! We simply just walked over one evening beating all of that parking and congestion on the road. So easy!
This was our first time and it was the coolest experience. Open Friday Saturday & Sunday 7pm-12am. We first hit up some yummy food. Ribs, Mango Strawberry Ice Cream with Shaved Ice. Pork, Ribs, Potato Wedges. Everything you could imagine. Once our bellies were full we took the kids around to play some fun games which they both won something little to take home.
So much to see there and enjoy. Booths along the middle full of things for sale to like a little market!
This post was in collaboration with Vancouver Mom, River Rock Resort & Tourism Richmond. All of my thoughts and opinions are of my own!
Finally, we were so lucky to have such a beautiful day on this day off with the whole family. So we escaped to the quiet, no noise in the middle of nowhere Jones Lake.
We love this view, I mean how could you not! The mountains and fresh air. It’s just so relaxing. The kids had a great time just being free, running around throwing rocks into the water and relaxing.
We needed more days like this. The drive up may have not been the smoothest on this logging road, haha.. But it made for an entertaining drive that’s for sure! But is it really an adventure if it doesn’t scare the shit out of you just a little?? haha
The goofiest faces for photos and off they went to play. Hoping to catch up with more cool mountain drives this Summer with this beautiful, fun family of mine! Possibly camp up here… who knows… start the planning now!
Keisha Lynne, xx
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