Rainey Family Christmas Letter 2016
2016 was a year of travel for the
Raineys! Or at least, more travel than
has been the norm since Kieran joined our family a little over three years ago.
We had a fun-filled Easter weekend at a local
resort that provided family-friendly entertainment the whole weekend, and all
you can eat buffets at every meal.
Donovan loved this as he often eats more than I do these days as he
continues to play hard and grow hard.
In July, we got really ambitious and all flew across Canada to beautiful BC. Jan had a conference there so we decided to join him. We had a great time connecting with family and friends. Sheila deserves a gold medal for taking a week off work to help me with the kids while Jan was at the conference. We visited numerous playgrounds, splash pads, pools, parks and other local attractions. The highlight of the week was an outing to the Stanley Park Aquarium topped off with time at the splashpad and dinner in the park with Daddy.
Then we packed up and headed to Barriere to meet up with my parents and visit with extended family. Surrounded by family and spending every day outdoors with such breathtaking scenery reminded me why it one of my favourite places to visit. Highlights included swims at private beaches, fishing, a tour around Wells Grey and time at the farm.
After that we headed back south for a few days on Vancouver Island. A quick stop in Victoria where a bug zoo was a big hit and then we were kindly hosted by John and Susann in a fantastic cabin on a lake. The kids had a great time caving and paddling around. We enjoyed a relaxing evening with a campfire by the water. What a perfect ending to our time in BC!
But not the end of our trip – Jan continued home while I stopped in Ontario for a week with the boys to visit some of our favourite people. We even managed a quick trip to Camp Kintail, where Donovan and Malcolm were able to participate in lots of activities. After 3.5 weeks away, we flew home in August. A couple of weeks later we traveled to Cape Breton Highlands National Park to camp for three nights. Our first visit and what breathtaking views!
We enjoyed several visits from Jan’s parents. They are invaluable in helping to look after the boys, especially during the summer on the days I work. I was still working 3 days/week but am going up to 4 days in January – will miss the extra day home with Kieran. My parents and my niece Lily visited for a long weekend in September that was jampacked with corn mazes, Peggy’s Cover and other great activities.
Donovan is in grade 5 and a great help with and role model to his brothers. He is a good student who loves playing soccer, violin and piano. Malcolm is in grade 2 and his reading, writing and math skills are really taking off. Kieran is 3 years old, going on 7, and desperately tries to keep up with the two brothers he adores!
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!
