Whistler 2026--Chica's 14th Birthday!

Okay, peeps.

You know when life goes so fully off the rails that you're careening down a whole different path with an absent breaking mechanism, and you sort of just have to roll with it until you come to a wobbly, wonky stop?

Yeah...that's how we've been operating the past week or so since our return from Canada.

You might have noticed that we left off on about Day 5-ish of our trip, when we'd made the journey from Vancouver to Whistler. And then...radio silence. 

Welp.

That's because the illness that's plagued our family, one by one, over the past month finally caught up with me on the final two days of our trip, and I spent a rough 36-48 hours before our return in a fugue, 104-degree fever, miserable and semi-unconscious state.

No fun.

I knew it would happen. I was bracing for the worst. And I guess the best I can say is that I'm so glad I made it through the majority of our trip before the germs struck me down.

So...picking up where we left off:

We made the journey from Vancouver to Whistler and powered down into a slower pace for a very rainy, gloomy first day.

Then our second full day just happened to be Chica's 14th birthday,  so of course, we had some activities planned!

For starters, the hubby and I popped down the street from our rental to run to a grocery store for flowers and cake. :) A chocolate Cloud Cake that was really amazing, actually! And hydrangeas, because they ar everywhere in Vancouver and Whistler, so they seemed appropriate!

Then we took our birthday girl for a yummy French brunch breakfast, followed by some plans for wandering and shopping.

After the rain of the day before, it was a glorious day full of sunshine and moderate temps, thank goodness!

Around midday, we popped in for an Escape Room pirate adventure that we booked beforehand (one of our favorite little mountain vacay and/or birthday pastimes). We made it out within the allotted 45 minutes--woohoo!

Then we continued with more shopping. :)

It was rough there for a minute because the old adage was holding true: whenever you want to shop and have plans to shop, you don't find anything! But we kept at it, and eventually had some very happy success at a gem store that was right up Chica's alley.

Now, you'll notice from the caption in the above pic that I was very much worried throughout the day that my health was starting to tank. But I basically started the morning with a: Not Today, Satan! I was determined to preserve as much of the happy birthday vibe as possible, and I did a pretty good job of powering through when I felt myself starting to tank.

It perhaps wasn't the best decision for me to order a Lobster Fettuccine when I was starting to feel iffy, but...when at a fancy Italian restaurant, what are you to do? (Little Man lived his best Tomahawk steak and short rib life, btw).

But...following dinner, I could no longer deny it: I was unwell. Like, really, very unwell. 

But the best and final event was still on the evening's agenda and I did not want to miss it--both for Chica's sake and my own!

So I showered off my chills, dressed in something warm, and powered on to our late evening, multimedia walk up on a mountain and it was...EPIC.

I really can't do any of the experience justice except to say that it's about a mile walk that takes about an hour to experience. It's multi-sensory with some of the most incredible music and immersive light displays, ever. 

An absolute, mountain wonderland--on a night of near-full moon, no less!

It was truly so incredible that I'll just say to look up Vallea Lumina if you want to learn more!

We took a million pics and video but they're hard to share in a way that truly encapsulates the wonder--especially since it was as night!

By the time we made it home from this, it was nearly midnight, I was not great, eventually medicated, suffering through incredible flu systems and a high fever and had to sleep through the rest of the trip.

The hubby took one for the team and continued on with our final planned activity the next day--off-roading with the kiddos!

And I slept life away and made it through our flight and back home to our Coda girl, who was so well looked after by her grandparents while we were away. :)

More than ever, I feel like a Big Picture Post is needed to sum up a bunch of thoughts about travel in this current stage of life. So I'll wrap my brain around those thoughts sometime in the coming weeks before the moment passes me by!

In the meantime, I'll just say that I'm grateful for our time away, I'm going to try to log only the positives of the trip in my memory bank, and...I'll share so much more, later!

Okay. I still have a solid four or five catch-up posts, so look for more, later!

Until then: Happy Tuesday, peeps!

Over and out.

Vancouver to Whistler (Sea to Sky) 2026!

Okay, peeps.

Yesterday was my favorite day of the trip, so far: our Sea to Sky journey from Vancouver to Whistler!

The Sea to Sky Highway (99) is a scenic route that takes you from metro Vancouver all the way up into the mountains.

It's a journey that only takes a couple of hours, but we made it a full-day experience, as so many peeps do.

First, we stopped at Howe Sound on our way out of Vancouver at this adorable Lookout Coffee Shop that had the kindest people and the loveliest views. 

Then, we powered on for another stretch until we made it to the Britannia Mine Museum for a tour of the historic copper mine--and a chance for the kiddos to pan for gemstones (an activity they always love).

At first, I was worried this might have been a misstep for us, and more of a field trip/educational versus fun vibe, but...the multimedia educational Boom! show inside the mill after the underground portion of the tour was really incredible, and the kiddos spent ages and ages afterward, happily panning away for their stones. It was definitely a thumbs-up for us--especially for Chicklet, who managed to pan tons of odds and ends. She was one happy girl (and even allowed far more pictures than usual, ha).

And I wonder why our home requires so much vacuuming. Just look at our similarly-colored hair! Add Coda girl (same color!) into the mix and it's a lost cause...

Then, it was off to Squamish (just another 30 minutes down the road), for a great little patio lunch (including our introduction to poutine!).

And, finally, very favorite spot: Shannon Falls and just a short 10-15 minute hike up the loveliest viewpoints! It was so beautiful, so relaxed, not a ton of people, and just a happy hour or so spent outdoors, stretching our legs and enjoying the views.

Side note: long gone are the days when I can dictate family wardrobes and trying to manage extreme-matching moments during vacays (Ah, those were the days; Kauai in 2022 was my greatest family color-coordination/vacationing wardrobe achievement). But I adored the fact that the kiddos all randomly chose blue from their suitcases that morning. And you can better bet the hubby and I tried to coordinate, after the fact. ;)

This next pic is top-notch; for sure, one of my faves of the day. I'm so tempted to AI myself into the shot because it's such a lovey one. But...I'd always know I cheated it! Argh!

Then, at long last, we arrived in Whistler right at dinnertime and frolicked just a bit in Whistler Village (where we at some yummy tacos).

Grateful for a happy, chill journey from Vancouver to Whistler. And for a solid night of sleep. 

We get to be a bit more chill, today, and it's probably a good day for it. A bit overcast and headed into the final few days of the trip.

Happy Friday, peeps!

Over and out.