It's been one year!!!!

Our first year anniversary fell on a Sunday and it was a beautiful day.  We went for a long walk to the Othello tunnels and explored the incredible canyon and mountains.  It was a breathtaking

New Home

This tub of ice cream was the closest resemblance of a birthday cake for me this year.  March was such an odd month for me as I was travelling to visit family all over the place.  I am so blessed and happy for the time I had with family last month.  It was truly an important time for me.  And I was able to be in Winnipeg for my newest nieces birth!  And it was on my birthday!  Yah!

These are just some of the amazing views we have out our front door.  Dave and I have been in Hope, BC for one week now and we have discovered so much beauty.  We are very happy to be living among these giants this summer.

Easter Weekend in Mill Bay

Dave and I spent Easter in two different places.  I was in transit that weekend, flying from Hamilton to Winnipeg to Abbotsford.  Dave took such great photos that weekend, I just had to share them.

Little Corn Island, Nicaragua

Love this feeling.  Such warm water.

After hearing a rustle in the tall grasses, I looked up to see one of the local dogs with this iguana in his mouth!  We quickly grabbed our cameras and ran barefoot into the grass to see what the dog would do with such a large catch.  The iguana managed to escape and quickly climbed to a safe place.

We met up with some friends here at this cabin and spent several days eating fresh coconut, drinking rum and freshly squeezed orange juice, playing hearts and snorkeling.  It was a fantastic way to end our weeks of traveling.

This was the only available hut when we arrived on the island.  Dave and I stayed in here for four or five nights.  I was very glad for our bug net.

On our way to the airport in Managua.  We had to catch three planes to make it back to Winnipeg.  What an adventure!

Hiking with Quetzaltrekkers

From Honduras, we took a 12 hour bus to Leon, Nicaragua.  We stayed here off and on as we went out for a couple multi-day hikes with Quetzaltrekkers, a volunteer base guided tours company.  All the profits QT makes goes toward kids programs in Leon.  The pictures above are of our first trek through the Northern Highlands of Nicaragua just outside Matagalpa.  We hiked to the top of a mountain to watch the sunset the first day.  The next day we trekked to a waterfall, where we set up camp in the caves beside the noisy waterfall.  It was difficult to sleep, but well worth the amazing location, swimming, and memories.

We came across a 6-ft dead snake on this hike.  We were quite excited to see such a large snake, and even more excited that it was not alive.

Our second trek with QT was up a volcano.  We hiked to the top of Telica where we watched lava bubble in the crater at night.  Unbelievable!  Once we made it to the top, we could see a string of volcanoes.  It was a sight like no other.  Definitely something that will be stuck in my mind forever.

Treetanic Utila

The island of Utila was like the other islands we visited in it's beauty and adventure opportunities.  While there, we obtained our Open Water Scuba Diving Certification and spotted an octopus among many other amazing creatures and coral.  Aside from the diving, one of the most interesting places in Utila was a bar/restaurant called Treetanic.  The pictures shown above are of this artsy, eccentric place.  These few photos only capture one percent of the art found there.

Caye Caulker

Spanish Creek Rainforest Reserve - WWOOF

This rooster woke us up every night at two or three am.  Not quite sunrise.

Volunteer Housing.  This is in the middle of the jungle.  The howler monkeys kept us up at night and the bugs ate us alive during the day.  It was a spectacular place to stay and learn about life in the jungle.

These tree-cutter ants work day and night to feed the growing fungus in their underground home. There are so many of them walking and collecting leaves that they have created worn down paths on the jungle floor.  Amazing creatures.