Welcome to Canada

Today was the day that we would be crossing the border!  We left Great Falls at about 10am. The closer we got to the US-Canada border, the more anxious I got.  Well, it turns out that we had nothing to be nervous about!  First of all, there was absolutely no wait time.  We gave the customs agent our 2 passports, mine and Jason's, and the kids' 2 birth certificates.  We didn't even bother showing him the kids' passports, so we didn't have to explain why Grace's was expired.  He looked them through and then asked us some of the usual, basic questions- where are you headed, for how long, who are you going to see, do you have any firearms/tobacco/alchohol, etc... That's it- he finished off with, "Welcome to Canada!"  The whole interaction took place in less than 5 minutes.  It was quicker and easier than every time that we've had to go through customs while flying!  The joke we've heard is that Canada is nice to its visitors and so of course we didn't encounter any problems. The Americans though, not so much.  I guess the real test will be what happens when we cross back over to the US later in our trip. For now, I'm just glad to be back in my beloved Canada!

We headed towards Okotoks, a suburb of Calgary.  We are staying with some friends of mine that I met when I was in Grade 12 (a senior, as Americans would say). Jenny and Huy are originally from Vancouver and they moved here several years ago.  Their daughter, Madison, is in Grade 4 and Jeremy and Grace immediately took to her.  She has been so patient with them, playing with them and showing them all kinds of things around her home.  Jenny made an authentic and delicious Vietnamese meal for dinner- pho- yum... We stayed up late and talked- it has been wonderful catching up with them.

During our quick stay here, I hope to also be able to meet with my brother and sister-in-law, as well as some other good friends.  We're here until Wednesday morning and then we'll head to my hometown, Edmonton.