Beauty and Renewal at Butchart Gardens

Life's been a little crazy for me lately. Change is afoot. The school year is winding down to an end. For some reason, the 5th Grade will now have Physical Education daily for the rest of the year, greatly increasing either the laundry load or the the stink-o-meter reading if my child re-wears his uniform without washing. My youngest child's birthday is coming up, and I'm starting to wallow in sentimentality. This is the last year I'll have a kid with an age in the single digits. My oldest is just shy of hitting 6 feet (2 meters) tall. Where has the time gone?

I'm thinking back to our big summer trip of 2007. It was significant for a number of reasons. This was our first family vacation with 3 kids purely for fun, not to visit relatives. It was also the first time we traveled internationally as a family, making the trek from Texas to Canada. I also remember what a nervous traveling mama I was back then and realize how much easier it comes to me now that I have miles under my belt. Canada seems like a piece of cake compared to Tibet.

Butchart Gardens is an inspiration for the Canada Pavilion at EPCOT in Walt Disney World

Butchart Gardens on Vancouver Island was one of my favorite stops. I really wish I could get my yard to look like this.