Whirwind (amazing) Weekend

We're back from the world's fastest (and shortest!) trip to Canada! My grandmother turned 80 this week, so for the first time in many years, I got to see most of my Dad's extended family in one place. I wish I could have stayed for a week! It was amazing to catch up with everyone just a little bit, hear stories from our family's past, celebrate my Oma, and just overall cram as much enjoyment as we could into 48 hours.

We set out E-A-R-L-Y Saturday morning and drove like the wind through four states and one province. The sunrise was stunning. I wish cell phone cameras could do it justice, because the whole expanse was lit up in a beautiful deep red. We soaked it in as we rode along.

The kids did great, and rehearsed all weekend how they were going to tell their friends that we drove through Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, and Ontario between the time they left school on Friday afternoon and returned Monday morning. They read for hours, took in the scenery, and did an amazing job.

They got along great--most of the time.

Cora was so proud of herself for her little photobombing.

When the kids realized how close we would be to Niagara Falls, they begged to take some time to see it. We had wanted to, but to be completely honest it's far too much walking for me lately. I barely manage a 30-minute walk. So earlier in the week, my parents had arranged for us to borrow a wheelchair from their church. A friend asked me how I felt about the idea. Two months ago, I would have been reluctant and devastated. This time, I was actually really excited. Where I've felt limited in the past and at risk of being left out of the family fun, this was a way for me to keep up (literally!) with my husband and kids. I was completely looking forward to testing out the new wheels. When we got to the falls, parking was at a premium. We ended up parking in a lot at the top of the hill leading down to the falls. And when I say leading down, I mean it was an almost vertical incline down. I chewed my lip in the car and had second thoughts about putting me on wheels on that kind of hill. "You're sure we can do this? I won't go rolling down the hill? Or fall out of the chair? I mean, I can walk some. Maybe I could just walk down?" Micah promised he wouldn't let me roll down into the water, and I reluctantly climbed into the chair. This was more terrifying than any rollercoaster I'd ever been on--there were no tracks, no rails, no safety bars. Just me, on wheels, on a vertical incline that dumped into one of the largest natural wonders in the world. This should be fine.

We set out, the kids surrounding the wheelchair and walking along with us. It was about a mile down. We crossed a couple of roads and the sidewalk would level off slightly, then drop off sharply again. We meant to get a picture from the top or the bottom to prove I'm not exaggerating, but I was so relieved to be alive when we got to the bottom (and Micah was so relieved to have made it back up the hill at the top!) that we forgot. Cora hung onto one armrest for dear life, convinced she was helping me to stay alive. At one point she let go, and said, "Whoa! Mom! I took my hand off and you rolled away! I better just keep holding on here."

Tiny co-pilot. 

I ran my hands along the rail on the wheels for part of the way, as extra braking power. Finally we made it to the bottom, safe and sound! About halfway down we'd realized how much work it was going to be to get back up the hill, and we had a good laugh (and a bit of a sobering moment) thinking ahead.

It was all worth it. The kids were ecstatic to see the falls. We started at the smaller falls, and they all chattered excitedly over each other, pointing out different things, feeling the mist, and looking around.

Sunny and beautiful and happy to be seeing Niagara Falls!

As we were taking their picture, a couple came up and asked if we'd like a family picture. We were thrilled. There was a rainbow just behind us, so they tried several shots to get the rainbow in the picture. Allow me one moment to be sentimental... They probably didn't realize the significance of what they were capturing, but this was our first family picture with a wheelchair. I think it was incredible that there's a beautiful rainbow stretching over us.

We wandered down to the larger falls, and the kids were even more impressed.

They wanted to keep walking until they could feel the mist.

Soaking it in.

Who wouldn't volunteer to ride in a wheelchair with this guy to push you along?

It really was beautiful. I grew up seeing these falls often, but it's always amazing to watch the kids discover things, and to see them through their eyes.

It was beautiful, but it was also absolutely frigid. We took some time to look at the water, then the kids opted to turn around. So back up the hill we went... I don't think I've ever laughed so hard in my life! Poor Micah had his work cut out for him. Cora was on one side, pushing my arm rest with all her little might. Henry was on the other, pushing and shoving the wheelchair up the hill.

This is the look of Micah AND Henry giving it all they've got. It's also a little motivation to keep my weight in check, if I'm honest! Although if we can manage the wheels on this terrain, we should be good anywhere!

There was a lot of salt on the sidewalk, so traction was impossible. Micah's feet kept slipping as he pushed. So Henry went along ahead of us and did a little Fred Astaire-style shuffle to clear some of it away before we got to it. It was really entertaining. About halfway up the hill, we hit a rut on a curb and got stuck. No amount of shoving, backing out, and trying again could seem to get me up onto the curb. I was laughing so hard I was no help at all. A man saw us and was just coming over to help when Micah backed up, turned me around, and got me up over the hurtle backwards. We thanked the man through laughter and continued on. Finally we reached the top. It's the easiest hill I've ever climbed in my life.

The rest of our weekend was somewhat less of an adventure, but absolutely full to overflowing with good moments. We met my aunt and cousin for dinner, spent the night in a beautiful hotel room (the kids asked how much it would be to buy that hotel room so we could go back for vacations any time we wanted), went out for breakfast, went to Oma's church, and spent the day surrounded by family.  It was a truly perfect weekend, even if it was somewhat of a whirlwind.

No self-respecting Canadian visits the homeland without a stop at Tim Horton's.