Preparations. The trip begins! March 2023

My girls were all super eager to leave...they volunteered to clean the van for me! All I had to do was drive it out of the garage, and they did all the work.

I spent a day visiting a friend who just had a baby. Beautiful brand new boy! I brought some meals, including some made from a friend who hadn't even met this friend...just wanting to help!

Packed and ready to go at last! We decided to use some suitcases this time, since they are a bit handier than Rubbermaids to be moving in and out of buildings. No camping across Canada in March! Even if we were crazy enough to try, there are no places that are open this time of year.

While we are working hard, Matthew has been helping out in his Uncle's shop, doing brakes and tires. And going for snowmobiling outings, and getting stuck. Four people sent me pictures of his one epic stuck spot. They needed four strong people and as saw to get him out. He enjoyed every second of it.

Trailer getting loaded...last things tied down tightly.

And off we went north and through the Canadian shield. The weather cleared up after an hour or so and the roads were nice and clear.

Nathan got to do some highway driving too.

And we moved around in the van after every bathroom stop. It's nice to have variety in where to sit, especially if you don't have the most comfortable seat!

We stopped at a motel in a super tiny place before Thunder Bay. We had instant noodles for dinner. You can microwave the water, or heat it up in the coffee maker, if you are desperate. Nothing like hot soup after a long out of sorts kind of day.

A motel room (even two) sure feels like a small space for a family of 7(not 8 because Matthew is probably enjoying an epic snowmobile outing right now while we are only 1/4 of the way across the country) so we also went for a walk. Hoping it would help us sleep better at night too, having gotten a bit of exercise.

Oh my faithful blue van, how I miss you!