Three Days in Thunder Bay

It was a time of celebration. It was a time of family fun. We had to get up reallllly early to drive to Toronto on Thursday morning to fly to TB. We arrived in TB at 9:45 a.m. So we had the day to visit with the kids. What fun! After lunch Kyle suggested we go for a walk. So, Wayford, Wilma, Sandra, Kyle and Bayleigh went across the road from Kyle's house to a trail through the woods. Since it was a really hot, sunny day we covered ourselves with sunscreen. Well, that probably wasn't necessary because most of the area we hiked was in heavy bush which kept us in the shade. Now, because there was shade, there was mud, because it had not dried out since the last rain (or snow). A few places there were rickety bridges which we crossed and one place there was a pile of small logs that were loose(maybe you think that was not a challenge for this great-grandma). Thankfully we were a bit early for mosquitoes and black flies. Now, if you know Kyle, he has been known to take people on hikes, convincing them he knew where he was going, when in fact he was going the wrong way and winding up miles away from their destination (right, Jeff and Jeremy?). In fact a pair of sandals are still imbedded in the mud somewhere in the Meaford area. We take comfort in the new technology that can track him now wherever he goes. We didn't have that tracking device with us on this trek. He kept telling us that we were only a few minutes from a look-out. By this time Bayleigh is upset because she thinks the mud on her shoes is dog dirt and Grandpa is complaining that his hip is hurting. We did eventually reach the look-out. Now, what to do? Do we walk back the way we came? Do we walk along the highway, which is only a few feet away? Do we call back to the house and ask someone to come get us? As it happens, there is only one vehicle available. It is a truck with three car seats and room for one adult besides the driver. OK, Bayleigh gets the car seat, Grandpa gets the passenger seat. Where does that leave, Kyle, Sandra and Grandma? You guessed it! We climb into the back of the truck. We laughed all the way down the hill to the house. Reminded us of going fishing, riding in the back of Grandpa Lawson Smith's old truck.

We had great times playing with the girls.

Breakfast together afforded the girls with an unusual situation. Four grandpas were all seated together. Two grandpas and two great-grandpas.

These were just serendipities of our reason for being there. After these things the celebrations began. Friday evening Kyle was hooded as an MD and then Saturday afternoon both Kyle and Jessica graduated from the Northern Ontario School of Medicine. Kyle will be a resident doctor at the hospital in Thunday Bay for two years. Jessica is presently working in a fitness center there in Thunder Bay.

The evening closed with a formal dinner honoring the new doctors and their families. Sunday morning began again with a very early schedule. Wayford and I left TB at 6:10 a.m. and arrived back in Toronto in time to get to church at Tintern by 9:45. It was a great time of celebration!