Labour Day

I know, I know. Two blog posts in one day. Too much! Oh well.

To finish off the weekend on Monday was Labour Day (yes, they have labour day in Canada and they put a "U" in it) and we got together with Mark's mom, Dave, Tanessa, and Mercedez who were watching our nephews, Crew and Rocky, while Chelsea and Steve were out of town.

We went to Peter's Drive In. It's near downtown Calgary and they have burgers, hot dogs, fries, onion rings, and (what I think they're best known for) milk shakes. You can get a shake in probably almost any flavor you could want. Oreo, please.

Then we went down to where this old mall is. It's not too huge and a little ghetto. We were mostly walking through until we saw a cool little store and stopped to check it out. Crew and Rocky didn't think it was as cool as the escalator, which they rode up and down until everyone looking in the store was ready to go.

Then we went to this nice park that was outside the mall and walked around. There was a river by it that the boys loved throwing rocks into. It kind of felt like a mini Central Park because we could see all the big buildings from downtown right next to the park.

Left: Rocky saying "cheeeeese" / Right: Crew going down

Mark isn't throwing Rocky over the side. He's showing him the ducks.

Okay, now I have to stop wasting time and go work on permanent residency stuff.

Alvera or Olvera Street

On Tuesday of this past week I went with my mom, Johanna Phelan, and her four beautiful daughters to Olvera Street, which I always want to spell with an A (Alvera). The Phelans used to be in our ward and now live in Glendora and my mom used to work for John Phelan with his landscaping business, so she keeps in touch with them and serves as a surrogate grandma for the girls because they don't have grandparents in CA.

Johanna and the girls had never been to Olvera Street or on the train that goes into LA so it was a fun experience to go down with them. My mom has taken me and my sister since we were little (well, not on the train because it wasn't there) and I think my mom even went when she was little, too.

We got on in Pasadena and you get off at Union Station which is awesome and so pretty. It looks like early Hollywood style. It's so cool!

Then you walk across the street and Olvera Street is right there. My mom said it's the first street in Los Angeles. There are vendor carts, shops you can go inside, restaurants, music, churros, snow cones. It's fun to go down for a couple hours and check it out. Even if you've been tons of times like I have, I still love going down because it's fun to go and do something different.

Carly Jo with one of the umbrellas we bought to shield from the sun.

The greenery above the walk are grapes!

Carly Jo with a Mexican statue and her beloved churro.

Britney, Brooke, Claire, and Carly Jo in front of a fountain on the street.
(I gave Carly Jo a penny to make a wish in the fountain and she said she wished to get a toy.)

You basically feel like you've been on a trip to Mexico without actually having to go South of the border. I think the girls had fun. Carly Jo is so adorable and wanted everything she saw, but settled on a stuffed cat...or dog...I'm not sure what it was, haha! I think she named it Lucy and it slept in the pocket of her dress. Britney and Claire got some bracelets. Brooke decided on this cool looking owl purse that was purple with some pink, made out of real leather. Another success for Olvera Street!