Olivia is finally tucked away in her own bed tonight (for now). We are still getting used to Ottawa time. We arrived at 12:30 this morning...and it's been a day of adjustments. Which is funny because a week ago, marked our 6th month with Miss O. 6 months ago last week on the 25th, she arrived to Ottawa in the wee hours of the morning from a flight that went from Seoul to Toronto, Toronto to Korea. We just came back from our first family vacation from Penticton, British Columbia. It just so happened that Olivia's 6th month anniversary fell on Papa's Ironman week. It was a tiring week for all.
Olivia was great on the plane (when I say great...I mean it wasn't like the Korea flight home). She got bored at times but we were prepared with DVD's and snacks. Not to mention she was able to walk up and down the aisle for a few minutes. The only "negative" part was Olivia's screeches of excitement. It didn't bother Martin and
I, but I'm sure there were a few on the plane that were plugging their ears. :0)
We arrived to Penticton fully loaded - 3 luggages, a car seat, a stroller, a bike box, bag of toys, diaper bag, computer bag, and a backpack. It was insane. Someone at Budget Car Rental knew we came in with such a load and offered us an extended YUKON. It was massive, but we all fitted in comfortably with lots of room. Ohhh...forgot to mention...the best part was meeting Melissa at the airport. Yes, she was the on-call nanny for the week. Thank goodness.
We packed up the car and drove the hour to Penticton. Beautiful drive along the lakes. Seemed so surreal. But of course it was Martin and I who enjoyed the views. Tita Melissa and Olivia passed out in the back.
We arrived at the hotel and was pleasantly surprised at the accommodations we had. The room Martin booked was perfect for Olivia. She had plenty of room to go back and forth and play. Well..more than the standard hotel room. We quickly unloaded and got ourselves acquainted with the town. We went grocery and had a nice dinner in our hotel room.
The next day Martin had to register so we went with him to the site. It was packed full of athletes. Martin was in heaven. People who loved the sport and could talk about it as much as he could. hahahah. The ladies...well, we hung around and let Olivia walk waving to everyone. She was her usual charming self. She followed a couple of dogs here and there, yelling "doggie!".
After the registration, we walked over to the beach and Martin got ready to go swimming. Olivia had her plans to go in the frigid waters. We quickly changed her, put her life jacket on (because we don't' trust her at all in the waters), and she marched right into the lake. The water was freezing. Martin said it was cold and he was wearing his wetsuit. hahahah. But she loved every minute of it. She would walk and start to lose her balance and fall in the water, and jump up because it was sooo cold. But she would still stay in there. Ugh. When Martin finished his training swim he brought Olivia a little deeper and she loved it but she was shivering and I swear she was turning blue. ahhahah. We'd back another day.
The rest of the week seems like a blur with events and meeting Martin's TRI friends (who are awesome). We walked around the town and found some great restaurants. Burger 55 to mention one. We also attended the pasta dinner banquet the night before the race with Martin's friends and Olivia had a great time running around the convention centre halls while all the athletes were listening to the rules and regulations of the race. Needless to say, every night Olivia had opportunities to run around and be her free spirited self. Us on the other hand, had the job of watching her and following her every move. hahahah.
RACE DAY:
Martin left early of course. We agreed that it wouldn't make sense to drag Olivia to the race site early the morning. So, Olivia, Tita Melissa, and Mama all slept in and enjoyed our continental breakfast at the hotel. After breakfast we decided to try out the pool and maybe squeeze a morning nap in there somewhere. After her short nap, we packed up and took a taxi to the race site. Martin had left the truck at the hotel of his friends that was located right at the race start. It was the perfect location, but it was the scuzziest motel ever. Nicola and Tina graciously gave us a key to their room for us to room if the day was too long for Olivia. By the time we got there, the stands were only 1/2 full. We walked across to the beach side and planted the stroller in what was the best seat ever. Olivia had a chance to go back to the beach and play while we watched the race. Melissa and I took turns watching Olivia, but eventually all the running around exhausted her and I carried her while she slept in the BECO.
Unfortunately, Olivia missed Papa as he ran by us. But was able to see him at the last leg of the run which made all the difference in the world. In between the run though, Tita Melissa had to bring Olivia to the hotel room because the wind gusts and the sand storm. The weather was insane. That didn't last long because the hotel room was too small for Olivia to move around in. So in desperation, I went to the truck and pulled out the portable DVD and gave it to Olivia in her stroller. Sad I know, but I had to occupy her for another 2 hours, and it was too windy to play at the beach.
Luckily, we did that because Papa finished in record time. We were able to see him cross the finish line in all his glory. It was a crazy day, but all worth it for this proud moment. So happy that Olivia (although she doesn't remember it) was part of this special day. When we went through this process, Martin kept saying how wonderful it would be to see his family at finish line waving him on. Then when we found out about Olivia, I know all Martin could think about was how his little girl would be waiting at the finish line. She really is Daddy's Number 1 fan!
