Thanksgiving and Autumn

Firstly...

It's Autumn here, and it is absolutely beautiful. The trees here, are truly magnificent. Everywhere you look, the radient greens, yellows, oranges and reds almost seem to glow - these are colours that would make Mrs Irwin proud. I have taken these photographs over the last weekend, but they really don't do the beauty justice, because no matter how hard I try, a camera just can't capture this...

 Secondly...

It was thanksgiving this weekend!

A quintessential North American holiday, it is somewhat reminiscent of our christmas (only minus the presents), an excuse to see the family, get a few days off work/school, and to eat a lot. And, it seems that Canadians take advantage of all three.

Thanksgiving is a very big deal here, and while it is very commercialised, I know it gave me a chance to think about what I'm thankful for, by no means is this a short list!

(This is only a tiny part of the massive pile of pumpkins in the supermarket car park - it took up about 8 parks!)

The school board gave us Friday off as well as the statutory Monday, so all the kids got a four day weekend! On Sunday we drove about 1 and a half hours north, to visit Julie's sister and their family. It was a lovely day, and we had a fantastic Thanksgiving dinner - Turkey, mashed potatoes, vegetables, and Pumpkin Pie, which is a new favourite of mine!!!

I went for a walk with Monica ( my host sister, in one of the pictures), Fab (my host dad), Brian ('Host Uncle) and Kobe, the thirteen week old puppy! Most of the pictures above were taken on the walk, and it was amazing. Only a 5 minute walk from their house, in a developed area, there was a forest, which was filled with tree's., the evidence is, evident. But, trees aren't all we saw...

Thirdly...

BEAVERS! At the start of the walk we heard some rustling in the bushes, and turned to see the trees moving. Brian said they had a bit of a bear problem over the last few weeks, so he was rather worried, until we realised the trees weren't just moving, one huge branch was being dragged down to the river... Beavers!

We snuck down to the edge of the creek, and sure enough, floating around in the water were two beavers. A lot bigger than I expected, they were swimming up and down, and didn't seem particularly phased by us. About 40minutes later when we headed back we had another look, and they were still there, so I managed to get a few good photos.

They certainly made my day, and now I can cross another iconic Canadian animal off my list! 

Beaver teeth marks...

See him there?

Tadaah!

So, I have had a fantastic weekend, and eaten my fair share of pumpkin pie and pumpkin loaf! Surprisingly, no-one here has heard of Pumpkin Soup! Nicole's brother told me that it doesn't even exist, I must be lying. But seriously, not a single person has been able to confirm the existence of one of the most amazing foods ever.

So, what am I thankful for?

Amongst other things, I am so, so lucky to have..

- My wonderful family in New Zealand.

- My amazing families here in Canada.

- The friends I have, in Canada and New Zealand.

-Exchange Students! They are friends, but quite unlike any one else I know.

-Rotary, for the experience of a lifetime.