~ FLASHBACK FRIDAY ~ July 17, 2015 ~ FAMILY VACATIONS ~

~ FLASHBACK FRIDAY ~ July 17, 2015 ~  FAMILY VACATIONS ~ I would like to first offer a very belated "Happy Anniversary to my parents! Even though I thought about it ALL that day, I still didn't manage to get in touch with my parents to wish them a Happy 40th Anniversary on July 12, 2015. 

In some ways, it's almost hard to believe that they've been married for 40 years, and in other ways, it seems like they have been married FOREVER! (I guess that's understandable since I was only 5 or 6 years old when they got married).

In thinking over the past 40 years, it was wonderful to travel down so many memory lanes. One I kept coming back to though, is all of the family vacations that we took every summer.

It was easy to get lost wandering down that particular road, given the time of year it is, that my husband and son just spent three days camping for the first time last week, and my son is just wrapping up his very first week at camp. This is the first time that he has spent any length of time not only away from home, but away from all family members as well. 

I am super proud of him!! I known from experience that it is not easy being away from home, not knowing what to expect your first time at camp, meeting so many new people from all over, and experiencing your first time sleeping in a cabin with 6-7 other boys your age. I hope he had the time of his life and can't wait to hear all about it!

I recently posted about my camping experience (see my June 19, 2015 FLASHBACK FRIDAY post, "Summer Fun at Camp Pagweak"). And I have also been thinking a lot about family camping trips that we took when I was younger as well.

Some memories are clearer than others, and I'm sure we didn't really go camping as often as my memory says we did, but I think that it is much better to believe that we went far more than we actually did than to think that we didn't go as often as we really did!

I remember visiting so many places, on our vacations. Ones that stand out the most, are Fort Beausejour ~ Fort Cumberland National Historic Site. Located on the Nova Scotia and New Brunswick border, it is the site of the 18th century conflicts between France and Britain and later, where the battle was held for North American Supremacy between America and Britain. 

We also toured the Cabot Trail in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia (actually, I remember LOTS of trips to Cape Breton to visit my dad's Great Aunt Maggie). One year we camped at Kejimkujik National Park, where I caught my very first cat fish. I believe that was the year that we woke up almost floating down the river, having been literally washed out of our tent because of a freak torrential rain storm the night before.

One of my most precious memories is that we ALWAYS took our cat with us. When I was growing up, we had two Siamese cats, Blue and Tie. I'm not sure what happened to Blue, but we had Tie for years and he would always come camping with us. He most favourite spot to travel in the car, was sitting on the backrest with his paws draped over my mom's shoulders as she drove. 

I am really hoping that I'll be able to get some photos from my mom so that I can better share some of these memories with you. For now though, all of these memories are so fresh in my mind that I don't really need the photos to take me right back in time again. It's almost like I'm still there!

So thanks Mom and Dad for the incredible, unforgettable family vacations and thanks especially for the love, guidance and support over the past 40 years! Congrats and here's to the next 40!!

#FlashbackFriday, #Flashback, #MemoryLane, #Memories, #RememberWhen, #Orcanut, #Family, #FamilyVacations, #SummerVacation, #HappyAnniversary, #Camping, #Tenting, #Travelling, #SummerCamp, #FirstTimeAwayFromHome, #Cabins, #FortBeausejour, #FortCumberlandNationalHistoricSite, #CabotTrail, #Kejimkujik, #KejimkujikNationalPark, #RainedOut, #LeakingTent, #Catfish, #FreakTorrentialRains, #Cat, #CampingCat, #Love, #Guidance, #Support