It has now been 13 months since we arrived in Canada and 12 months since we have settled in the Ladner community. The new start to our lives has been a mix of homesick, traumatic, exciting and challenging, ranging from regular challenges from the authorities and the endless red-tape, the boys finding their feet in the different schooling system and learning Mandarin, French and Spanish, and I plunging into the Microsoft high-paced environment and trying to bubble up. The advantages, however, are immense and can be summarised by showing a few photos we took looking around us in Ladner … the beauty is phenomenal and we cannot wait for Summer break, when we will explore the territories beyond the mountains in the photos … :)  
  

Oh, probably the weirdest thing is the fact that the Canadian soccer season is in winter. Players … and parents … stand in the rain, snow, gale force winds … while 20 players chase one ball and two goalies try and keep warm on either end of the soccer field. This weekend was the last tournament for the U15’s and the Shamrocks (Ladner Bronze Soccer team) got Gold by beating  three other Delta teams in freezing and very wet conditions. We escaped to Tim Horton's during breaks to get coffee,  hot chocolate and to defrost. Lunch was at Nandos on both Saturday and Sunday … Nandos in Canada?!? Yup, we have a piece of South-Africa to keep us warm and spiced up :)

… victorious, yet wet Shamrocks :)

Well done Shamrocks on another great victory and for braving the weather conditions under the liquid sun :)