Weekends in November

November was our month of busy weekends which was great. Natasha's parents came to visit over the long weekend in November. They arrived on Friday night in time to join us in a Shabbat meal followed by services at the synagogue. On Saturday morning we did our normal Saturday morning routine of visiting the farmers' market and the library. Natasha's mom especially liked the samples of pears from BC!

A sample of the awesome produce at our market.

The library is just around the corner from the market.

Saturday afternoon we went to MEC (Mountain Equipment Co-op), which is a must-do in Edmonton for Natasha's dad. Natasha's friend, Natasha Wiebe, joined us in this expedition.We had ulterior motives for going there, as we wanted to get better equipped for these cold Edmonton winters. We each got a set of super-warm long underwear, warmer mittens and balaclavas – to keep our faces warm on those cold days. Dave also acquired a warmer winter jacket and wind pants. (Note: As of January 13 we haven't had to break out much of this colder weather gear yet, but we are assuming that we will appreciate it more come end of January and into February.)

While at MEC we saw the most ridiculously over-sized truck we have yet to see in Alberta. It was raised so high off its tires that one needed a small ladder to climb into the cab. Our car could have easily driven under it without a scratch. Unfortunately, we didn't have our camera with us, so we don't have any pictures.

Saturday night we went out for Mexican food, which was really good. Sunday we made a trip to Costco and when we got home, Dave realized that we could watch CFL football playoffs on his computer with a live feed from CBC. So we watched our beloved Saskatchewan Roughriders beat... some other team. Dave didn't realize he was marrying into such a sports-frenzied family! We finished off the visit with some spanokopita brought to us by Natasha's mom and awesome fried shrimp made by Natasha's dad. Oh, and watching a few episodes of Friends.

The shrimp is almost ready to eat - yum :)

Natasha's mom bought us beautiful flowers from Costco.

And these ones too. Thanks Mom!

The following weekend we made a quick overnight trip to Calgary to visit with Alissa, Kirk and Robyn, and Donny and Marika, who were checking out the place in anticipation of moving there. We had a fun evening hanging out at Donny and Marika's hotel, and the next morning we hit a mall. It was close to a place Donny and Marika wanted to check out for housing possibilities, and Robyn and Kirk already had appointments there. It was so fun to hang out with Waterloo friends again. In the afternoon we visited Alissa's church, since we wanted to see where she works. And look, her name's even on the sign.

Donny, Marika, Dave and Alissa with the updated sign.

The next day we were back in Edmonton for Mitzvah Day at the synagogue. All of the Jewish synagogues and organizations in Edmonton donate a huge amount of items and Mitzvah Day is when they all get together and pack it up to send to various organizations. Dave worked with the technology group most of the day and Natasha ran back and forth between various places, helped out in housewares, and carried boxes. It was amazing to see the boxes and boxes of items being packed up to send to over thirty different organizations.

The following weekend Donny and Marika came to visit us in Edmonton. It was so great to be able to host another set of Waterloo friends. We did our normal Saturday morning routine and then Marika and Natasha headed out wedding dress shopping. Marika was awesome to shop with and found a number of good dresses. Below are some pictures to give you an idea of what fun we had!

This dress was very heavy and had a ridiculously long train.

But it's fun to try on dresses that are unrealistic!

I didn't want a strapless dress, but again, I had to try one on.

This dress was a lot closer to what I was looking for.

While Marika and I wedding dress shopped, Dave and Donny did... stuff... on their computers!

Sunday we spent most of the day at West Edmonton Mall. It was fun to see more shops and look for shoes, random CDs, and other stuff. Then we watched Saskatchewan beat Winnipeg to win the Grey Cup!!! Since Donny and Marika aren't huge football fans, and Natasha didn't gloat too much, it was a good evening :)