The Reed family

Our big reason for coming to Ontario Canada was to attend a family reunion near Niagara Falls. Barbara's Mum Hilda was from a widely spread family the Reeds from Yorkshire England. Seems like everywhere you go there's a Reed!

Years ago we lived in the area in a town named St Catherines on the Welland Canal, part of the St Lawrence Seaway that connects the Great Lakes to the Atlantic Ocean. That's when I first met Barbara's Canadian relatives and immediately fell in love with them.

A "Laker" in dry dock at Port Weller where I worked 42 years ago.

Over the years they have traveled to the UK and the US for various family events, and representatives of the family from as far afield as Australia came to Sally's wedding in Maryland.

Jim and Catherine hosted a fine crowd, ranging from 92 year old Peggy down to a slew of little ones who never seemed to stop running, swimming, eating or laughing the whole weekend long.

Peggy

Victoria likes ice cream

Alan and Mary came from Ottawa but the long distance award went to Leslie-Ann and her daughters who came from Korea! This is a well traveled family.

We camped near by at Knights Hide Away conveniently within a couple of miles (3 km in Canada) of Jim and Catherines place. We took side trips to Fort Erie which was the scene of fighting and much death in the war of 1812

Rebuilt in the 30's Fort Erie was destroyed in the war of 1812

We went to Niagara Falls but we've been many times before and $22 to park wasn't in our plans, so we kept driving and revisited St Catherines and even found the apartments we lived in all those years ago.

Lancelot Towers

Jim's a military history buff like me and we went and saw a local "Spitfire" which turned out to be a plastic replica (But a very convincing one).

Jim and the Spitfire

After many, dinners out, cook outs, afternoons in the sun sipping drinks and catching up on the news we moved on. But only 60 miles to Port Dover Ontario near Simcoe where Bob and Cathy Reed live.

Shore Acres in Port Dover ON

Lake Erie in the background

We were here for Canada Day, (which for our US friend's education is July 1st). Just like July 4th in the US they have fireworks, parades, parties and flags everywhere. We are lucky this year as Friday is Canada Day and of course Monday is Independence Day so we'll have Canadian flags out on one and US flags on the other.

Of course there will be lots more dinners out, cook outs and sitting in the sun sipping cold drinks here as well.