My parents have been attending the Olympics (Summer and Winter) since 1976. I’ve been fortunate to accompany them 3 times now. This was my husband’s first Olympic experience. Now he’s ready for London and Russia and Rio!!

Vancouver is doing a particularly impressive job! The people are amazing! The public transportation is faultless! The streets are clean enough to eat off of! And the scenery is breathtaking! Kudos to Canada!!

Storybook Whistler Village…GREAT place to hang out, meet super folks from other countries, meet and greet some athletes… No, my mittens don’t match my outfit…but they are the hottest commodity in Vancouver right now. The shops cannot keep them in stock. One girl bought 40 pairs for friends looking for them. My mother bought 10 pairs for grandchildren, gifts, etc. And you just can’t help but love the Canadians – so I sported them, too!

I might be cold…who am I kidding – I am always cold!?! But I love my mittens :)

Dave, me, Mom. We’re here at the luge to see American Erin Hamlin. She is from Remsen, NY, near my hometown and my parents are friends with hers. The Hamlin family is really fun to hang out with. They are camped out here with us and the Sweeney fans and a lot of other fun people. The Utica Club Brewery is near our hometowns and sent their good wishes as well as some Utica Club beer to Vancouver! How’s that for Hometown support!!

Here we’re at the ski jump portion of the Nordic Combined. American Johnny Spillane delivered a spectacular performance and earned the Silver! We really enjoyed his race.

Dave and Dad. Apolo Ohno was the highlight of this evening of Short Track Speed Skating.

Vancouver is a gorgeous city. Here we walked downtown and through Stanley Park.

I’m really happy now because I’m toasty warm in the sun. The wine helps, too :)

Our lodging arrangements were also very interesting. We had our event tickets and our airline tickets a LONG time ago (my mother starts working on event tickets years before the events.) We had a really hard time finding lodging, though. My father even wanted to consider cancelling the trip. So I got creative (and brave!?!) and arranged a Home Exchange with someone in Vancouver. My husband was nervous and reluctant but was a great sport and went along with it. We were soooo fortunate to trade for a great apartment in North Vancouver! It couldn’t have been nicer or in a better location. And our exchange family enjoyed our place and couldn’t have taken better care of it. Thank you SJ!!

We obviously had a fabulous experience. Can’t wait to do it again!!