Cool store, eh?

The reason behind our trip across the border was for Jeff to participate in a parade and ceremony on Sunday in observance of Canada's Law Enforcement Memorial Day. He's been taking part in the event for years, and this time we decided to join him and turn it into a long weekend vacation for the family.

And then something happened. It rained. More accurately, it poured. Really, really hard.

Jeff and his fellow officers still took part, but I, fair-weather parade goer that I am, decided the kids and I would rather stay dry. My heart goes out to the families of these fallen officers, but I suspect they'd understand my decision.

We did make it to the reception that followed, where AJ not only got to meet a real, live Mounty; he also got to try on his hat. Imagine if he was old enough to watch Dudley Do-Right.

So what did we do with our couple hours of unexpected free time on Sunday? We just happened to discover the coolest toy store ever. Talk about a best-kept secret: the store's name was
Auto*Tool*Toy Sense. Now, I can understand lumping automotive and tools into one store, but toys? It's not the most natural brand extension, but definitely a fun place. It easily had the largest selection of Playmobil toys I've ever seen, plus a large play area for test drives - literally.

Note the Thomas Train engine in the background. The kids had fun climbing inside and pushing buttons to make whistle and horn sounds.

That is, when they weren't playing with the smaller train set, or the doll house, or the mini-construction site. In the photo below, Sydney had been guiding the train around the track, saying, "Choo, choo, choo... crash."

I'd hoped to take a second trip to the store this morning before we left Canada, so that Jeff could see what the kids and I were talking about. Unfortunately, a powerful wind storm knocked out power to a good chunk of Thunder Bay, including our motel, so we packed up and headed home.

AJ, ever the optimist, found a bright side. "Hey, the rain washed the dirt away on our car. Thanks, God!" And if you ask him what his favorite part of Canada was, he'll tell you it was the Thomas Train store.