A little more than two years ago, Mackenzie and I packed our bags and camera and headed out on a road trip to Tofino, BC to stay in the Ocean Village Resort. This trip was to be our ‘last hurrah’ to our lives of just the two of us and to welcome the transition of bringing home baby in a few short months. (Here’s a few photos from our trip when I was pregnant with Ezra below!)
Tofino 2018 Highlights
- Donuts at Rhino Coffeehouse
- Tofino Soap Company
- Local shopping at SALT Tofino
- A toddler who can fly a kite better than you
- Sleeping in beehive cabins
- Efficient meal planning with Hello Fresh
- Beachside BBQ
- Tacos at Tacofino
- Cheesy grins and wind swept hair
This year we are awaiting the arrival of our second babe, who is due at the end of August, and thought we take a trip down memory lane, pack our bags once more and head off to the BeeHive cabins of Tofino! We mentioned it to the rest of our family, since it was spring break, most would have vacation time, and low and behold, all 16 of us went! We booked up two and a half cabins and four cars, let the convoy begin!
While packing for the trip, we were discussing food, bringing a cooler, transporting leftovers and travelling to Victoria afterwards. We then came up with the most GENIUS plan I think we’ve ever thought up. We were going to bring our Hello Fresh box with us to Tofino! SO good. The box itself comes insulated and could last the trip there, no left overs (depending if Ez eats her whole meal) because it is made to portion, AND so much cheaper than bringing home all the awkward leftovers from grocery shopping that usually get tossed when you get home anyways! One thing I would recommend if you do decide to bring Hello Fresh along on your next trip would be to bring a couple tupperware containers for while you’re there and to call your accommodations to see what cooking utensils they have to make sure you’ll be able to cook what’s in the box!
When we arrived, our first plan of action (always, wherever we go) is to set up Ezra’s sleeping quarters. There is nothing worse when being away with your toddler, who is already out of sorts with the new room, than having to set up their bed when they’re cranky and half asleep. After that, we unpacked and started our first meal from Hello Fresh, put Ezra to bed and then headed over to the grandparents suite to have a games night! Another best part of staying at Ocean Village Resort was that the cabins are about 3 feet apart from each other, which is ideal for large family getaways. The monitor reaches perfectly!
Our second day there, we headed out to Rhino’s Coffee for some donuts, java, and a selfie with the great rhino itself. Of corse Ezra was all in the entire time and was on cloud nine when Wayne, the owner, came out from the counter and brought over an assortment of donuts for us to take back to the cabin and enjoy. Yummy! We then ventured out to stop in at a couple local shops we wanted to revisit and made sure to stop in one of the gems of Tofino, SALT Tofino. One of the goodies we walked away with was some of the beautiful soaps I just couldn’t keep my eyes off of – Tofino Soap Co. you make one heck of a bar of soap! If you are visiting and are looking for THEE place for one stop shop of all the local and handmade artisans, this is it. I even caught a glimpse of some companies that made their way over from Vancouver!
2PM rolled around and we were exhausted, time for a family nap time. Yup. Family nap time – it’s what vacations were made for! We then spent the afternoon down on the beach, which was 20 feet away from our doorstep, although, you could spot Ezra from a mile away with her ‘hazmat’ suite on. Then tucked away for the rest of the night, prepping our second Hello Fresh meal and then geared up for another games night, and we all know a games night in Tofino isn’t complete without pairing it with a few bottles from Tofino Brewing! Family games nights have always been my favourite, I remember when I was 10 or 11 and staying up with my mom and dad until 11pm some nights while we were camping at Golden Ears Park. The best.
Our last day in Tofino, we spent over at PROVINCIAL PARK BEACH with the whole family. Building sandcastles, exploring tide pools and flying kites. OH the flying of kites. We discovered that Ezra is a pro kite-flyer and should go in to it as a career. I cannot express how funny and ‘in awe’ everyone was that Ezra was so focused on her kite (that was at least 70ft in the air) but would also run around on the beach, squatting in tide pools and digging in the sand. Amongst all of this she NEVER let the kite dip or out of her hand, and if you we’re going to ask her for it she would run as fast as her little feet and HAZMAT suite would let her. (PS – How ADORABLE is this toque from Wild Child Designs – we are obsessed with it and the only sad part about the sun coming out is that she’ll be done with it for this season.)
One special item on the itinerary while we were in Tofino, was family photos. My father-in-law had gone ahead and found an amazing photographer, Karley from Bracey Photography, to capture our entire family, big and small, on the beach. We are SO thankful both to him for scheduling such a precious time and for Karley for capturing everyone so beautifully that morning. (Click HERE to view the full collection – Link to come)
That evening we celebrated our family and the fun we had in Tofino with a good ol’ beachside BBQ with a few bottles of Tofino Brewing by our side. The resort has firepits set up along the beach for families to access during their stay. That evening as we sat there roasting marshmallows and hotdogs, there was a completely different feeling on the beach. A feeling of closeness, family, and just overflowing joy. Each firepit was full of different families, couples and children were walking and running along the tide, and then there it was, the perfect golden sunset.
The entire family stayed for three nights and after we all parted ways, just the three of us headed over to Victoria to enjoy a little more family time. Head over to – BabyMoon Numba TWO – Pt2 to read about the rest of our trip and more family photos!
Have any of your own family trip secrets? Leave a comment below for something new to try out on our next adventure!
XO – Cass
Stumbling Grace 