where there's a family team, there's a road trip... and errands

 

i think i remember how to do this here lil' bloggy thingy.

but then again, it's been a while.

before i catch you up on our current events, i must say a huge {texas-sized} thank you.
from the bottom of our hearts.

thank you.
for all the wonderful warm wishes at such a heart-heavy time.

so... what have we been up to?

we made our way down the bayou for pop's funeral.
sometimes, you just put aside your schedule for more important things.
theater camp would have been a blast for the girls, but there will be more next year.
for now, the need was with family.

it's funny how the seemingly important things in our busyness seem less important when much bigger worries come to pass.

hubby had to travel many miles to florida after the funeral services.
{insert tears}

the girls and i traveled many miles to and fro granny and grandma's houses for the rest of the week in louisiana.
we handed out lots of hugs.
shared tears.
and had conversation that still has my head reeling. 

attended a cajun wedding reception.
of which i could create an entire blog post.
but i shall refrain.
let's just say...
nator has determined that alcohol will not be served at her wedding. 
mama had some splainin' to do.
and mama wanted to put some adults in time-out.

then we made our way back to texas.

road trip.
i believe gracie ate an entire plate of grapes before we were 30 minutes out of granny's driveway.  grapes are her weakness.

just in time for nator's first lego camp.
piano lessons.
gracie's fashion camp.
picking up hubs from the airport.
and jasmine from the dog-sitter.

a homeschool swim party with sweet friends.
celebrating august birthdays.
gracie shocked us all when she went down the big slide into the deep end.
{last year, she merely made it half-way up the stairs before returning.}
nator is thrilled to have a slide partner.

the party was meant to welcome in the new school year.
of which i'm not ready for.
as seen by our unorganized school room.
but will be.
soon.
next month is soon, right? ;)

that's what ensues when life happens.
priorities shift,
but we eventually get to all of the important things on the list, right?
just smile, nodding your head in agreement.
it makes me feel better.

and mama ended the week with a bang.
remember the mystery pain that took mama's breath away last year?
it happened to poor mama again, friday night.  this is no walk in the park, people.
mama had to lie on the floor to keep from passing out from the pain.
mama finally had to wake the sleeping papa to help when mama got sick.
not pretty.
but at least mama kept it neat for papa.
mama loves effecient cleanup. ;)

guess mama will have to break down and go back to a doc again soon.
*sigh*
*ugh*
*insert more random complaining*

mama was slow moving {with a heating pad} for nearly 48 hrs.  was well for a day.  then came down with severe body aches.  better the next day.

and that's the end of mama's geriatric story.
wow.  aren't you glad i blogged again? ;)

i'm sure there were many more stories to tell, but that's about all mama's got for today.
mama needs a vacation.
of which she and the girlies will take soon.
sooner than our school room will be organized.
road trip, baby!
*crossing fingers that daddy can meet us out there*

and for any who've missed the added vloggy...
the girlies have missed it more, i believe.
they enjoy watching all of our past videos.



oh sweet memories.
and beautiful blessings.

how are you guys doing?  are you enjoying the pool this summer?  or are you ready for cool temps just as much as we are? 

eggs, brains, and cell phones

how's that for a title combo?
well, it has to be better than this combo...

unless you really are into dipping your cookies in beer?
*shivers*
honestly, i didn't realize i lived right smack in the middle of redneck-ville.
who knew?

we looked for eggs.
or the people who stock them.

when organic is on sale,
it's a big deal.

we've done it in fashion.

tutus are always in style.
side ponytails are 80's, but don't tell gracie.
she's bringin' it back.
she's also into half shirts, layered on top of other shirts.

we've painted pottery.
seems we're always thinkin' of ice cream, you know.
with sprinkles.

we've exercised sibling generosity.
gracie bought nator a gift with her own money.
a token of appreciation for nator having done this before, as well.
this is a bigger deal than eggs.



we've made brains.
these girls understand much more in education than i ever did at their age.

we bought the girls their first cell phones.
we always told them they'd have one when they needed it.

when you have 2 kiddos, so close in age...
two phones are more for the parents' survival, you know.

with a few activities away from mom, we feel better knowing they have easy access to us...
they just... ummm... look so young for phones, ya know?
*sigh*
many youngsters have them these days.
up until now, we'd say if they needed mom, they only had to look to their left.

they were sooo excited.
we told them we were getting dad a new phone.
*giggle*
we're sneaky like that.
imagine their surprise.

no, really.
imagine it.
because i can't seem to upload my iphone movie into imovie.
mama needs an updated version.
mama also needs to be less tech-challenged.



we went to a splash park.
{ignore the roof caving in. the mom-wagon is getting some tlc soon.}
it was a homeschool-planned field trip.
minus all the other homeschoolers.
imagine our surprise.
we played anyway.
we were hot.
we came home.

and that, my friend, has been a sliver of our july, thus far.
how's yours going?
are you ready for cooler weather, too?!

our last day of exploring in the mountains

after a full week, we were tired, y'all.  so we slept in.  past the hotel's breakfast time.  hubs told me about a place that sold pancakes bigger than your plate, so i had to see it for myself.  crazy, right?  hubs and i split one.  they were pretty yummy.



next we took another short road trip along the scenic seward highway from anchorage to the wildlife conservation center.  a center caring for orphaned and/or injured animals. 
 
although... i did wonder how they accumilated so many deer skins to sell in their gift shop.
were these animals they couldn't rehibilitate??
inquiring minds want to know.
or maybe we don't?
*gulp*



we watched this orphaned kodiac cub play in the water
like any clumsy house pet we've ever owned.
so stinkin' cute.
but no worries.
you won't find me feeding the bears.



there is a tiny wire fence separating us from most of the animals.
we watched this moose eat for quite some time.
he didn't let us disturb his lunch.

when getting eye level with one of the big caribou,
i was reminded just how tiny the fence was.
he must not have liked that.
when he stood up, inches from my face, i suddenly realized this lil' wire fence wouldn't hold his massive frame back... if he really wanted to come after me, that is.

he didn't seem to mind me reaching in to touch his huge antler, though.
i couldn't resist the temptation.
it felt soft and fuzzy.  kinda like kiwi.
good thing they shed those occasionally.
the weight of it would have me dragging my big head around.
for sure.



so after reading this sign...
do you notice anything funny about this picture below?



i was kinda hopin' the fence was left open on purpose.
yeah.
that makes me feel better.

wood bison.
they're pretty important to alaskan history.
between the fur, to keep you warm
and the fact that they are great grazers. 

after visiting and reading about the animals that reside here,
we headed over to girdwood to visit the alyeska resort
and ride the tram up the mountain.



it was the warmest day, yet we found ourselves standing in snow.

 

crazy, right?

so much fun.

but you had to be careful up here.

there were drop offs and hiking trails.

not to mention the bears.

we saw a black bear from the tram on the way back down.
apparently, it's not uncommon to find one roaming the resort.
ummm... i'll pass.

hubs made me move for fear that i would fall down the mountainside,
trying to capture the perfect shot.
*giggle*
we headed inside for a bite to eat with these crazy beautiful views.
apparently many are great for skiing.
that's something i've never tried.
maybe one day.

we headed back down to anchorage to meet up with friends
at the glacier brewhouse.
yummy.

friends that loaned us their car for the week.
again, so thoughtful.
and generous.
one of the many blessings that made this trip affordable.

{day 1}
{day 2}
{day 3}
{day 3 part 2}
{day 4}

the day in which we wore every jacket in our suitcase

the 127 mile stretch from anchorage to seward is quite breathtaking.  unlike many places in america, you will often find large 'nooks' off the side of the road for parking.  picture taking is expected.  and a must, at times. 

it also serves those adventurous souls who enjoy the numerous hiking trails or rock climbing within mere feet of the road.  we didn't stop.  the purpose of our adventure was to explore kenai fjords. 



so we loaded in a small boat with a handful of other adventurous souls.  some of them booked this expedition through a travel agent.  so, i guess we got lucky... because i simply found them online.  it's a family owned business, but they have two ladies manning this lil' ship.

all in all, it was a great experience.  i'll let the pictures do most of the talking...

flying in a boat + glaciers = glacier water = freezing one's fanny off.

this is a 95 foot boat.  this is a big glacier.

 

when it calves, it sounds like thunder.
everyone is quiet...

taking it all in.
amazing.

we saw humpback, fin, and {of course} shamu. ;)  unfortunately, they were all a bit shy... so they didn't breach the water.  we forgave them.





this lil' guy was checkin' us out.  i think he regretted leaving his camera at home.

after an entire day at sea, we were all looking like these little guys...



apparently, we were lucky.  they say that the weather isn't always so clear, and the glacier so active.  we saw eagles, whales, puffins, otters, sea lions, dall sheep, lava rock... and lets not forget the glacier.

before leaving, we witnessed the weighing of several halibut that had been caught.  the winner was a young lady.  her fish was 50 lbs.



it's a different world there, y'all. 
simply amazing.

a couple more of these posts and i'll be done.  promise.
i mean, my everyday life is much more entertaining anyway, right?
you don't have to answer that. ;)

{day 1}
{day 2}
{day 3}
{day 3 part 2}

behold, the cuteness...

still on day 3 {this series will end at some point. promise.}, we ventured through wasilla, ak.  it is a seemingly self-proclaimed redneck capital.  this might explain something about a certain former vice presidential candidate's grand-baby daddy. *ehem*

while i agree it didn't leave a posh impression, it didn't really strike me as more redneck than other places i've ventured into in the lower 48.

lower 48.  alaskan talk.  *giggle*

i was only disappointed that there were seemingly only chain restaurants.  mainly only chili's.  and fast-food.  chili's it is then.  it's all about the food in the end, right?

mainly....



i wanted to visit this place.
the iditarod headquarters.

if there's one thing you're sure to see this time of year in alaska,
it's people walking their dogs.
i imagine this doesn't happen much throughout the winter months.

so, if one is going to get a true taste of alaska,
one must see what this dog-driven sport is all about.

we were greeted by the father of the iditarod, joe redington sr.
well, his statue, anyway.

he was truly passionate about dogs.
and how they could perform.
something that he must have passed on to his son.

his son, joe redington jr., took us on a lil' ride.

 

you can see mr. redington's dark hat floating above hubby's shoulder.
it was attached to mr. redington.  i promise.
we saw him, but he didn't talk much.  he smiles.
maybe you befriend quiet on those long rides.
his wife was kind enough to take this great photo with my camera.

these beautiful dogs seem to enjoy their line of work.

chomping at the bits to run.

the dog on the back row, {your left in the picture below} helped mr. redington jr. win 7th place last year.

we were moving fast in no time at all on the well-worn path.
they knew just what to do.
and what the seemingly foreign commands were being called out from behind us.

 

ummm... our dog knows the sound of whipped cream from a can.

and the jingle of the car keys.

and when i ask her these questions:

do you wanna go for a ride?

do you wanna go for a walk?

are you starvin'?

are you hungry?

are you ready to eat?

she gives me that cute-tilted-puppy-head-expression.

race registration was starting the week we were in alaska.  hubs passed on the opportunity.  personally, i don't think i'd have the heart to work a dog quite like that.  maybe that's just me?

among other things, i always feel sorry for the doggy's feet.
apparently, these help.
lil' booties that velcro around their cute lil' paws.
if you squint real hard, you can see the tree behind us in a picture above decorated with these adorable booties.
so stinkin' cute.



when the dogs are not looking for another customer to pull,
you will find them... resting.
hahhh...

this retired lead dog, anna, came out to say hello to me for a brief moment.
she looked too tired to socialize and quickly went back in her lil' house when she heard the pack of dogs bringing the last customers around the path.
she's purdy, huh?



hubs made a friend, too.
as hubby walked away, this fellow jumped down in hopes of getting even more attention.  he was a friendly chap.

oh...

but the cuteness...
i die.

this lil' bundle whimpered a sweet puppy breath whimper,
until it snuggled its nose into my jacket.
and then it fell fast asleep.

is there anything like holding a 2 week old baby...
then handing it back.
you know, before it poops.

in short,
i'd love to learn more about this sport.
these dogs are amazing.
and seeing the sport in action would be quite exhilarating.

i have puppy love.
the end.

{day 1}
{day 2}
{day 3, part 1}

alaska day 3: helicopter ride and hurricane gulch

these are marathon posts, so i commend you...
even if you've been 'skimming'.
not that you {nor i} ever would.  ;)



wednesday, we stopped by era helicopters to thank them for setting us up with such great adventures the previous day.
unfortunately, the weather was not cooperating,
so for safety's sake, they had to postpone/cancel flights scheduled for the morning.
again, no glacier tour.
*sigh*
while chatting, they offered to let us ride with the pilot to do a 'weather' check.  sweet, right?



hubs hopped in the back seat, while i hopped in right beside the pilot.
behind the controls.
one does not want to accidentally touch the millions of buttons.
i am not a co-pilot.
roger that.



even though the cloud coverage proved that customers would not be landing on their glacier immediately, bill made sure we got a lil' mini tour.
he searched for any signs of wildlife.
they were hiding.
and showed us victory falls.
as well as numerous glacier made rivers.

the pictures don't do this excursion justice.  i was kinda busy looking for bears.

and, again, one is thankful to have an experienced pilot.
thank you, bill.
it was a smooth ride!



this is where we ate most of our quick denali meals.  subway.  we're classy like that.  it's home of the $9 foot long.  denali park also sells $5/gallon gas.  ouch.

but denali makes me feel young.  there are a lot of seniors taking advantage of the land and sea cruises.  sweet, yes?




it was time to say good-bye to our spectacular mckinley chalet views.
three nights in alaska.  three different beds.
but this was, by far, the best view.



seriously.
this was the view upon opening our door.
i loved the sound of the nenana river.
fresh, cool air first thing in the morning.
hahhhhh...

on our road trip, headed back south toward wasilla, we stopped to soak in a little scenery at one of the road-side stops.  it happened to be hurricane gulch.



the view was quite spectacular.

i can't wait to share what our wasilla visit held.
be prepared to oooh and aaaah at the cuteness.