Alaska Pictures~ 3rd and final post I promise! (Juneau+Mendenhall Glacier, Skagway, Ketchikan, last day)

Is anyone sick of me posting about our trip yet???? I just need to get the rest of these pictures onto the blog so that they will be easy to put into a book.

Where did I leave off? Oh...we were leaving Sitka. SO! Our next stop was Juneau. Was it Saturday that we were there? I think so. Anyhow...it was rainy...but that didn't stop us. We had heard that you could get a fairly cheap bus ride out to see the Mendenhall Glacier....so we jumped on a bus with a few other family members. Along the way, we passed the state capitol and a Wal Mart. (Target would have been more impressive...but I am sure they have one of those there too.) ANYHOW....we made it to the glacier. We had been told that there would most likely be bears there....and we were not disappointed! There was a raised walk way and we saw this little guy (or girl) munching on a salmon. We were told that it's momma had been seen near by not too long before we got there...and some other people saw this baby up in a tree. We watched him for a while and tried to get a good shot of him...but there were LOTS of people doing the same thing, so that made it hard. BUT! We saw our bear (close up...not like at the river in Talkeetna...we also saw another bear later in Katchikan...but it was far away and there for a split second).

Yet another beautiful sight that my pictures didn't do justice too. It was overcast and rainy...so that's my excuse!

The sun did peak out for a minute though....

We saw a LOT of these in Alaska....(only in store windows.). There was also a furry g-string for the guy! Yup...they know how to stay warm! Seriously...where would you wear this too? And it only cost a couple thousand dollars!

A shot of the street where we were shopping. We got some good 1/2 off deals in Juneau! And look at the water falls in the distance. I just was in awe of all the water and trees!

I don't know which night I took this picture. Again...it doesn't do the moment justice because the moon was way bigger than this and just hovering over the water with its reflection beaming down.

I don't remember which town it was that we were leaving...but we were on deck enjoying the scenery and there were just tons of waterfalls! This one went pretty much from the top of the mountain to the bottom...you can't see the top because of the clouds.

Alright...these pictures are kindda out of order...but that's okay.

So! Now were are in Skagway...my favorite of all the towns we visited! We were in Skagway on Sunday...and a few of us walked the blocks to State St. and 11th to the small LDS meeting house. It was such a good feeling to go to church and see the saints in Alaska! Their numbers are few! This branch has about 15+ regulars during the year...but in the summer that number goes up to maybe 50 because of seasonal workers. I loved singing with them and partaking of the Sacrament...I loved the lesson given in Sunday school and I would have loved to stay for the rest of church but the building kept swaying back and forth (those darn sea legs) and Brandon and I had to leave because we were dizzy. It's so weird how your body adjusts to being in motion all the time and when you are sitting or standing still...you still feel like you are moving and the feeling only goes away when you get out in fresh air and move.

I loved my summers life guarding and teaching swim lessons...but if I had known about being a seasonal worker in Alaska...I TOTALLY would have done that instead! I could see myself driving one of these cool tour buses around town! There was a man at church who owns a few shops and he said that the majority of their summer help in Skagway are LDS young adults. My sister in law got his name+# if anyone is interested!

We left church and wander through town, collecting free things with coupons from a book we were given at the beginning of our cruise. That was a serious highlight of our trip! We loved treasure hunting with our coupons and collecting all the free/cheap stuff from the shops! Amy and Kayla joined us in the treasure hunting adventures and we had fun! I am so glad to not be the ONLY cheapo in the family! Okay...so that had nothing to do with this next picture. This is a stream+pond where TONS of salmon were visiting+spawning+we saw two male fighting...seriously grabbing each other and biting! I have a video of that. We also saw lots of salmon jumping out of the water here!

We crossed this bridge to get to the other side of the stream. It was amazing how strong+fast those salmon are! (And FYI...for those who care. I took most of the pictures in this post with my little 5.1 mega pixel Kodak.)

There are LOTS of colorful 'shrooms' in Alaska!

We crossed the road from where that pond was+crossed the railroad tracks and found this pretty waterfall! I love all the tucked away places

in Alaska. It seems like every inch of it is beautiful! Oh! There were salmon jumping out of the water here too and trying to go up the fall! CRAZY to think that they came all the way from the ocean BACK to the place there were born! I loved this! I wanna make one! There were three hanging outside a building!

Now we are in Ketchikan. LOT of salmon to be seen here too. We took a tour bus out to a place over by the hatchery and saw(and smelled) lots of fish. We also saw that bear for a split second and the mother eagle taking a fish to her nest.

I HAVE to tell you about this picture! Like I said, we took a tour bus out to see some sights. We went to this place called Totem Park that was near this rain forest. Well...when we got there, I had to go visit the little girls room. The rest of the group went on and Brandon waited for me. So...we found the trail that they had taken into the forest and I kid you not, we had not gone 100 feet before Brandon seized the moment to answer natures call...in nature! SO! While he was taking care of business...I turned the other way #1 to be able to warn him if someone happened to come up the trail and #2...to take this picture. We were under a canopy of trees.

If you look closely at the big tree...you can see that there is another tree growing off the side of it.

I thought this was a funny totem. It was a story that goes with it about a boy who stuck his hand into a rock to get oysters or something and then the tide came in and he died...whatever...it was made up probably to scare kids into listening to their parents. I just thought the look of the face of this "kid" was funny!

Me...as part of a totem pole.

...This was our last port...so we felt a rush to #1 collect all the free things our coupon book had to offer...and also to get last minute things for people back home. Ketchikan, for cruise ships, is either their last or first port...so they can keep their prices fairly high.

Michelle (you know who you are....) this picture was taken just for you. I have no idea if the picture on the shirt is supposed to be a joke or what...but I had to snap a picture for the biggest Twilight fan!

SO...our last night...our last dinner in the dining hall where food is free and you try a little of everything...just because you can. This is my SIL Penny...and her THREE entries...which were served after her #? appetizer(s) and before her #? dessert(s). Now, don't think I am picking on Penny...she surely wasn't the only one...myself included...who was having fun trying everything that sounded good!

And this is our waiter Roberto. He and I were pretty close. Not really...but some nights, the waiting staff would turn on music and he'd always come get me to dance with him...after he was done dancing with the pole. LOL! It was embarassing...but fun.

And that folks...is the end of me posting about Alaska! I do have to mention a few key moments...like when Jennifer (Tyler's) performed as Madonna in the "Carnival Ledgends" show. She had to sing "Like A Virgin"...and some of the male Carnival dancer provided a little extra entertainment along with her in their tight short shorts! (HILARIOUSLY funny!) And I have to say how FUN it was to go dancing with Jennifer, Tyler, Kayla and Jeff. It was close to midnight, we were so past tired we were loopy...and that just made our dance moves all the better. It was fun to go (almost force) the rest of the family into the dance club for FHE on Monday night too. Very few stayed off the dance floor...even when we had spectators! Those are moments that made this trip so memorable! I also just loved hanging out with Brandon. I don't care what you say...but we are fun and we are so glad that we were able to go on this cruise...stormy sea and all. We never ever would have taken such a long vacation if it hadn't been in a situation like this...and we probably wont get another vacation with just the two of us for a long long time...so this was really amazing. I loved seeing all the sights and just relaxing, being myslef and having a great time. I also loved our last day. We were at sea so there was no port. I slept in until 11 a.m. that day...then got up and ate...then went to a show (the one my SIL Jennifer was in) then I think we played cards...then I went and got ready for bed and was in bed by like 8:30 p.m...and I finished reading my book, and watched a movie and slept. It was a great way to end a busy week! Then Wednesday..we were up early, off the boat, said good bye to Brandon because he had to stay in Vancouver to work, got on a bus, drove 3 hours to Seattle, got on a plane, flew and flew and flew until we (I was traveling with Shon and Pam....which was a real treat because I love talking to Pam...and Shon is pretty fun too...) anyhow...we finally made it to Phoenix where Pam's sister Lisa was wonderful enough to pick us up...and we went to her house, got Shon and Pams car, hit a gas station for gas+snacks then hit the road and drove 3 hours home to Snowflake! We made it home by 11:30ish in the evening. My kids were all in bed...but my mom was up and we talked for a while. She had to leave early in the morning to go home. The kids and I managed to get along without Brandon until he got home Saturday evening. It's great to be all back together again! I missed my kids like crazy!

Okay...now I am REALLY done blogging about our trip!

THE END!

Alaska Pictures, Part 2...Glacier+Sitka

Okay...so here we go again!

So...we got on the ship Wednesday August 26th...I don't remember the time....probably around 3 p.m. or something like that. ANYHOW....so...the ship is big and I was feeling lost and tired from being on a bus for so long and just wanting to go to bed...but then again....we were in ALASKA...and I felt like there was no time to kill. So we got situated...and looked around the boat then we went down to dinner. That's where these pictures pick up at......

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This is Brandon's older brother Tyler and his beautiful wife (you guessed it) Jennifer! We were at the same table for dinner our first night. They had people coming around with cameras to take our pictures and if you know me then you know that #1 I don't like to have my picture taken and #2 even if someone else could do a better job, I rather take my own pictures for free. SO! I took a few shots of the people at our table!

This is Shon, Brandon's oldest brother and his adorable wife Pam! They are so fun. Pam let me try her smoked salmon. I am not a seafood eater...but I have to say, the salmon wasn't fishy...probably because it was so fresh. I learned on this trip that it's not so much the flavor but the texture of fish that I don't like. And I was very proud of Brandon for trying fish+shrimp on this trip!

This is another brother Wynn (not sure where he fits in the "line up") and his gorgeous wife Kami! These two are a blast. We stayed up late playing phase 10 with them+Jeff and Kayla a few nights! And it was tons of fun seeing their dance moves at FHE in the Deco Club!

Okay....enough about the family....SO! We woke up super early Wednesday morning as we cruised College Fjord. (click on the word to find out what it means) At the end, there was this huge glacier.

....this is the glacier from a distance....

...and this is about as close as we got...and as close of a shot that I could get with my camera. It was beautiful with rivers and waterfall flowing from it. We were all just waiting for a chunk to fall off because you could hear it moving and you could see big cracks and crevices in the ice. It was so quiet and still. Well, a little (well...size is relative here) piece did fall off...while my back was turned...but it didn't make the big splash like you see on TV or in pictures.

I just can't even tell you how huge this glacier was....this is another shot of a different part of it.

So, after seeing the glacier, the ship turned around and we headed out to sea. Most of us hit the gym. I did a morning stretch class that was fun. Then we settled in for a day at sea. Like I said before...this was our "storm day". But things didn't get bad until later in the afternoon. Before that, I went and did a little craft...bracelets for the girls. I met up with the family in the "Cool Club". They were listening to people do karaoke. This was the day that we had worn our matching t-shirts. They were a surprise for my mother in law. So anyhow...the whole family was sitting listening to people sing and the D.J. who was a great singer to hilarious girl was making fun of your family for being the "watchers". I don't remember exactly what she was saying, but I thought is was funny that all these musically talented people were just watching...so I, the untalented one of the group, got up and sang "I Will Always Love You" in my worst karaoke voice. My sister in law Kayla ended up singing with me and the D.J. girl did too...it was pretty fun+funny. After that, I signed Brandon, his mom and a couple other guys up to sing "YMCA". The D.J. busted out costumes for them! Too bad I didn't have my camera with me! Somebody send me pictures! I was hilarious. I signed a few other people up too....but they were too chicken. (Party poopers!) I should add that other family members DID eventually karaoke including Shon and Pam who I signed up. They did a great Sonny and Cher ("I Got You Babe")...I hope they have forgiven me by now!

Well... Not too long after Karaoke...the seas got pretty rough and...you know they story from there!

OH Sitka how I LOVE you! I was SO glad to get off that ship Friday morning...I almost kissed the ground! To learn more about the town of Sitka, click HERE! I saw these boats docked and just had to take a picture.

This was a big anchor...it was in a commons area, across from the above docked boats and right by a totem pole that's at the top of this post.

So, in Sitka, we basically shopped. I needed hair spray and Tylenol...and Brandon needed a little caffine. Sodas weren't free+very over priced on the ship!

Brandon and I enjoyed visiting this friendly bear! (Weston saw this picture and said that the bear was petting me!) I got the wooden necklace I am wearing at a shop there too....I saw these cool wooden watches at another port, in Skagway...but they were out of my price range!

I loved the colors....

...this church was there in the center of town forever, then burned down some years ago and was rebuilt. Some body in the family went on a tour of it and told me an amazing story about someone rescuing a huge chandelier from the church while it was on fire...by himself...and then when they went to put it into the church, it took 6 men to carry it.

We found the Sitka library...and used it's restroom...then stepped out and took this picture. Really...it was SO pretty there...and everywhere we went in Alaska. I seriously would move there tomorrow!

That's our ship...

Goodbye Sitka!

Me talking to the kids+my mom as we leave Sitka.

Brandon enjoying the view as we leave (....and maybe thinking of moving us there????? j/k).

Alaska Pictures, Part 1 (flight-embarktation)

I decided to blog about our trip in parts....because it would be a LONG post otherwise. So! Here's part one! The pictures are a little bit out of order....but oh well!

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Goofing off at the PHX airport....we goofed off a lot on our trip! :)

Somewhere in the sky between Phoenix and Seattle...Brandon had the window seat!

Mt. Rainer....this thing is HUGE!

Okay, so Anchorage was our first time seeing cabbage used in landscaping. They had purple ones and green ones and little ones and huge ones....I could have made myself a salad out of their flower beds!

This is the river boat we rode on in Talkeetna on whatever river that was!

A view of the river...

Our shot gun toting guide! She was showing us furs.

Us at the Talkeetna Lodge...oh and you can't tell because I had my 1.8f lens on the camera...but there are mountains in the distance that got blurred. Opps.

Okay, back at the river....Brandon checked out the inside of a trappers cabin.

This is basically what it looked like inside the cabin...this table, a wood burning stove and a cot.

Stuff outside the cabin.

I loved the grass and flowers growing on the roof of the cabin. If we ever build the girls a play house...I want a roof like that!

This is the cache where the trappers would store their furs. The ladder would be moved and leaned against a different tree to keep animals out. Also, if you look close, you can see that there are stove pipes at the top of all four poles that hold the cache up...this was to keep animals out also. :) This was one moment when I was glad my kids were at home because they would have been dying to climb that ladder!

A beaver trap. Ouch!

I wish I could remember the name of the native tribe(s) that lived in this area...oh well...here's what one of their lean-tos looked like.

And this was their version of a refrigerator. They dug this hole...then covered it with sticks and birch...and it stayed cold.

Just a little path that I thought was pretty.

I am so glad to took this picture because it's the only shot I got of "The Three Amigos". They were three older guys traveling together. Two are widowers and one has a wife who is suffering from dementia (I think). Anyhow. They were on the cruise with our group and we'd say hi to each other whenever our paths crossed. One turned me down when I offered to help him on the walking tour we did...he stayed on the river boat instead.

This is the first bald eagle we saw in Alaska...and the only one I got a picture of. When we were in Kechikan, our last port, we saw a bald eagle flying into her nest with a fish in her mouth. Totally like on the Discover Channel!

That whiteness in the distance is Mt. McKinley/Denali.

Okay, this is a stop we made to see a glacier on our drive from Anchorage to Whittier. Look at how blue the water is from the silt! It was overcast and raining, so this isn't the best shot...but the whiteness that looks like snow there between those two mountains is a glacier with a blue hue to it.

Our home away from home at sea.

"The Fun Ship" That's what Carnival calls their "fleet". I thought land was pretty fun myself, but after a day on the ship and a LONG stormy night....I grew some sea legs that didn't work as well on land. We'd be in a store and it would feel like the place was rocking. Do you want me to tell you about our storm at sea? I was going to save it for later....but I'll tell you about it now. SO! Thursday (Aug. 27th) was out first "sea day". Everything was going fine until about 3p.m. or so....I don't know the exact time the "swells" started turning into waves big enough to rock the boat....but by dinner time (6 p.m.) half the passengers were sitting down, or in their rooms and not feeling too great. I made it down to dinner...but only lasted long enough to force myself to eat bread and a little soup so that I could take my motion sickness medicine. My poor sister in law Pam was throwing up so much that she couldn't even keep the medicine down. I left when my sister in law Celeste's lobster came and I just couldn't take the smell. Our room steward John took one look at me and gave me a barf bag that I thankfully never had to use. Well...I went and laid down for about three hours...the boat rocking and rolling the whole time. Brandon was feeling fine and then by 9 p.m. I thought I'd be okay to get up and go play cards on the Lido deck. Jeff, Kayla, Wynn, Kami, Brandon and I all played Phase 10 until close to 11 p.m. We were at the middle of the ship and it wasn't as rocky there. Well...our rooms were more towards the front...and when we got back...the storm, that we thought was calming down, just got worse. I took a shower and could hardly stand up because things were so bad. Then we laid down on our bed side ways because we thought that might help....but that didn't do much. At one point during the night our closet door and drawers where flinging open and then slamming shut. All I could think was, "Are you kidding me! When is this storm going to stop? I want off this ship!" And when morning finally came and we'd only slept a few hours and the storm was settling down...we went up top and I saw land in the distance. I have never seen a more beautiful sight! I wanted off that ship more than ANYTHING and I was seriously thinking about staying in Sitka and letting Brandon go on without me! It turned out that Sitka was a "tender port" which means we had to anchor out a ways from shore and take small boats in...but that was worth it to get to stand on land. We went to the post office to mail a post card home and the post master was talking to one of the locals about how bad the storm had been and how they don't get storms that bad very often. Of course they don't! Why would they have normal weather when I am on a ship out in the ocean? Even crew members were sick...and people with 20-30 years experience at sea were saying that they've never been in a storm like that. Which makes me wonder what kind of dare devil we had as a captain. Two other cruise ships who were in the storm at the beginning turned back....not OURS! Someone told us that the winds were 68 mph at one point and the waves were 30-40 feet high. Not really my idea of fun. But at least it never happened again.

So...there's my "Storm at Sea" story.

I made it home! Brandon is still in Vancouver working....he'll be back in a few days.....and my mom already left because she is catching a flight to California to go do flowers for Amy Sokoloff's wedding. It's good to be back! I missed my kids (but not the cooking and laundry). Alaska was AMAZING! Absolutely the most beautiful place I have ever been....which doesn't do justice to the place because I haven't traveled very much....but Brandon and I had so much fun.....even after enduring a storm at sea with high winds and waves. I'll tell you all about it........later!