Alaska '05

I just realized that I posted nothing of our trip to Alaska this summer (June), so rather than try to write about an entire month of connections, travel and fun, I'll just post a couple images.

This is a visit to Pioneer Park (formerly known as Alaskaland) where we rode the carousel and perused the very Alaskan flavored gift shops.


Heidi, Martin and I hiked the butte in Palmer...it was an incredible view from the top.

We also found our first letterbox in Palmer, but almost got eaten alive by the mosquitoes!

I finally got to visit the Cheryl Bidwell Storygarden in Fairbanks, where we enjoyed a family picnic and paid tribute to my mother's memory. The sign says; " Welcome to the Cheryl Bidwell Storygarden. This garden was the dream of Cheryl Bidwell, a librarian who believed in the magic of wonder and the power of imagination."

We also spent a week in Seattle WA and Portland OR, our old stomping grounds. I thought I'd died and gone to heaven being able to shop at Trader Joe's again! A day at Saturday's Market in Portland with some old friends was awesome. I really miss all that eclectic, artsy activity.

Throughout the trip, we saw ALL of the grandparents and great-grandparents, plus uncle Terry who came to eat dinner at Grandpa Tom and Grandma Faye's house. It was a really incredible month that way, seeing so much family that we really miss. On the down side, we all got very sick while staying with Grandma Sally in Fairbanks. It was pretty gross having several people puking at the same time. Not an experience any of us wish to repeat. Ugh.
Grandma handled everything so well...from mud fights on the river bank behind her house, to an army of puking kids and adults, she never flinched once.