Our trip to Alaska

Julia

Zachary


Kisses for Grama


Grampa and Zachary


Ryan's Salmon he caught


Zach

Little monkey Julia






Us, Stopped at the glacier

Face painting at the fair


Ryan and Zachary


Ryan and I

Just some of the catch!

Fair Fun!

We had an amazing time!! We stayed with Ryan and Casey for 8 nights...it was great waking up to."Grama...you're awake" little Julia is SO sweet...and Zachary right behind her, doing everything she does! It took Kevin a couple days to answer to Grampa...but eventually he got it...ha ha!
Let's see if I can summerize all the activities!
~Anchorage market downtown..Julia says.."we can get little donuts at the carnival!" I think she thought we were going to the fair that day..wink~
~Guitar Hero and Rock Band..(Ryan & Caseys band name is Fantastik Dew-O...appropriate!) Game nights...sleeping quenns, liverpool rummy...and more food!!
~Geo Cashing- finding treasures with the GPS..hiking around..way fun!
~Cook Inlet on our way to the Wildlife Conservation Center...stopped and saw a WHOLE pod of Orcas and Baluga Whales.
~Fishing for Salmon in Glacier Creek...Ryan caught a silver!! Nice size too! Everyone caught fish...but Ryan was the only one who caught one we could keep...sure was fun walking thru an ice-cold creek, and throwing rocks with my grandson!
~Alaska State Fair....$2.00 Tuesday! They have the best food ever!! Porkey on a stick (pork chop) Deep fried cheese curds (mine and Jaycee's personal favorites!) Fried Zuchinni, BBQ turkey legs (Tanners Fav) and Denali Creme pufffs....a nice change from the Puyallup Fair food! The kids tried to stay on the BUCKING WHALE...ha ha, only in Alaska!
~Fishing Charter out of Homer Everyone caugh their limit of 2...good size halibut!
~Fish Fry with the halibut we caught, fresh and delicious!
~Brewed a batch of Root Beer! Kevin and Ryan bought some sassafras to brew an old fashined batch of rootbeer..it was a little week making that kind...but the experience was what mattered!
~Tour of the Air-Force Base and Ryan's building. They have a little ski-resort on base where they would like to teach Zachary to ski this winter...their last one there, since they will be re-staioned come May...it'll be 3 years there!
~Green Lake...hanging out on the dock and catching the tiny fish with our hands.
~Took a Glacier Cruise of the Kenai Fjords, out of Seward. This was a highlight...with the exception of rough waters...Ryan, Casey and Tanner all feeling a little woozy. I had a patch behind my ear because I knew that I wouldn't be able to make it otherwise! We saw the most incredible wildlife!! Mountain Goats, Killer Whales, Humpback whales, a bald eagle, sea lions, sea otters, puffins, and when we got to the Glaciers, the captain stopped the boat for about 30 minutes while we listened and watched the glacier break away and fall into the waters! TRULY an AMAZING experience! They sounded like the loudest thunder rolling through the mountains...breathtaking!!
~Zachary got 7 stitches the week we were there...ouch!
~Julia loved having Tanner and Jaycee sleep in her room, finding treasures with Jacyee and playing dress-up!
~Zachary loved to come to Grama when he got in trouble with his arms stretched out to me :)
~Brought home about 30 pounds of halibut and a little salmon!
~Ate at the best pizza place...Moose's Tooth Pizza...which just so happens to be where Zachary fell off the bench while we were waiting to be seated (over an hour!!), and hit his head on an IRON gate....not a good night for him or Mom or Dad, as they spent 3 hours in the Emergency Room..poor guy..I'm afraid he's going to be accident prone like his Dad..sorry guys..been there!

All in all...Ryan and Casey took such good care of us! Casey is an amazing cook and they really spoiled us while we were there! So glad we got to see just a tad bit of what Alaska is like in the summer, and while the kids were still stationed there as well~