Easter 2013

This Easter we decided to return to Girdwood, Alaska home of the Alyeska Ski Resort and one of the few ski mountains found at sea level. They have an Easter package which includes a room, swimming pool, a tram ride to the tip of the mountain for an Easter sunrise service followed by an Easter brunch and then an egg hunt outdoors. We went last year and the kids seemed to like it. They seemed to like it even more this year. There was a good bit of snow already on the ground and as you will see from the pictures we got more on Sunday. The pool was a huge hit. Both kids love to launch themselves from the edge into our arms with reckless abandon. The sunrise service was held in what is typically a cafe for skiers on top of the mountain. Last year the view was breathtaking due to clear skies. This year it was socked in but still impressive. There was music, a kids circle during the service (complete with each kid receiving a plastic egg filled with jellybeans. The first of many). The brunch is always amazing and puts the adults into an automatic food coma. We end up looking at the kids with pleading eyes to sit and relax with us for a moment after eating but all they want to do is zip around. There is something about an egg hunt that really excites kids (young and old). We have been doing them regularly at the house to familiarize Shane with the process and because Ava loves doing it. I find myself getting caught up in the excitement of spotting a burst of color and I am the one that hid them.! The egg hunt had plastic eggs with more candy inside. The Easter bunny (the parents) brought their baskets to the hotel and the kids tore into them in the morning. There was also the "real" Easter bunny and his pal moose walking around the hotel handing out more candy. Later that Sunday afternoon Shane actually said "uncle" and announced that his little tummy hurt. Ava took a break but continued to admire the candy, taking joy in their existence. I am able to surmise her level on the sneaky scale by the fact that when she breaks into her candy bag stored in a high cupboard, she still leaves the chair there when she is done. This tells me I have some time before she realizes she needs to cover her tracks. I think the baby has actually eaten more candy than both kids combined thanks to me. At this point I tell myself the sooner I eat it the sooner it will be out of the house! We hope everyone had a great Easter weekend and we wish you all a beautiful spring!

On our way up the mountain on the tram

Going up!

 

Ava and her buddy Keena getting ready to hit the slopes

Shane informing me he wants to ski

 

 

He settled for snowman building

The black speck in the middle is Ava

On our way home

 

Kailua, Hawaii 2013

In February we flew our frozen selves over to paradise. We stayed on the island of Oahu, home of Pearl Harbor, Honolulu and Magnum P.I.  I love that moment as we disembark from the airplane and enter the open-air terminals. We usually arrive in the evening (covered in dried applesauce with a dusting of goldfish crackers) and yet the air is so warm and so soft. I always stop, take a deep breath and focus on the tremendous difference between Alaska and Hawaii. Of course we flew Alaska Airlines. As far as airlines go, they are quite nice. I find that many of their staff members, like so many others in Alaska are capable of warming to you rather quickly. Most folks are from somewhere else and many Alaskans operate on the awareness that friends are family that you make for yourself. Perhaps it's a stretch but I have found people stepping in and acting like a grandma, an aunt, uncle or even my mom in various situations. I just can't help but think that everyone knows you may be far from somewhere. In any case, while we were checking in and waiting for Steve to join us from parking the car, a very nice woman from Alaska Airlines took to the kids and helped distract them while I checked in. There was some sort of company anniversary going on complete with cupcakes. She kindly gave the kids each one and they went right to town. We literally had just begun our journey. To the right of the kids in the picture below was the ticket counter. I tried really hard not to mind the mess that would eventually transfer to my clothes. The cupcakes were exceptionally moist. I know that because when I tried to brush the crumbs off the kids they melted into their clothing instead of flying off. She meant well. She even took pictures to post to the employee website.

      

  

I have complete amnesia regarding the flight itself. I trust that is for a reason and so I choose to leave it at that.

Fast forward to the Honolulu International Airport. Once we arrived Steve took the rental car shuttle bus to get the car and return to pick us and our luggage up. It doesn't take that long and I was happy to simply be off the airplane. I was craving the fresh air so after a safety pep-talk with the kids we ventured outside to wait. There was to be no running off or clowning around in general. They were actually quite good and yet even though they were being good and I was watching them, Shane managed to bang his head. Again. The first picture is the scene of the accident. Ava is sitting in the shot explaining to me while I took the photo that she had nothing to do with his fall. Shane was standing on the raised wall looking at the coconut tree to the right of Ava. He then stepped back only to find there was nothing to support him. I tried to reach him but the luggage was in my way. He fell back and somehow managed to rotate in mid-air and land face first.

                                               

He howled! I checked to make sure he had all his teeth and an intact tongue. All I saw was a scrape on his forehead. In the time it took to hug and comfort him the biggest goose egg I have ever seen developed on his head. I was shocked but he seemed to rally quite well and in no time he had stopped crying. After making sure that he was okay I took a picture.

 

I am not exaggerating when I tell you that one of the squares on my camera's auto focus actually recognized it. Shortly after the incident, Steve pulled up. He hopped out of the car and got to loading the luggage and kids into the car. He was so focused at first that he didn't notice the second brain growing out of Shane's head. He picked him up carried him to his car seat and then buckled him in. I was sitting in the passenger seat waiting for him to notice. The bump was so ridiculously huge that I couldn't help but laugh as he finally noticed. As you can imagine he was speechless. His jaw hung open as he tried to absorb the story all the while this mass seemed to be growing before our eyes.

The rest of the trip was thankfully uneventful. We rented a cottage a few blocks from the beach. We swam, built sandcastles, ate Hawaiian shave ice (so good), and toured the island. It was so nice to not have to bundle everyone up. The kids were outside as much as possible. Here are some shots from the beach. Note the rather small vessel they chose to carry water from the ocean to the hole in the sand. 

 























One day we went to the Honolulu Zoo. We all loved it. He is a picture of Shane's good side as he and Steve watch the rhino. I love how intensely he's watching it.

We also went to Shark Cove on the North Shore near the Banzai Pipeline. The area has amazing tide pools that you can wade in and see some beautiful fish. Ava loved it. Both kids collected all sorts of great shells, sea glass and rocks.

This was a fun photo. I asked Ava to show me how you feel about being in Hawaii and she jumped up. I lucked out with this shot. 

Here is a shot of all of us during quiet time. It didn't happen often but I think we all needed to unwind. I love this picture because of Ava's little hand wrapped around Steve's neck.

Below is a cute picture of both kids. As you can see the swelling went down as the week wore on. This was taken close to the end of our trip.

We were lucky enough to spend Valentine's Day in paradise. Steve and the kids bought me chocolates and other great treats. While they were at the store Ava saw a hula costume that she wanted. She was all smiles as she came out of the bedroom all decked out to surprise me. Too precious.

                                                

I loathe photos taken of oneself by oneself but I had to on this occasion. It was our last day in Hawaii and Ava and I took one last walk on the beach. She ran all over the sand and in the water, soaking up every last bit she could. It is amazing how much children love the beach! They exude such joy and excitement. We are now back in Alaska watching this great land defrost only to freeze up again. Still, spring is just around the corner with more adventures to be had. 

 

Our last meal in Hawaii....


       

Hello!

It has been a long, long time since I have posted to this blog but I wish to give it another try. You see, the closets are bursting with baby gear, camping gear and goodness knows what else and I have no where to hide when I want to make a phone call and share funny stories or heartwarming moments. So the great memories add up and I get behind and too many of them are not shared. So I am going to fire up the ol' blog and share some of our adventures from up North.

We had a WONDERFUL Christmas season thank you very much to Grandma and Grandpa. The kids are still talking about their visit AND looking forward to our next one in June. Yes, June. Not July and definitely not August for in August a new little bundle of joy will be blessing us with its presence. Much to our surprise we found out in early December that we are expecting a baby (or as Ava put it, a third knucklehead) in early August. We are excited and the house is abuzz with the feeling of anticipation that seems to grow as my belly does. Ava rubs it and tells everyone she sees that "Mommy has a baby in her belly." So does Shane but that is because he says and does everything Ava does. Ava also informed Steve and I that we are "going to have our hands full with all these kids running around." That statement just confirms my suspicions that she has a direct line to Grandma hidden somewhere in her room.

Since we have been back in Alaska we have embarked on a few new endeavors. First and foremost Ava started preschool. She protested briefly which I believe was  more out of habit than anything else. She expressed some worry over me not being there but Steve and I gently told her that it was time and that she would love it. Which, she does and that makes us happy. She comes home talking about what she has learned (planets) and looks forward to the next day of class. I have to admit I got a little excited about her first Scholastic book order. Shane likes her preschool also. A little too much perhaps as he doesn't want to leave. Once we are in the car he shares how he misses Ava. When we pick her up they embrace each other and then shortly thereafter start fighting.

This past Sunday was another big day for Ava. She and I "competed" in our first mother/daughter ski race. It was called the Alaska Ski For Women. It is held every Superbowl Sunday as a fun event for women to do instead of watching the game. What actually happens for many is that they ski and then still make it home for the game. Every year it draws hundreds of women, many of them in costume to ski the 2.5 miles while raising money for women and children. Ava and I have done it together once before but I skied while she rode in a backpack. This year she skied the whole way on her own AND made the Anchorage Daily News photo gallery online. We dressed up in fairy wings and Ava wore a tutu (mine got stuck around my armpits and I immediately felt claustrophobic). In the parking lot on the way to the starting line a woman had two extra crowns and gave them to us. It completed the outfit.
She was a bit wide-eyed as we approached the starting grounds. There were women everywhere skiing about in all sorts of wacky costumes. You could hear giggling and cackling as the more casual groups skied over their mates skis. We did the wave a couple of times with our ski poles and then we were off. We skied with a group of other moms and kids for a bit and then it was just us. If she noticed she didn't say anything. The race was just under 2.5 miles or 4km. Every half km a ski patrol would ski by and cheer Ava on after a while they all clustered together behind her and cheered her on as a pack. At one point I turned around to take a picture of them following her when I noticed one woman was taking a picture of us. Another patrolman gave her a chocolate gold coin each time she reached the km marker. Ava is one tough cookie. She only complained of tired legs once. The downhills and snacking on snowballs sustained her. As we approached the finish line the announcer in the field house flipped on the music and she crossed the finish line to something from the 80's.

We celebrated with a trip to Baskin Robbins. She selected Bubble Gum and Wild and Reckless as her two flavors. While we normally would have called it a day we actually had Caitlin and William (ages 4 and 2)  and their Mom Sarah, over for a play date while their dad studied for an exam. Both Ava and Shane were in heaven. It was a great ending to a great weekend.

Here we are in the car. She is just a little excited.

                                            Surveying the Scene. Ignore my voice please.

And action! At 1 out of 4kms.

Love that face!

I told her to show me the face you make when you hear you get to down a big hill.

The ski patrol became quite attached to her and
cheered her on.

The patrol busied themselves taking pictures
while she tackled the
 biggest hill of the race.

At the finish line and smiling.

A sweet ending for a sweet girl.

More clips...

If you are reading this post, it is in addition to the previous post. The "story" behind these clips

was mentioned there, so read this post afterwards.

Victorian Skate

This post was created with Grandma in mind, who has been patiently waiting for an update. Here you go....

Advertised in our local paper was an event called "Victorian Skate". It was held this afternoon/evening at a local park. Folks were dressed in Victorian era garb while ice skating, roasting chestnuts and popcorn and huddling around burn barrels. There was also a horse drawn sleigh. We didn't stay long but had a great time especially taking it all in through Ava's eyes. Just an FYI, Ava insisted on riding in her sled laying down. We tried to get her to sit up but each time she purposefully slid right down. She looked like a future Olympic hopeful for the luge competition.

Still luging...

Wise words from our sleigh driver, "Trapper Jack".....

I guarantee you that Ava will be asking for a "horthie" tomorrow when she wakes up...

En route to NY for Christmas. We really lucked out with our seats on all three flights (getting the whole row to ourselves!) Things got a bit dicey with delays in Seattle and Chicago but we made it to NY safe and sound in time for Christmas. We were blessed with the company of loved ones and a whole lot of delicious food.

Here are some shots of our little traveler on our way to NY. All she needs is a business suit and cell phone and she'd be ready for business class!

I love this video clip. Ellie is a girl after my own heart with her love of chocolate. I got a video clip of Ellie asking for chocolate last year as well so now I think this is a tradition in the making. Ellie might need to keep her eyes on Ava though as she was eyeing Ellie's dessert quite closely!

Just when I thought I had covered our trip to CA I realized I hadn't tapped into our digital camera/video recorder. The shots I have shared so far have been from our phones. Steve and I were viewing these new pictures and clips tonight and were almost in tears from laughing so hard. I was able to download and edit one but there are others I will share later.

In this clip we drove to the Dana Point Harbor to watch boats, all lit up with Christmas lights and people (all lit up) dancing on the boats and touring through the harbor. It was pouring but

we were able to watch from the car.

This is a clip taken during lunch at the Coyote Cafe in Old Town San Diego....

Here is a shot from our hotel room. Initially we flew into San Diego and stayed on the naval base on Coronado Island for a few days. We went to the San Diego Zoo, which Ava loved. We also toured Old Town San Diego which was great.

We then traveled up to Dana Point for Steve's conference. Due to the weather we weren't able to truly take advantage of the trails and beach. Instead we went to the library and hit a few Marshall's. I was even able to locate a deluxe indoor playground which I drove to in a torrential downpour. Ava loved it and it tucked her out so I could go to said Marshall's and enjoy an hour or two of discount bliss.

One day we visited my friend Kathy who lives in San Diego. We drove back down north, ate at Old Town again and visited with Kathy. It was so worth the drive. We had a great visit with her!

Here is a shot of Ava in the hotel lobby. The artist made the sculpture out of water and sand only. It was amazing. He had created one in NY and was off to Rome for his next work. This was a BIG hit with Ava.

Ava and I stopped in Old Town San Diego for lunch before our visit with Kathy. We ate at the Coyote Cafe. Two gentlemen even serenaded us while we dined alfresco. Ava, God bless her listened intently with black beans ALL OVER her face :)

After lunch she got ice cream. She kept asking "Dar-Buddy?" "Ice cream, Dar-Buddy?", "Sometimes, Butters hurt Ava"

Translation? Ava will forever associate ice cream with her buddy Darlene from The Golden Guernsey in Oneonta. Butters is a cat that frequents the grounds of the Guernsey and let Ava know he didn't like her paws baby-handling him. She recites these lines all the time!

As we were leaving the restaurant the hostess noticed Ava and began playing with her. She moved some items near her station so Ava could check out the fountain.

Ava became a fan of the Dana Point Public library. She especially liked the tiger and teddy bear. When I suggested we return there the next day she was all for it. Sure enough she took the same seat and gathered the same animals for company.