The Beginning of Our Alaska Adventure

We were so excited to join Chris in Alaska, and were anxiously counting down the weeks and days. After a full day of travel we made it safely to "The Last Frontier". Chris had a few days off when we first came and we soaked up every minute. It is beautiful here, so many green trees, bushes, vines, ferns, and did I mention it is REALLY green? Quite the change from the Sonoran Desert. We love seeing a new and beautiful part of our world and spending time with Chris. More pictures and updates to come.

Nugget Falls below the Mendenhall Glacier

Caleb rock climbing

The Mendenhall Glacier

Downtown Juneau

JD Falls (Can you find the porcupine?)

Chris hiking the ridge line to the glacier

Another view of the glacier

Caleb Turns Two!

Our baby isn't a baby anymore!

It's amazing how fast kids learn and grow. I know people say that all the time, but I guess it's different when you experience it yourself. Caleb is starting to talk in sentences now and is very observant and quick to learn new things. He also climbs on anything and everything, taking after his daddy. We were hoping to celebrate with Chris in Alaska, but unfortunately that didn't work out. After a couple of crazy weeks we made it to Utah and were able to celebrate with family. We had a great time on his special day and we sure love our little man!

Lions, Tigers, Zebras, and Monkeys - Oh my!

Caleb "helping" with his birthday pancakes

We had a picnic at the park with family and enjoyed the cute cupcakes my sisters helped make. Caleb had a great time playing with cousins and aunts and uncles. He was so excited to open his presents but said "ow" every time he ripped a bit of the paper - funny boy.

We missed you daddy, hope you enjoy the videos!

Fun In The Water

We have had quite a few warm days this spring in Phoenix but not quite warm enough for swimming. Instead we had a few fun days playing in the fountains. Caleb learned to sit on the fountains and kept trying to take a drink like drinking from a fountain.

Caleb's new hiding spot

Boyce Thompson Arboretum

Stop number two: Boyce Thompson Arboretum State Park. I was hoping to go camping, but we ran out of time and this was a good compromise. I also wanted to see more of Arizona before leaving; I love this desert land with it's unique beauty. We hiked around the park looking at the birds, squirrels, butterflies, plants, trees, and cacti. We saw ruins of an old rock house built into the mountain side, herb gardens, Queen Creek (really just a little creek in the portion of canyon we hiked through) and old machinery. We ended our afternoon picnicking and chasing Caleb through the trees and fallen leaves, great family time!

Phoenix Zoo

We took a little time out last week to do some fun family activities, first stop: Phoenix Zoo. Caleb wasn't too happy about being strapped into his stroller but we had no choice because he just wanted to play in the dirt, he's all boy! Caleb's favorite part was the farm animals petting zoo because he could see and touch. I had never seen farm animals at the zoo but it was a great idea.

ALASKA?!

What is in Alaska you might ask? A new job for Chris - we are so excited!! I'll give you the watered down version of what led up to this new job. Chris has always wanted to move past instruction and into the commercial sector, we just thought it would happen a lot sooner. Well, after 4 years he finally has enough hours to move on. He applied for a job with Temsco Helicopters and was offered the job a week ago. He will train in a turbine powered helicopter and fly tours in the Juneau or Skagway area (follow the link if you'd like to see more http://www.temscoair.com). For those of you not up on your aviation lingo a turbine engine means more power (insert your manly grunt here)! We are excited, nervous, antsy, and a little scared about our new adventure but ready to take the leap. Our time in Arizona has been wonderful and leaving is bitter sweet. We are so grateful for the experiences we've had (most of all for Caleb joining our family) and the friends we've made! We will sure miss all of you and thank you for your love and friendship.