just playing

This is one of Maddison's new favorite places to play, especially while I am in the kitchen cooking. It make preparing dinner a whole lot easer when I don't have a little one pulling on my pant leg the whole time.

Post Nap Hair

 

To get a hair style this awesome, simply run sticky banana fingers through your hair just before nap time. Works like a charm.

Bike on.

Yeah to Steve who participated in the Chena Hot Springs 33 mile bike race...and looked good doing it! Maddison and I were there to cheer him on at the finish line with a picnic lunch. What a great day.

nap time

A day at the park.

Finally! A day warm enough to go to the park. Good thing we went on Monday because it has been rainy every day since.

 

 

Vacation!

We started our 1400 mile trip to Hains and Skagway Alaska on Thursday afternoon. We weren't sure how Maddison would handle being in the car that long but she did pretty good. It was a beautiful drive with some of the most spectacular scenery we have ever seen.

We saw a lot of wildlife on our trip including: 2 black bears, a porcupine, caribou, bald eagles, a wolf, geese, and moose.

Our first camp site was at this beautiful lake. Maddison had fun playing in the sand. It only took one taste of the sand to convince her it was not worth eating.

 

Hains use to be a military post and you can see the military housing in this photo.

First time on a swing. I think she liked it.

Just about the only thing to do in Hains is go to the Hammer Museum....so we did. But lest you think we are becoming too boring in our old age, you will be happy to know we also visited the Brothel Museum in Skagway.

From Hains we took a one hour ferry ride to Skagway. Here we are waiting to drive onto the boat.

 

Skagway was one of the starting points for the Klondike Gold Rush. It only lasted three years (1896-99) with 100,000 people attempting the trek to the gold fields. From Skagway it was a 530 mile trip - 30 miles over a mountain range and 500 miles down the Yukon River. In the end, only about 4,000 people found gold. Many of the original buildings constructed during the rush still stand along Skagway's Main Street. And yes, we did buy some fudge at that fudge shop in the photo and it was excellent.

We took a train ride along one of the original prospector routs.

Keeping clean.

On our way home we passed this amazing lake most fittingly called Emerald Lake.

Rush hour on the Alaska Highway.

We arrived home on Tuesday, tired and happy.

Breaking Up With Winter

Ninety seven years ago railroad workers began betting on when the ice would break up in the Tanana River and float down stream marking the "Breakup" or end of winter. This tradition still goes on today with a jackpot of over $300,000. On May 20th we finally had our breakup, setting a new record for the latest it has ever occurred since Alaska started this tradition. Steve and I went down to the river to check it out.

 

 A few days later we left on vacation (photos to come) and when we returned yesterday, we found everything has transformed. We had to sleep with our window open last night because it was too warm. All the snow has melted and there are leaves on the trees. What a difference! We are so excited to see it finally warm up around here.

My First Birthday!

 

 Birthday Photo Shoot

 

 

Opening Presents

 

 

Cake Time

 

The Garden

Our peas are in! but it is still too cold to plant anything else yet.

 

Fairbanks set a new record low on Monday with a temperature of 22 degrees. That broke the old record of 26 degrees in 1938. And on Wednesday, we had our first 50-degree day since early October. It marked the end of a 215-day stretch when the temperature did not rise to at least 50 degrees. Enough of this cold weather!!!!!

 Last year we planted out garden hours before I went into labor (a year ago tomorrow). I still had dirt under my nails when I checked in at the hospital. I think that means Maddison will grow up with a love for getting dirty...I hope.

This is Maddie, doing her normal job - inspecting our work...

 

...and playing in a box; the best toy ever!