Summer 2021

We started off summer 2021 with a visit from Papa and GG!  Our adventures included a trip to Homer and camping on the beach on the Homer Spit.  We took our cabover camper and Adam pulled our new enclosed trailer along for the first time.  We were able to store a lot in the trailer for the trip and then also use it as a sleeping area for Adam and Ashton at night!  In Homer, we explored the beach and hit some amazing low tides.  We all got to experience some cold water sea creatures and the famous Homer spit wind.  Also, Adam and the kids fished from shore a bit, reeling in flounder, mother-in-law fish, and sea stars.  Next, Adam took Papa and GG black bear hunting!  I'm sure Adam will post the story and photos about this first-time hunt. Papa and GG also got to watch Ashton in a t-ball game!  It was nice to have them there versus over Facetime or seeing photos/videos.  

Reading books with Papa!

Brown bear prints I came across on a solo trail run.  Immediately after taking this photo there was a crashing in the woods next to me, I about peed my pants and was on high alert after that!

Sea stars suctioned to the poles of the ferry dock.  This was fun to see at low tide

We found some bright colored ones in the tide pool area. 

Adam purchased kites especially for this trip.  We don't experience wind very often, so we needed kites for the Homer spit wind!

So so ornery, but oh so cute!

Ocean fishing with daddy!

2-in-1 flounder catch

We came upon a snoozing sea otter.  

Josie was determined to give this eagle a big hug, I had to stop her because the eagle did not fly off! He was accustomed to people and being fed fish by the fishermen at the end of the spit.

Low tide creatures catching

Hermit crab

Papa on the left and GG on the right side of the sand bar at low tide

Our fearless leader, Tundra, taking us to the beach

Our camping set-up and ocean front view

Papa and GG with their Alaska babies!  Can't wait for this next summer's visit!

Adam went to Colorado for a good friend's bachelor party.  The kiddos and I took a trip to Seward and had the best time with some of our friends.  A daycare family's mama (and Ashton's buddy since 6months, Joe Joe) offered to watch the kiddos while I took a training run up the mountain. So sweet, helpful, and of course the kids had a blast with them! Then we checked out low tide and explored the beach, looking for creatures.  Next, Shawn, Erin, and their girls also came to Seward and Shawn got a run up the mountain.  We looked for creatures too but I think the most fun was the sandy beach we found.  It happened to be around 70 degrees today so of course the kids wanted to go in the water.  Ellie was the first to dunk under and then after Ashton got himself all pumped up, he dipped under too.  It was a hot day for us, but that ocean water is still pretty chilly! Brave Alaskan kiddos. This beach is beautiful, black sand and lots of teeny tiny shells.

Ashton and part of Joe Joe's family on the beach in Seward.

Josie's favorite....swings!  The mountain in front of her is Mount Marathon, the mountain that Shawn and I race up every July 4th. 

The view behind the swing set, gorgeous mountains and ocean.

Oh... and a WHALE!  

Ash and Ellie with their creature buckets

Josie and Tundra venturing into the water

Beach life..... in Alaska!

He was so proud that he dunked his head under! brrrrr

MOOSE! A few of my favorite photos of moose over the summer.  

Mama and baby in our neighbor's yard.  So fun to watch them.  However, our neighbors were gone so the kids and I went over and replanted several flowers/plants and reset what we could.  They did devour a few things too.

Next up, we had our niece Brooklyn's high school graduation trip! She was interested in the same activities we did with her older sister.  We went king salmon fishing, hiking, kayaking, 4-wheeling, camping, and glacier viewing.  The cool thing is that we were able to do all of the same things as her older sister, but in different locations.

King salmon fishing at the Tail Race

Brookie got a monster on her line!

She had to play with it quite awhile, listening to Adam's advice on fighting the fish and fighting the current.

Landed it! What a beauty of a king salmon!

The Salmon Master at another location, Ship Creek.

She did it again! Two kings in the freezer for Brookie.  

Hiking Mount POW/MIA near Eklutna.  This trailhead is unique, as there is no trailhead and the trail starts right off a busy and narrow road.  We parked a little over a mile away and carefully walked the road to the trailhead.  It was straight up right from the start.  Mount POW/MIA is dedicated to all soldiers that are/were Prisoners of War or Missing in Action. It is the highest and largest living monument in the world.  More info can be found here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_POW/MIA or with simple Google search.  I ran the mountain ahead of Adam, Brookie, and the kiddos, then met them on my way down/their way up.  I went another time in summer and stopped to take time to take in the breathtaking memorial at the top.  The peak was fogged in this time.  I'm eager to go back and experience it in the brilliance of the sunshine. 

Dog tag tower

Gold stars and items left by families and friends at Gold Star ceremonies. 

There is also a memorial box with the following letter and various items left by friends and family.

Forever grateful for the men and women who serve in the military, as well as their families. 

They were thankful for this rope that was tied off to assist with the climb in this very, very steep spot.

I took Brooklyn to visit Portage Glacier.  We chose this one since it is a short hike, accessible in summer, free, and interactive--- you can walk on it! Or for Brooklyn...build a snowman!

Brooke also whizzed a glacier snowball right at my head! 

We both tried to capture the blue hues in the ice and snow, but it's truly an experience to see in person.

Brooklyn spent the summer working as a childcare center teacher, so she had fun activities for the kiddos! Like this lava bottle

Our neighbors buy ladybugs each summer and invite Ash and Jos over to help release them into the gardens.  It is quite the event, as they always get covered in lady bugs and each day we go over to visit and see how many we can find. 

4-wheeling at Eska Falls.  Ashton geared up, even with a go-pro, on his very own wheeler!

Brooklyn enjoying the view

Josie searching for fossils.  Lots of beautiful plant fossils here

Fishing for trout!

We all tried the rope swing.  Even Josie! We swung and jumped in together. 

It was a hot day, but the cold Alaskan lake water was a bit shocking!

Brooke enjoying the trails.  This isn't like the midwest riding she was used to!

Thanks to our neighbor, we were able to borrow this inflatable kayak and kayak on the lake. 

 Tundra swam behind us as we paddled across a narrow part of the lake.  I got in to swim with Tundra, which I've always wanted to do and tried a couple times.  He wasn't impressed!

On another hike/run, I was running back and forth on the trail, keeping Brooklyn in sight.  Then, on one return, she said she heard something rustling in the weeds.  We then heard people saw black bears and shortly after heard people yelling, "bear!"  There was a mama and two older cubs, at least yearlings, moseying along and munching on greens.  The black dot behind Brooklyn to the right is one of them.

We had a great time with Brooklyn.  We treasured this 1-on-1 time with Sydney and Brooklyn on their separate graduation trips.  It's a chance to spend some real quality time and spoil them a bit!  We look forward to the rest of the nieces and nephews coming up.  

Adam did the annual dipnetting trip to the Copper again.  I think he wrote something up on this but just incase.... it was another successful trip.  Our buddy, Kevin, who usually goes with him wasn't able to get work off this year.  So another friend, Luke and also Ken went again.  They didn't get as many reds as they had wanted but made up for it in kings!  Our salmon was packed away as frozen fillets, smoked, and canned as well. 

Family hike up Baldy.  Both kids are impressive hikers.  Josie needs to piggyback every once in awhile.

Our sweet boy, all dirtied up by rolling in the sand and mud at the river! 

Next up, the Mount Marathon race.  This year the stakes were higher as they changed the requirements for requalification.  Previously, a runner needed to finish within the top 250 spots to qualify for the next year.  Now, a runner needs to finish in the top 50% of their age range.  Well, I'm on the older end of my age range and some of those runners were born into mountain running families and community.  I needed to train and train hard.  Adam graciously took the time to make up a training schedule for me.  This was perfect, as I needed someone to tell me what to do and to also hold me accountable.  He also gave me a book to read for inspiration.  Lastly I/we modified my diet once the race got closer.  My goal was to finish in 1:11 and under 100th place.  This would also meet the requirements to qualify for next year.  

Adam went out halibut, rock fish, cod, salmon, etc fishing in Seward with our friend Wilbur and his brother the day before the race.  They brought in some very nice fish! 

I can't find any photos of me after the race, I'll have to check Adam's phone. It was a gnarly race as it dumped rain on us and made for slick conditions.  Even with holding back a bit, I still popped my ankles a couple times on the way down.  

  

I got 1:14, placed 97th, and was in the top 41%. I qualified for next year!  But honestly, I was a bit disappointed.  I thought with all of the extra effort and hard work to train and prepare, I would have finished faster.  There are some incredible runners on that mountain, it seems they have some sort of super powers! lol! I will try again this year.

The interesting factor was that they also allowed for COVID deferrals last year.  So anyone could defer due to COVID concerns (and/or give themselves another year before taking on the new requirement)  I'm not sure if we will have the option to defer again this year.  But there will also be a brand new crop of runners coming in.  Training has already begun.  Wish me luck.

One of the coolest outcomes from the race this year was this rock. On one of my training runs going up, I had found a very unique rock.  It had a hole through it and some sparkles.  I was trying to hold on to it for Ashton, as I didn't have pockets but lost it on one of the climbing portions of the mountain.  I was in a spot that I couldn't go back down for it and decided that if I found it again on race day, then that would be fate.  On race day, I remembered the approximate location that I dropped it but the rocks on the mountain are kicked and rolled by every hiker and every runner.  Plus it was dumping down rain. Impossible right?  But believe it or not, I found what seems to be the exact same rock on that mountainside of millions of rocks. Crazy huh? Fate

Annual Father's Day photo for Adam, Bapa, and Papa

Next up, the I took the kiddos back to Iowa for a summer visit.  We spent time in Traer with my family.  We also went to Ankeny to stay at Adam's sister, Kati's house with her family.  Papa and GG met us there.  ANNNNNNNNNNNNND we had a surprise visit from Adam's other sister, Jessi, and her family!  They came in from North Carolina.  We hadn't seen them since Christmas of 2018 when the girls were babies!

Creek walking with Nana

Bullfrog tadpoles!  With legs!  

Jos took her chicken dress and purse to go visit the horsies

My cousin/bestie Danae, popping kids on the trampoline!  We had a great time with her and her family.  They came over for some outdoor water fun, trampoline, and checking out the farm animals at my parent's house and also my brother's house.  The kiddos get along really well! 

Swimming in Uncle Brandon and Auntie Deanna's pool.  Or if you ask the kids, they will say it's Kane's pool! :)

Sweet Derby and Nana taking Jos for a ride.

Derby, Bapa, and Ashton!  

Ashton lost his first tooth!  He was eating an apple on the trampoline when it fell out! Ha!

All of the cousins at Kati's house.  Their backyard, pool, and swing set got a lot of use those few days! 

Game time with GG.  The older cousins played quite a few rounds of "Eye Found It". 

Josie went to Papa for snuggles.  She's a Papa's girl!

GG with the crew for lunch!  

GG snuggling Ashton after a day of playing out in the Iowa sun

Some of us went to one of Ankeny's pools for the day.  It's a city pool but what I would call a full-fledged water park! The kids had a blast!  There's nothing better for little Alaskans, than swimming with their cousins!

We also went to have a picnic and to walk the creeks at Ledges State Park.  So much fun! The kids all enjoyed exploring and catching baby fish. I didn't take my phone for pics though.  This has become a beloved tradition for summer visits.

The kids were born in Alaska but have Iowa blood in them!  They looooove their corn!  Cutie wearing either Uncle Brandon or cousin Kane's hat

Ashton getting driving lessons on Bapa and Nana's new boat with Uncle Adam.  We spent a couple hours at George Wyth, boating and swimming. 

Ash and Jos can't get enough of the critters in Iowa.  It's always a special treat to see the horses (of course), but also the goats, calves, chickens, cats, bunnies, or whatever else is at Uncle Brandon and Auntie Deanna's house.

Some other things we did that aren't pictured are....

-we got to see almost everyone.  Syd and Luke came over and stayed to hang out with us!  

-we celebrated Breanna's 16th birthday with her

-the kids practiced riding bikes with the bikes Nana and Bapa bought for them to stay at their house

-we got to meet Adam's girlfriend, Amy, and her daughter.  Super sweet, beautiful, and a good fit for Adam

-we walked to the school playground with most of the cousins.  Ash and Jos got to see where mommy, their uncles, and their cousins went to school

-we went to Hickory Hills to see the animals and also to go fishing/catch tadpoles.  The kids were most impressed with the bull elk and pheasants.  We also caught more tadpoles than I've ever seen!

Our traditional pic- the kiddos wearing Hawkeye gear in front of the corn!  Until next time Iowa! 

End of July means flossing for sockeye on the Kenai River! One of our favorite trips of the year.  This year Kevin went too, with their brother-in-law Ben.

Ashton getting a lesson from daddy

Josie Rae keeping watch from the bank with her binocs and Tundra!

Ashton getting his line wet

My limit for the day

We also made the hike in to another favorite hole on the other side of the river.  Daddy and Tundra waiting a turn and ready to help net if needed

Adam with a "fish on!" and Kevin ready to net and land

Tundra getting lots of snuggles from sissy

Lots and lots and lots of snuggles

Josie practicing her bonks

Adam and Ashton cleaning fish, Ashton watching and learning while helping with bags

Our limits, plus our proxy limits for our neighbors Jim and Deb, what a day!

We stopped in Hope on the way back home so that Ashton could fish a bit himself.  The Kenai current is strong and is difficult for even adults to manage.  Hope is much more kid friendly.  Humpys and coho run up this small river.  Josie reeling in a fish with daddy and Ashton on netting duty

Ashton cast and reeled in his first salmon all by himself, without any help(except for netting of course)

Proud 5 year old!

Family walk and photo out in Hope

Returning from our Kenai trip means moving on to hunting season and getting ready for fall.  Ashton would be starting Kindergarten! But first.......

Ashton had is adenoids and tonsils removed, in hopes it would help improve his quality of sleep at night.  We were so proud of him, he was so brave and such a trooper through the recovery. 

Josie Rae, starting at Kinder Ready Kids with her mama and KRK friends as an almost 3 year old

Ashton's first day of kindergarten!  How could this be?!?!  He goes to Eagle Academy Charter School in Eagle River.  

We needed some more halibut and ocean fish in the freezer, so I planned a girls' trip to Seward at the end of August.

We had unbelievable weather, it was HOT out on the ocean!

Erin, Brittany, Angele (our neighbor), Aimee (Brittany's friend who also works at Alaska Native Medical center as a USPHS officer with Brittany, Adam, and Erin), and Aimee's neighbor came too. We rented a cabin off Miller's Landing for the weekend.

Sea Lions getting some sun on the rocks

Limits on halibut, yellow eye rock fish, and a bonus cod!

Jelly fish floating near shore

Limits on black bass.  All of the fishing was fun but these were insane.  We wouldn't even have our lines dropped before we'd have one on the hook. So much fun!

While Erin and I were away for the weekend.  Shawn brought the girls over to our house and they all had a sleepover, including Angele's daughter, Katelyn.  Adam stocked up on junk food, they made this sleeping fort, and watched movies.

Josephine Rae turned 3!  This outfit was sent by Auntie Deanna! 

I forgot to get a picture of her cake.  She wanted a unicorn cake so I made it layered with rainbow layers, purple frosting, purple sparkles, lots of sprinkles, and a unicorn!

Enjoying her cake.... .well mostly the frosting.  

Summer flew by, as always.  Alaska summers the best!