Sister Trip 2012

Growing up with three sisters and one bathroom wasn't always fun.  But now I want to have multiple kids because I can't imagine life any other way.  Several years ago we started a tradition of a yearly "sister trip".  So far they have involved Disney World (Kelsey worked there), a cruise with mom (entitled 'Last Fling Before the Rings' - the spring before 3 of us got married), Galveston (where Caitlin was living) and now Alaska.  It's getting a bit more complicated now that there are spouses and children involved, but not any less exciting and entertaining.  These women mean the world to me.  I am thankful for such wonderful sisters in my life.  

It was an eventful week.  I had to keep them entertained so that they'll come visit me again down the road (wherever we might end up).  Sadly, the weather did not cooperate, but thankfully everyone endured the cold rain with a smile.  We fed moose, reindeer, visited glaciers, camped in the rain, rode bikes, went hiking and kayaking, saw whales, eagles and otters, talked and laughed a lot and of course it included a viewing of The Proposal.  My sweet husband endured a whole week alone with 5 women.   He's a champ - and earned major points when he jumped my car in the middle of nowhere in a monsoon (I take the fault on that one, gotta turn those headlights off).

Without further ado, here is our week in pictures (it was hard to narrow it down to just this many):

I think I may have worn them out a bit.  I love you ladies!

Warmer Travels

After enduring the winter season of Alaska as described below, we hopped a plane and headed south.  I'd been looking forward to this for months.  I am already planning our escapes for next winter. None of this not getting out business.

I won't deny that I was pretty nervous about flying with Maddie for the first time.  We had quite the journey ahead...I actually had nightmares about the disasters that could be and did as much research and preparation as possible.  And she did awesome!  Only a little fussy on the last flight - but I was too after 14 hours of traveling at that point.  

You can see Maddie's expression that reflects my heart once we landed in Texas.

Want to know our itinerary?  Prepare yourself.  Anchorage. Seattle. San Fransisco. Dallas. Oklahoma City. Tulsa. Ponca City. Oklahoma City. Austin. Keller. Dallas. San Fransisco. Seattle. Anchorage.  Only one cancelled flight and one delay.  All in ten days.  All with an infant.   Plus we actually remained sane.  I feel like I deserve a gold medal.  And a week of sleep.

We had a great time with family and friends.  It was busy, but that's how we roll when we go back.  So many people to see and things to do in such a short amount of time.  Certainly one challenge of living so far away.

We celebrated a couple Easter celebrations and Maddie got all fancied up thanks to her grandmas.

 I mean she's just too cute.

First major holiday celebrated.

We also introduced Maddie to her southern Texas roots.

We got some good quality time with our nephew, Wesley.  Christmas is going to be fun this year with two little ones running around.

Maddie and Wesley hit it off.   Though his sweet hugs may or may not have freaked her out this time around.  Don't worry Wesley, she still loves you.  And maybe one day she'll be able to keep up with you.

 Sometimes I get ridiculous with her hair accessories.

The weather couldn't have been better.  Sunshine.  Shorts.  Sandals.  It was glorious.  I told Matt he could pinch me if I complained once about being hot.  I wasn't ashamed to boast my florescent skin.

Maddie has now met all her aunts.  She is loved...and rather stylish thanks to Caitlin.

Maddie also met her great grandparents.  I think she was a hit.

A rarity.  The whole family together.  I love that our family just keeps growing.

Sweet memories of four generations of women together.

My one request was as much time outside as possible.  And shopping.  I live in a state of deprivation of both.

No rest for the weary on this trip.  Sleeping could happen once we returned to Alaska.  Or in the hours spent at the airport.

It was bittersweet upon our return.  Glad to be in our home again and back to routine.  But sad to leave family.  Thankfully it's not forever.  But next time we visit I'm going to push for a direct flight.

State Fair of Texas

It so happened that while in the Dallas/Fort Worth area the state fair had begun.  It also so happens that I've never been...even after a free ticket and day off of school most of growing up.  I can understand why now that I know how ridiculously expensive it is for just a bottled water.  Bringing kids there could be dangerous - however we had a great time. 

The boys - Matt and Karl, my bro-in-law - were by far most excited about the Cotton Bowl.  Maybe one day we can attend an actual game.

The classic shot of Big Tex with my sister Caitlin and my mom. 

 

 We all decided to splurge and ride the farris wheel.  Sounded like a great idea until we got near the top.  That thing is HIGH!

Karl, Caitlin and my mom

Matt, me and Amanda - my sister-in-law

If I were to actually enjoy the views rather than having a panic attack, they were rather beautiful at sunset.

 

Babymoon to Seattle

We just got back from a wonderful vacation - that went by WAY too fast.  Being 27 weeks pregnant, we wanted to go ahead and travel to see some family before I no longer could fly.  Especially since we will miss all the holidays this year (my first time ever for Christmas, my favorite holiday, I'm probably going to be a giant, sobbing mess...if I'm not already just thinking about it).  We also wanted to include a little just-us time in the trip.  One aspect of living a 8 hour flight away is that you almost always have to stop in Seattle (the half way mark to Texas).  Well, for no extra charge, we decided to stop for 4 nights, and leave the airport for the first time.

We got a hotel downtown and just walked and explored and walked some more.  Matt and I are both planners, so this was the most laid back vacation we had been on together. No plans. No expectations. Just relax and enjoy each other and the city. 

I loved Seattle.  It is really a beautiful city (of the downtown we saw).  So much character in the buildings.  Maybe because living in Alaska there is none of that, we appreciate it more. 

 I also secretly wish I lived next door to this market. It was PACKED each time we went by, but the idea of fresh produce and flowers daily would be amazing.  Again, maybe because we don't get that up here either.

And of course we visited the first Starbucks.  A hole in the wall.  We got a latte and hot chocolate - I sadly am not enjoying coffee right now and Matt never has - but we still had to indulge in something.

We spent an evening at a local sports bar so we/aka-Matt could watch the Oklahoma game (after a day of watching other games in our swank hotel room).  I'm a good wife. :)

Which is way when the first night in town I found a cupcake place, we naturally we had to stop at some point.  I don't really know what my obsession is about delicious vanilla cupcakes.  They are just so good...as were these.

Matt most anticipated stop - the Space Needle.  They charge a ton just to ride to the top, so we decided to go ahead and make it a lunch date and eat at the restaurant - at least we'd good a good burger out of the deal.

Only terrified for about half the meal (Matt says I'm irrational, but I was scared the whole building would topple over), we enjoyed lovely (and slightly cloudy) views of Seattle.

 Enjoying some more walking and sunshine along the pier.

When Matt and I went to New York two Christmas' ago, we took a picture in front of every Christmas tree we came across.  Which was a ton, but it was a fun way to document the trip.  On a similar note, Matt and I decided to take a picture in front of every Starbucks we came across for our Seattle trip, which I thought was appropriate...I'll spare you the dozens we found in only a 5 mile radius, but here are a couple.

In all it was a wonderful, long weekend.  Even at 6 1/2 months pregnant.  I just walked a little slower and had rest my feet a bit more, who knew carrying a 2 pound baby around was such hard work at this point? 

The best part was that we weren't going home just yet...we still have a trip to my mom's ahead.  It was like Christmas in the fall with the whole family.