Part 7 Vacation 2017

After two days at sea we made our first port. We arrived in the cute little town of Ketchikan.



I didn't research much about the trip and didn't realize all the towns on the coasts of Alaska are part of a rain forest.  The trees were extremely thick and most of the time it was a bit misty.  We were very lucky not to have any rain the whole trip as it rains along this coast more than 200 days of the year.

Our first stop was a lumberjack show. These were professional lumberjacks.  There were ten events and we all really enjoyed it.

Log rolling....



Log sawing....





Mia got a picture with them! The two on the left are father and son, both national champions.

From there we went to Bight Totem Pole Park. It was beautiful.

The highlight for the girls was the giant slugs.

 

Anna dropped her brand new stuffed husky dog down the steep hill behind this fence. Dan had to climb down and get it.

Anna doing her favorite pose.

Back at the ship we had to have a talk with the ice cream cone maker at the buffet...

Part 6 Vacation 2017

On July 3, in Vancouver, we boarded a Norwegian cruise ship bound for Alaska! Mia met Olivia within the first hour and they were fast friends for the entire trip.

They swam on this first day and that was it. Some people were brave enough to swim on other days but we don't do that when it's in the 60's, except in La Quinta when we heat the pool to 90!

We also did a little line dancing.

The next day was our  first full dyad it was a day at sea so we took a balloon making class.

We also watched the professional ice carver make the head of the Statue of Liberty! After all, it was July 4th! We were a little disappointed that there weren't many activities going on to celebrate but I would say less than 50% of the passengers were American.

The girls loved the buffet. After a few days, we developed a routine. We would take them to the buffet when the kids club was closed. Then when it opened back up we would check them in and meet Olivia's parents for a nice sit down meal at the restaurant. Afterwards, we would head to the bar for an after dinner drink and then pick up the girls and go to bed. We have had some really good times with people we have met on cruises!

Part 5 Vacation 2017

After we left Grass Valley we made the last leg of our road trip. We drove to Ashland, Oregon and spent the night in a very mid-century modern hotel which had been kept up so well. No pictures, you will have to use your imagination. In the morning we headed for Great Wolf Lodge in Tacoma, Washington. If you ask Mia, this was the highlight of the trip.

Just a couple of wolves...

We thought this would be a fun place because of the water park, but the Magiquest game, which is like a scavenger hunt, stole the show! Mia played and played and played it, with Dan racking up 27,000 steps on his Apple watch helping her out. We had to force her to go to the water park the next day!

Mike and Donna joined us for dinner the first night.

More wolves...can you tell they like this place?

We were there too.

Greg and Beth joined us the next day and we spent it at the water park. I have no pictures because I didn't bring my phone with me. It was fun to see Paige having so much fun! They spent the night too. The next day we stopped by to see the house they just moved into (and to do some laundry).

Paige's room is hilarious. These shells and starfish are actually glued to the walls.

The pink blow up dolphin adds a special touch. Obviously, they will be renovating the house some day!

They now have a yard big and safe enough for the kids to play in.

Built in garden beds!

Anna and Chase having some quiet time together. The crazy ones were running around the house.

Paige got this book to help her reach things on the refrigerator. Hahaha....

We so loved seeing them and their new house! 

We spent that night in Bellingham and then the next night in Vancouver to get ready to board our cruise! We missed the 150th birthday of Canada by one day (of course, we had no idea about this) and we were staying where all the festivities were (the day before). No wonder our hotel in Vancouver was ridiculously expensive!

Part 4 Vacation 2017

We left Sequoia National Forest and went to Grass Valley to visit Aunt Helen and Uncle Bob. The girls had never been there and Dan hadn't been there for 17 years!

They first moved there in 1975 so I went several times during high school. We also took our older children there many times growing up.  The tractor ride was always a hit.

The next day Mia was allowed to drive the tractor. I got video of that, but not a still picture.

The pond is always a favorite. We saw some fish and frogs. The girls spent a lot time playing there. I can't believe I didn't get a picture of their lab puppy, Sheba! Mia played with her for hours!

On the second day we went mini golfing and go cart racing. It was super fun!

We had the track pretty much to ourselves!

It was a great visit with some delicious dinners and conversations. The weather was beautiful the whole time.