A L A S K A

Seven weeks ago I got on a plane with Oakley and Brighton and flew from Seattle to Anchorage. I always forget just how far away Alaska is. Every time I see a map I do a double take at how far up there we are. It was a three hour flight, and while it was a bit of a challenge managing the two girls and our luggage by myself, it certainly was not the worst flight we've had. The easiest part was getting Oakley to run off the plane to the baggage carousel by promising her we were going to see Daddy. We were apart from him for a week while he drove the Utah, then another week while he drove to Anchorage. Little did she know, that was just the beginning. Dan picked us up, and as we drove through Anchorage I thought, "hmmm, this is interesting..." It seemed small, run down in many parts, and a strange conglomeration of stores and restaurants in the nicer parts: 5th Ave. Mall next to a Moose shop, next to a fur shop. We drove onto base where things looked much better. I was just glad we had somewhere to stay for the week before we were allowed to move into our place. There was a kitchen, living room and dining area which were very neat and clean, with free laundry and housekeeping services every single day :) On the other hand, there was just one bedroom, so Oakley had to sleep in the closet. (She has a hard time sleeping with us in the room.) Luckily, it was a walk-in closet with plenty of space.

That night, my sister flew up from L.A. with adorable little Jack. We soaked up every second we had with Daddy before he flew to Alabama the next day. Jack and Erin were lifesavers. They kept us entertained and distracted from the fact that Dan was gone. We stayed busy and found a great castle park on base to take the kids to. I was able to run errands around the city and get all the utilities set up without having to take two little ones along. Before we knew it, it was move in day. I was relieved when I first drove to Eagle River. It's about 10 miles north of Anchorage, just 15 minutes from the hospital Dan will be working at, and much more scenic than Anchorage. My sister was a saint and managed all the kids while I worked with the movers, she even directed them where to place the furniture! After the movers left, the house was a maze of boxes. It was a bit confusing for the movers because there is a living room on the main floor, and a family room on the second floor. As a result, almost every box that was supposed to go upstairs was downstairs and all the downstairs things were upstairs. Other than that, and the fact that they thought my sister and I were a couple, they did a great job and it went smoothly. Erin and Jack stayed with us for about a week and a half. I cried like a baby when she left. I have no idea what we would have down without them. Her company was invaluable. On the way home I saw my first moose running down the street in the middle of Anchorage. That made me feel a bit better.

Once she left, we had nearly four weeks to kill before Dan came home. So, we stayed super busy and fell in love with Alaska. We went on walks and to the park at least once a day and jumped right into all our ward's activities. They have a lot, and we were glad. We made a friend who has a little girl and whose husband was gone for almost the exact same time that Dan was. From park days with the ward, the Bear Paw Festival, the Bounce House and play dates with neighbors and ward members, we had lots to do. Not to mention unpacking the house... The time went by quickly until we got to the last week. By that point, Oakley was tired of not understanding where Daddy was. She would carry his picture around the house all day saying, "Da Da" in a sad little voice. I missed Dan and was tired of my children waking up every couple hours every night. Dan left a huge hole behind and as busy as I kept us, the girls felt it. On a happier note, all this alone time allowed me to get almost the entire house unpacked and organized.

When Dan finally got back, Oakley couldn't stop smiling. She was so happy. He had two weeks with minimal work requirements, so he has spent lots of time with us. I am so grateful for this time, because I know once his residency starts on Monday we are in for another busy ride and Daddy's time will be a precious commodity.

One day, while Dan was gone, we took a boat ride up to Portage Glacier. The bay was beautiful, and the boat got quite close to the glacier.



You can tell the glacier from the plain old regular snow by it's color. Active glaciers have a blue tint: