Camping at Kenai Lake

Thank you to Neema and Granpi for letting us borrow their RV for another fantastic camping trip. This time we drove south and stayed at Trail River Campground on Kenai Lake. Our campsite was just a few paces from the lake front. Lucy had no chance of running out of rocks to throw into the lake here.

We made s'mores on the campfire. Lucy liked all the components by themselves, but not so much all together. She wasn't too sure what to think of all marshmallow goop on her hands.

We had one rainy day so we spent it in Seward. We had lunch and visited the SeaLife Center. It was fun to see all the animals there. They had a really neat bird room where I actually ducked because one of the birds swooped so close to my head. On our final day we got out on the water. Larry lent us his pack rafts. They are these really neat one person boats. There's just enough room for me to have my legs fully extended. Though they are not intended to be used this way, Lucy sat on my feet, facing me, with her legs on top of mine. We were even able to get the skirt over our legs so that we didn't get wet. We paddled all up and down the shoreline. After a while, Lucy got out and stayed ashore with Brian so I could do some exploring on my own. There's nothing that I can think of that's more peaceful than that.

Lucy hikes to power line pass bridge.

May 28th, 2010 Lucy and Dad hiked down power line pass to the river in the valley. The snow is still there at the end of the valley.

Sitting in the baby back pack Lucy smiles for the camera.

Daddy partricularly likes this picture. A little out of focus but still beautiful.

It was windy at the beginning of the power line trail so we had to put our coats on. As soon as we hiked down the trail it was not windy at all and we were toasty in the sun.

We saw interesting things on the hike down. Butterflies, mini-pinecones, pussywillows, pretty green trees, and a supercub flying about 15ft over our heads.

Lucy hiked down the steep trail to the river by her self. She didn't need much help and some people walking by us were impressed. Lucy liked throwing rocks in the river. We had some snow to eat too.

We found some people to take our picture. Bees kept mistaking Lucys pink hate for a flower and would buzz in her face. Her hands stayed up in front of her mouth most of the time afterwards.

We found this right next to the bridge. The area has had several bears guarding moose kills on the trail in the past. This must be one of them.

Spring in Alaska

Well, maybe it's not quite spring yet, but it was nice and sunny and the snow on all the streets and sidewalks had melted. Still plenty of snow everywhere else and cold enough for winter coats though. We took a trip out to a nearby animal preserve. You can drive through this park, but we parked our car and pulled Lucy around in our wagon.

Brown bear just after waking up from his winter slumber.

Mom and toddler enjoying some fresh air together.

Lucy's 2nd Birthday

She was so cute while we sang her Happy Birthday. As soon as we started her hands went strait to cover her face. I think she was a little bashful about all the attention, but it was so cute and she pulled it together in time to blow out the candles.

Having birthday cake with her crew. She helped me make and decorate it earlier that day.

Opening her presents. She is the youngest of her group of friends so she had to watch at many parties while other kids opened their presents. She was very excited for it finally be her turn.

2 Year Old Stats

• Weight: 33 pounds 2 ounces (97%)
• Length: 36 inches (95%)
• Head: 50 centimeters (97%)

Hoppy Easter!

What a wonderful Easter we had! Lucy and I cooked a ham and brought it over to Neema and Granpi's (those are Brian's maternal grandparents). We all had some good food and Lucy had fun playing with her many second cousins. We had an easter egg hunt outside so Lucy got to search for more eggs.

So adorable in her Easter best paired with her "raindrops" (that's what she calls her rain boots). Not what I would have picked, but she insisted!

Brian had to work on Easter morning so the Easter Bunny came during Lucy's nap time the day before. She was a little confused at first, but she quickly got the hang of it and was egg hunting on her own. Even after she found them all she was convinced there more and she kept on looking.

When Mommy's sick

Hanging out watching Sesame Street. Notice the daddy in the background doing the same :)

Rubix cube anyone?

I was sitting on the couch and just got off the phone. Then my almost 2 year old pipes up and says, "I took it apart! I took it apart, Mommy!" I look over to see her holding a black ball and sitting next to a neat pile containing all 54 pieces to my husbands rubix cube. She was very proud of herself!

Fur Rondy 2010

Fur Rendezvous is an annual event that kicks off the Iditarod every year. It was originally a place for trappers to sell their furs, but it has evolved into a festival with a little something for everyone. They block off 4th avenue to make way for the teams of dogs and have events all over town. We went for two whole days and did a bunch of different things. We saw model trains at the historic train depot, snow sculptures being transformed from large blocks of crusty snow and short distance dog sled racing. Here we are on the main drag where all the dog sled races begin. You can see furs for sale across the street.

Lucy posing as a cute little bear.

With her hat and hood up, Lucy was tall enough to ride some of the carnival rides. Here she is with me on the carousel. She rode the horse and I made sure she didn't fall off.

Such a big girl! Riding all by herself while we watched from the sidelines.

On the ferris wheel with mom and dad. She loved being up so high!

We didn't even know there was a petting zoo, but we caught this at the end of the day. Nobody else was there so we had the place all to ourselves. Lucy really liked the ducks, but they wouldn't let us get near them for petting.

We went to see the fireworks. Lucy wasn't as into them as I thought, but they didn't freak her out either. We can't see fireworks on the 4th of July here because of the daylight in the summer so we have to bundle up and catch them when we can.

Lucy has fun in her winter wonderland

So we have had many fun things to do this winter. First up was a sleigh ride through the woods in December with Gramps.

Next was sledding on the big kid hill next to Service HS. Since then we have been to a few smaller hills and even went to a sledding birthday party.

Next up is the zoo in true Alaskan fashion. This trip included cousin Casey and lots of pulling by the grown ups.

It wouldn't be winter without multiple moose sightings. This yearling is munching on my flower bushes next to the front door. Nature's way of taking care of the trimming, I guess.

And finally, some time in the snow with Daddy. They worked hard on their snowman mountain. It was too dry to build a traditional one so they did the next best thing.

The Birthday Girls

Emily Kile a few hours old and her Aunt Jill 31 years old

Christmas 2009

Christmas time was a lot of fun this year. Lucy was so excited with all of the festivities. She helped decorate the tree and make cookies. She marveled at all the lights on the outside of the house. She loved all the presents with her name on them, of course. Gramps came for a nice long visit (more on that later) which we all enjoyed. All in all, it was a great holiday for all of us!

Mommy and Lucy in our matching Christmas pjs.

Auntie Deanna keeping the kiddos occupied while I cooked dinner. We had veal and chicken parmesan with pasta. Italian for dinner is my Christmas tradition.

On of her many wonderful presents.

The unveiling of her new kitchen. We covered it with a table cloth and eventually had to point it out to her. She was very excited and jumped right in.

Dinner at Gramma's on Christmas day. All dressed up in her holiday best!

Santa's Lap

She only likes him from a distance, I guess...

Thanksgiving in Seattle

As always, I'm so late with this post, but we had a wonderful time. Dinner was so yummy and the company we had was wonderful.

An afternoon at the aquarium.

Lunch at Pike Place Market with cousin Ashley. Since we've been home she is always "calling" Ashley on her play phone.

Reading with Grandma.

Chicago November 2009 Part 1

We spent a few days in Chicago this fall. The main event was Maggie and Ralph's wedding. She's one of my best friends and cousin. I'm still waiting on some photos from the big day, so I'll do another post when they come in. We came in a few days before the wedding so we had some time to visit with my big sister, Nancy. We took a trip to the Nature Museum down by the lake on the first day.

They had a neat butterfly room. Hundreds of butterflies flying freely in their own big room. Lucy was a little apprehensive at first, but then she thought it was pretty neat. Especially when this one landed on Daddy's brightly colored shirt.

Afterward, we had time to play in the leaves a bit. We just don't get the volume of leaves up here like they do in Chicago :(

On day 2, I was busy helping with my wedding duties for the big day so the family headed out with out me. They went down to Navy Pier and visited the Children's Museum. The main attraction for Lucy was all the water activities. They provided rain gear to keep your kids dry. From what I heard, she would have stayed there all day if she could have!

Finally some down time with cousin Jack at Aunt Nancy's house. Aren't they adorable?