We are here in Alaska for Christmas, visiting with my husband's family. Yesterday I figured out the internet at the house where we are staying, so this morning I can finally check in with everyone! Whoo Hoo! Above: is a view of the house across the street at 9:30 am. awesome. no need to ever turn off the Christmas lights around here since day light is so fleeting.
Our trip up to the great north was interesting to say the least, I'm still recovering. ; ) Thankfully my in laws had enough miles to fly all of us first class! However, after a 1.5-2 hr weather delay in Philly, we finally took off on our 6.5 hr flight to Seattle at 8pm (toddler bedtime) where our 2 year old daughter, and first time flyer DID NOT SLEEP AT ALL. The adrenaline was too intense, there was too much to see, and as much as we begged and discussed sleep with her, she did not succumb until we were literally pulling into our gate in Seattle where the husband and I looked at each other in pissed off disbelief, lol. She was cute though. (we have taken a few long road trips to Maine with our daughter, where she always slept, but in the car we can get away with ignoring her as she fusses to sleep, and in the car there aren't all these strangers walking back and forth and babies crying, etc... so with this perspective in mind, I was able to cut her a little slack! But she better sleep on the way home!)
We narrowly made our second flight, which was about a 3.5 hr flight from Seattle to Anchorage. And after a little snack, more bouncing around in her seat, more dvds, and all of the rest of our tricks, and finally spilling a glass of cold water all over herself- a pants change in mid flight through my tired tears, she FINALLY SLEPT. And would only wake when she fell off the seat, which was often, but luckily each wakeful moment got easier to put her back down. IE: pick her up and plunk her back on the seat!
My suspicion or hope was right though, and this crazy no sleep thing meant getting her on the new 4 hr time difference has been uneventful. Thank the lord! She has her fussy tired moments, but once she is down for nap or bedtime, she is out like she always is!!! yeah! I, however have been harder to adjust to the time difference for some reason...!?
So here are more pictures!
Snowy trees.
She's big into eating snow, and we have yet to really play in it since it's so cold (6 degrees F) and our days have been filled with Christmas themed errands, but maybe later in the week when it gets in the teens? lol
The view from my in laws kitchen at 11am. The sun is up but stays low in the sky before it makes its decent around 4-ish.
And our first Moose sighting yesterday at the end of the street.
The bear skin rug at my in laws, that my brother in law shot. As yah do. (this is the source of our bear skull)
The Christmas lights around here look more magical with the big heaps of frosting-like snow.
I hope to share more pictures through out the rest of our stay, and maybe even tackle a few blog posts I wanted to write earlier this week! Hope you are having a great seasonal/ Christmasy week!
talk soon, abs