I just got back from Texas!

AND Alaska! The top two states in size in five days...not bad.

Yesterday I flew into Dallas after a six hour flight overnight from Anchorage, Alaska.

I was a little delirious due to lack of sleep and all of a sudden it hit me that I was in Texas. I said out loud, "I'm in Dallas...I'm in TEXAS." I was only there for about an hour, but I managed to navigate my way to my gate by using something they call Skyflight (picture a tram), and do some shopping, call Kelli, and soothe my stomach.

Funny that I was so excited about being in Texas since I just spent four amazing days in indescribable Alaska. Kelli and I figured out that on our first night there (Thursday) we were up until 6 am Iowa time. The clock in Alaska was only showing 3 am, but my body knew better. I don't know how I did it, but I managed to stay awake the whole three hour drive home so that Allison wouldn't fall asleep driving. I think it helped that it was still light enough outside to see the outline of the mountains and the water. It was so amazing even at night, so broad daylight was going to be sweet.

(This is a picture of Grotto Island. We saw it on our boat tour. It is home to sea lions and puffins and other fun birds.)

We slept until noon Alaska time, and set out for a walk on the town of Seward, Alaska. This was our first look at the mountains, water, greenery. This first day was overcast and a little cold. The next three days were bright and sunny. All the regulars at Kenai Fjords National Park told us that our days there were simply amazing for weather. Maybe the most beautiful they've seen all summer? It's arguable. Allison works for the park giving boat tours and leading hikes, and working in the visitor center. She knew so much, and I feel like I took home with me about half of the information she's carrying around in her head about Kenai Fjords NP. It was great to go on vacation and learn so much. I bought a book about the park to help me remember what I've learned.

So, my favorite things:

• On our first day there we found a gazebo by Resurrection Bay. The three of us read some scripture and talked and prayed. Connection is great. I discovered the truth that when we're believers the type of conversation that uplifts us the most is when we can discuss the things of the Lord. This is us by that gazebo. It's funny that this picture was taken at like 10 PM.







• On our second day we went on a boat tour. I was looking forward to this the most. We got to see FIVE whales. Four of them were Humpback whales and one of them was a Fin whale. We were very privilaged to see a Fin whale because it is the second largest whale (after the blue whale), and they are rarely seen because they can dive very far down, and stay under water for 45 minutes sometimes. We were in the cabin getting ready for lunch when all of a sudden the boat stops and our captain, who was very energetic and informative, told us we were fortunate ones. He spotted the spout from like a mile away, and rushed to catch a peek of this whale. He had no idea where it would turn up, but God was good and we spotted the arch of his back many times. I hear we got a great view because they rarely breach or fluke. The Humpback whales, however, were much more active. Once we saw a mom and a calf feeding (see picture at right). They come up and skim the top of the water and take in hundreds of gallons of water. When they go back under the surface they skim the water through their baleen (like on Finding Nemo--did you ever notice the lack of teeth?) which filters out the nutrients. Later we saw a Humpback playing in the kelp, and then two more Humpbacks who were breeching (like in the picture if you click on the name above). Other wildlife: puffins, stellar sea lions, murres (the penguins of the north), and a sea otter (this is exactly how we saw our little sea otter). One of my favorite things on our tour was seeing the Aialik Glacier. It's a tide water glacier that was calving This was just amazing to me. It was so loud when the ice hit the water. I liked navigating through the ice covered waters. It reminded me of Titanic and it sounded cool when the ice hit the boat. Also a little frightening, but our friendly captain assured us all was well. The waters were so calm for our tour, and our captain told us we honestly had a great day for a tour: calm waters and lots of sitings. The tour lasted about 6 hours.





• On day three we went on the Lost Lake trail in the Chugach mountains. I was excited for an envigorating hike and I got it. I felt like I connected with nature and at many times longed to be able to come back to specific spots all by myself so I could really reflect. I guess I'm an introvert. There were times when we could see the bay, and the mountains, and the meadows of wildflowers. It was like The Sound of Music made reality. My legs got extremely tired and it felt good. Early in our hike we spied a black bear about 400 yards away walking where we would soon pass. Awesome to see a bear, and adventurous to think about romping in his territory soon. We yelled and sang as we passed the spot we saw him at. We never saw the bear again, but I'm certain he saw us. My favorite part of the hike was when we came across a lake that was hidden and appeared all of a sudden. We stopped to eat our lunch there and I couldn't resist taking a picture by it. We found a cabin that was in the middle of nowhere and climbed up a ladder to sit on the porch. We were like little birds perching on a tree limb to rest. The spot overlooked Seward and the bay and the rough terrain in between us and the rest of civilization. Allison has a great picture of our spot we found, and other great pictures of our hike that I will hopefully get soon. Kelli has better pictures of the whales, so I'm hoping to receive some mail from them soon.




• On our fourth day we partook of Alaskan-caught fish. Yes, it was fried because that was all our meager cash flow could afford, but I'm still proud to say I've had fish from Alaska. Halibut, to be exact, and it was so good. This picture shows one of the many crazy big halibuts that were caught in Resurrection Bay the day we went on the boat tour. This is one of the sights that awaited us when we got off our boat. The owner of the fish is the man standing at the very left in the picture. He was from TN, I think, and this was his first time fishing in Alaska. We spent some time in Anchorage at the best book store I've ever been to. It's called Title Wave Books. They sell new and used books, music, journals, cards, coffee and so many other things. It's Panera meets...best book store ever. You can trade in your books and buy so many others. I may do some shopping online!



• During our walk around Seward we saw the historic memorial dedicated to the Iditarod. This was so exciting for me because I do a unit every year on the Alaskan Iditarod Race. I guess Seward was the first starting point before Anchorage. I love my picture here under the sign that says, "Mile 0". I'm pumped to show this picture to my fourth graders next year. They will love it.

One thing I was nervous about were my flights. They were fine: freeing and toturous. It was hard to be so tired and not be able to sleep, but when you do sleep, you wake up with a very stiff neck. I enjoyed my uninteruppted time. I started and finished a book: Gathering Blue by Lois Lowry; a sequel to The Giver. I watched a movie: Bewitched. I listened to music and even chatted with my neighbors. So, I have many more pictures, and many more stories, but...you know. I'm available if you need more. :)