We have hit the ground running in to a beautiful Alaska summer. With the count down to departure in full swing we are seizing the day and enjoying everyting under the sun, which is a lot of sun this time of year. Here is a snapshot of the past few weeks:
Jonathan rocked the Mayors half marathon, placing 21st while pushing a baby jogger. Oliver sure was proud.

After the run we raced down to Homer to show off our favorite Alaska town to my aunt Stacie and cousin Jamie. They seemed to catch the few wet days we've had this summer, but were still great sports with some soggy camping.

Over July 4th weekend we celebrated our 5th wedding anniversary. Thanks to Mia (Grandma Stuart) we were able to go BIG. She spent five fun-filled days with Oliver while we kayaked and camped in Ailak Bay. This is a glacier bay in Kenai Fjords National Park. It was an unbelievable trip, full of hot sun, cold water, rocky beaches, and tons of wildlfie. We are glad we lived to tell about it after two close enounters with black bears (the one part of the trip I could of done without).


To thank Mia we make a quick turn around and headed north to catch stunning views of the tallest peak in North America, Mt. McKinley. We spent the weekend in Denali State Park and took a glacier landing flight around the mountain. It was stunning and so exciting for us to share this experience together.

This weekend we embraced car camping at its finest. We bought an embarrassingly huge tent which housed the three of us, a pack 'n play, and an air mattress and took over the Hope campground with the Robinson family. Camping has never been so comfortable. We had a great time on the trails, at the beach, and enjoying campfires and smores. Here are a few pics from the tamed adventure:

A friend of mine writes a blog called ParentPoints for our local newspaper. She has invited me to write bi-monthly entries on the topic of traveling with kids. Since we are quickly becoming very experienced on this topic, content is not hard to come by. You can find me online every other Thursday. Here is my latest entry on Coping with Chaos: Surviving the Turbulent Ride.

We have welcomed summer with open arms...long sunny days, backyard play, and travel of course. We just returned from a quick trip to Texas where we reunited with family, relaxed at the beach, and spent time sharing with a few churches and individuals about Madagascar. Oliver (15 months) had so much fun with his cousin Gracy (2.5 years) who he hadn't seen in a year. He barely recognized her. He soaked up the grandparent love and went crazy over his 2 uncles.

Back on the home front we are putting away our suitcases and settling in for the summer. Jonathan hopes to not pack our bags again until we are packing for Madagascar next Autumn. We look forward to welcoming visitors this summer and hope you'll let us know if you're headed this way. Here are a final few pictures from our action-packed weekend. We competed in a family 5K race (Jonathan took 3rd place), I completed my 4th annual Gold Nugget Triathlon (along with 1200 other women), and we planted our garden. Hopefully it will be fruitful summer.

Blue skies, 80 degrees, green grass and warm rock....these are a few of my favorite things. We recently took a family vacation to Palm Springs, CA and Joshua Tree National Park. It was nothing short of ridiculously awesome. We spent a few day with Jonathan's mum and Ron at a house in Palm Springs and then Jonathan and I took off to camp and climb for a few days in Joshua Tree. We topped off the week with a visit from some of our best friends who live in the area. We were quickly reminded what big fans we are of vacation, particularly vacations involving grandparents to love on our chicklet. More then ever we appreciate a few days of pure recreation. Here is an album with some more pics.