A look back at July 2018! This was a fun month and a lot was going on. I will begin this series by trying to tell the story of each month in 24 photos. A lot of time has past and there are a lot of good stories to tell. Will do my best at updating the past few years worth of life.
Here we find ourselves in the back bay of Surprise Cove on a very sunny perfect day. These are the days that I think back on when I go to my "happy place" This was one of the first times we got the Paddle board out! I got this for my 48th birthday! Zach is giving this a go in this photo.
Sam was more interested in his pretzel float than the paddle board. He is still learning to swim at this point and the water is cold, so a life jacket is essential!!
Renee really got the hang of the paddle board and was much better than I am at it.
The paddle board is fun for the whole family! The whole crew got in on the new paddle board. Sam was diving off of the paddle board and of course trying to make me fall in. That water is cold!!!
We headed into Whittier from Surprise Cove for the 4th of July fireworks. The fireworks are usually held late on the night of the third. In my opinion they are some of the best fireworks in the state. Whittier is only a 30 minute boat ride from Surprise Cove. While we were headed in, a cruise ship was also headed in!. So cool to see these large floating cities. A lot of people were on the railing looking down at us and wishing they were in our little boat. We, on the other hand were wishing we could enjoy some of that chocolate buffett that the cruse ships are known for!!
I don't exactly remember what we were doing in this photo, but if I were to guess, we were filling up with water for the next day. Here we are parked in the Whittier harbor before heading out for the fireworks. It can sometimes be tricky getting into the transient docks. It is always nice to set foot on land for a bit tho.
Here we are back in the harbor getting ready for the fireworks. It really doesn't get any better than this. This is about as dark as it gets, but event so, you can see the fireworks and more importantly HEAR the fireworks as they echo between the mountains. Sams favorite spot is on top of the boat. I have to stay at the helm and keep an eye on where we are floating. There are usually a few boats out in the harbor.
After the fireworks we headed back out to Surprise Cove. The next morning we were greeted with another stellar day!! I absolutely love waking up on the boat during days like this!
We did a bit of exploring on the kayaks while enjoying the beautiful weather. This photo is right at the entrance to Surprise Cove. The kids were always looking for "caves" to explore. Not too many "caves" but plenty of places to walk around and hike.
Sam loves catching the starfish and checking them out. There are a lot of them on the rocks as the tide fluctuates around 18 feet. The starfish are often exposed during low tide. He always puts them back after looking at them.
The boat never has a shortage of snacks! We typically have orange cheese balls too, so I am surprised not to see them. We had a quick lunch and then headed back to Whitter to pull the boat. There is more to do during this busy weekend and we decided to split our time between Whittier and our cabin in Girdwood this year.
The Forest Fair is always scheduled to correspond with the Fourth of July weekend. The Forest Fair takes place in the park by the Girdwood fire station and is a well attended event. It has many aspects of the Alaska Fair, with many of the same food vendors. I would say that the other vendors, like gifts and shirts and stickers, etc. is more interesting here than at the Fair. It is a bit more organic and homey.
There are always a ton of people attending the Forest Fair in Girdwood. It is nice that our cabin is a short walk from the fair! We can avoid all of the traffic and just relax as the people walk back and fourth to the fair. Our gas fire pit is pretty cool. Unfortunately it did not last too long, it quickly rusted away in the damp Girdwood environment. We are going to replace it with a wood burning Solo Stove set-up. The benches work good however. It is a cool spot to hang out. Nice having a bit of a yard in Girdwood.
The cabin is another happy place for sure! I love this view of our cabin from across the street. Here we are lining up for the parade that passes right in front of our cabin. The road shuts down at 9am for the parade, so it is nice that we are already in place. The drive from Girdwood to Anchorage is typically packed with lots of traffic, so it is nice we ar there the day before!
Another perfect day for a parade. It is not always like this of course, so you truly appreciate the wonderful days.
Our friend Karen giving Sam a hug. She has been a good friend for many years and at this time, I was still working with Karen at the Alaska Forum. She walked down with her family to enjoy the parade. We have the best spot to watch the parade.
I love all of the floats. It is a very homey, old timey type parade. Reminds me of growing up in the mid-west. The floats in the parade in Anchorage is not allowed to throw candy. Only the Girdwood parade. I get a tow truck in 2021 and will find an excuse to participate in the parade like the tow truck pictured. Maybe I can do something with Delta Backhaul Co., or possibly the Church.
Zach and his haul of candy!! It is cool to be right there and get a stash of candy. Sam has a similar sized bag of loot!
After the parade we head back down to the Forest Fair to listen to some music and enjoy a funnel cake, or two.
It was a great weekend with family. Lots of activity. We were able to spend time in some of our favorite places in Alaska enjoying some of the best weather of the summer!! Happy family = Happy life!
