Happy Birthday Ellie!

Happy 1st Birthday Ellie!! Your smile brings joy to our family. From the start of the day when Willem and I rush to your room when we hear your giggles to the hours of playing of peek a boo and chasing you around the room, we love every moment with you. You giggled and smiled as you saw your aunts, uncles and grandparents in these pictures.

Dad had the day off and we went to an indoor water park to splash and play. You loved being able to move about the water on your own. You would crawl into the various pools and splash. You loved the water slides as well, except the covered the slide where too much water splashed in our faces as we were shot out. You are confident and adventurous.

Willem was in heaven as well and found the fastest, bumpiest slide in the park and went on it over and over again with Dad. He had to climb three levels to get there but took no break between the rides.

When we arrived back at home, we found that the Ogao's had decorated our front door for your Birthday. What great friends!!

The rain called for a change of plans, no park today. Instead we had dinner and cake at home with Tracey and the Ogao's. You only want foods that you can feed yourself now, so this was the perfect meal for your Birthday.

You were in heaven being able to eat your cake while standing on the bar stool. We made a Apple Cinnamon Swirl Cake for your big day and you made a good dent in it. Started out taking small, dainty pieces and then you got in the full swing of this birthday tradition.

Ellie's 1st Year

Happy Birthday Ellie!

Trains, Glaciers and Ice Worms

Willem and Jason headed to Whittier via the Alaska Railway. Willem was in shock, very quiet and taking in all the details. At the train park he prefers the steam train as it's quieter so he was a little concerned about riding a diesel train.

Jason and Willem boarded the train half an hour before taking off so Ellie and I kept ourselves entertained as we waited to see them off. Ellie was in heaven playing peek a boo with Jason and Willem. I would toss her in the air toward the window and she'd giggle and giggle.

Checking out the views from the dome car.

Making friends

Having a snack in the dining car.

The blue ice is a glacier

Going through the tunnel to Whittier. There is one lane in the tunnel that is shared by cars and trains. It feels a bit like going into a cave or what we imagine going into a mine would feel like as you are in the tunnel for 5-10 minutes.

They made it to Whittier!

Train at the station in Whittier

Whittier picnic spot. Miracles do happen, both kids are looking!

From Whittier we could see several glaciers.

We then drove to Portage to go hunting for ice worms. At the visitors center they had a talk on Bald Eagles going on, so we joined in. We had seen quite a few in the sky and one at the zoo but were still surprised by how large they really are. Definitely needed its claws trimmed! Also learned that having a bald eagle feather in your possession could cost you $10,000 and several years in jail. Even more reason not to touch any bird feathers on the ground!

Beginning our journey to find the elusive ice worms. They've found these small worms in the snow fields here that can only survive when the temperatures are between 28-38 degrees. We were intrigued and it sounded like a lot of fun for the family. It was a short 1 mile hike to the ice field and we were

View from the bottom of the ice field.

Tuckered out after all that walking:) The kids nap meant Jason had a head start on digging for worms. But the worm evaded him.

When the kids woke up they were excited to hit the field. Ellie loved crawling on the snow/ice though it was a bit cold.

Willem made a valiant effort with his spoon and trowel but there were no worms to be found, which is good since Jason ate a good amount of glacial ice. Don't want to bring any parasites home.

Eklutna Village and Thunderbird Falls Take 2

Kids slept through our visit to the village of Eklutna. People from various native tribes had relocated to this town and had joined the Russian Orthodox Church. There were two small churches on the grounds that were quite ornate. This picture is of the village's cemetery. They decorated these houses because they believe the spirits of the dead come back to where they are buried each evening and therefore need a home. The loved ones paint the homes the color of their tribe of origin so the spirits recognize it as their home. Was neat to see how they blended two spiritual/religious beliefs.

From there we took Jason to Thunderbird Falls to take in the views. The kids enjoyed picking flowers and berries along the way as well as climbing up lots of hills.

A miracle, both kids are looking!

A sweet moment toward the end of the walk. We are so lucky to be sharing this adventure with the Ogao's. Willem loves having a partner to go one adventures with and Ellie thinks Jake is hilarious.