Gettin' back into the swing of things.

Had to put a little post to say how hard it is to get back into the daily grind after being on such a fun trip. I was swaying for 5 days after we got off of the ship... kinda funny. It is good to be with the girls again, I missed their cute little faces... Mia saying "Chicken Muggets" and Emma asking to help with everything. Emma is back to school after being off track for 3 weeks. She is happy about that and so am I. I apparently am not that great of an entertainment staff... according to my daughter, we here at the Palmer household are BORING! Whoever said that a person needs a vacation at home after their vacation sure knew what they were talking about.

Cruisin' on the Star Princess!

The first picture here is of the beautiful skyline in Seattle. We love to go to Seattle, it is a fun place.





The second picture is of the Lido deck on the ship. This is where we spent a lot of time looking and the beautiful scenery... and it was close to the food as well! Yummy!


We spent the whole first day out to sea on our way up to Ketchikan. What a beautiful town. We got to go on a tour to see the Totems.






Miland, as you can see, is the low man on the totem pole, which contrary to the saying is actually the most prestigious place to be on a totem pole. There were a few tribes that had thier poles in this park, they were very interesting to look at and it was to learn the stories that they tell.







The picture of the Eagle downtown was also very cool, you can't see it but it has a smiley face painted on its tail feather. The natives have a sense of humor. We had a fun time shopping in town. Miland was a sweetheart and bought me a beautiful tanazanite and diamond ring while we were in Ketchikan. Happy anniversary to me! Yeah!

The next morning we got to travel through the Tracy Arm of Alaska to see a few glaciers. It was cloudy so we couldn't see much, but what we did see was beautiful.



Our second stop was in the Capital City of Alaska, Juneau. It was rainy and cold, but still beautiful. We got to go on a tour of an old Gold Mine. It was very interesting to see how they mined the gold. We also got to pan for gold in soil that they brought up from the river beds. Miland and I both got about 10 or so FLAKES of gold and a few small garnets. It was fun and addicting!

After our mine tour we got to walk through town and shop a little bit. It was kinda cold so we didn't spend too much time in town, but is sure was pretty. We saw something that was really funny... they name their stairways there. Because they are on the side of a mountain, they really only have a few streets that all run the same direction, you have to climb a million stairs to get to the homes build above the town, so they named the stair cases to help people find where they wanted to go.

We went to Skagway next. This was our favorite town to visit. They have really cool train, called the White Pass Train. We didn't ride the train, but took a bus tour instead, we got to see a little more than we would have on the train. We got to see the Gold Miners Cemetary. It was pretty cool to see such old headstones. We learned about all of the people that flooded the area in search of gold and wealth. We saw some beautiful sights. This is a picture of where the train passes over a beautiful waterfall.



We got to go into Canada at the top of the White Pass and on our way back in our driver took a picture of us infront of the Alaska sign.




We spent 48 hours cruising after Skagway. It was nice to spend a little time relaxing. Our last port was Victoria Island. We went on a tour to the Buschart Gardens. What an amazing place. The best tour we went on by far. They had a sunken garden and a japanese garden that were my favorites. There were so many beautiful places that I did not know how to choose what to put on the blog... so here are just two. You'll have to come and see us to see the rest.

The water fountain was down at the back end of the sunken garden. It was breath taking. We were surprised to see the flowers still so beautiful, even in September.







Here is one last picture... it is of Miland and I on one of our formal nights. We had the ship photographer take a picture, it was lame... so we had just some Joe Blow take it for us with the beautiful sunset in the background and it turned out great. I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to do this with my husband!

Bon Voyage!!!

And that it was! - A great journey through Alaska with the love of my life! I could not have asked for a better anniversary present. Linda and I sailed from Seattle stopping in Ketchikan, Jeneau, Skagway, Victoria Island, and back to Seattle. Seven days of beautiful bliss. I only have one picture for now - but will post more later. I just wanted to be the first to say that we had a great time - and if we could go again tomorrow we would! (even though the kids and the Vega's probably wouldn't appreciate that - thanks for taking care of the kids Mom & Dad!) - Anyway -more to come later but here is your teaser......

Happy Anniversary!

Today is our 10th anniversary. We have been together all together for 15 years, nearly half our lives. Time seems to go so quickly. If you have a weak stomach, be prepared... mushy stuff up ahead! I am so grateful for Miland and all that he has done to take care of me and our family. He has already had to endure many things that a man his age shouldn't have had to... he has had to take care of me through back surgery, knee surgery, infertility treatments, adoption, infertility treatments (again), child birth and a strange grouping of other strange ailments that I have managed to aquire. I am so grateful for his positive - glass half full - attitude, without it I would never have made it through. (as my glass seems to be half empty alot of the time) I am grateful that he was able to push through going to school full time and work full time while doing it.. it is paying off. I am grateful to him for having patience, for mine runs quite low at times. We really are a good match. He is working today, and we are going to celebrate our anniversary this year on a Princess Cruise Ship on voyage to Alaska. We leave on Sunday and we am so excited. We are grateful to my parents who are going to keep the children for 7 long days! Thanks Mom and Dad! We have spent an anniversary in the hospital (when I had Mia) and one with me in a leg brace with permanant residence in the recliner, so I am glad that we have this anniversary to really enjoy time together having fun. Here's to an eternity of love, laughter and joy!

Terrible Two's Here We Come!

We celebrated Amelia's birthday on Sunday. She was so fun to watch open gifts. We are so grateful for all the great stuff that everyone gave her. She will be the most stylin' baby on the block! She enjoyed her party, loved her cupcakes with Hanna Montana decor on them, and didn't even make too big of a mess. Today is acutally Mia's birthday and we have just been having a quiet day. We went to the park for a couple of hours and played as well as enjoyed our lunch there. She got to choose her clothes to wear today and what she ate for breakfast and lunch. We are so blessed to have our little miracle, and all of her two year old crazy quarks.

Island Fun!

We were able to go out to Antelope Island over the Labor Day weekend and have a little picnic. We got some KFC and headed out to the Ranch on the island. We had a good time roping cattle and looking at all the various wildlife on the island. We saw buffalo, antelope, deer, cows, horeses, chickens, spiders and the wildest animals of all... my children! The whole Vega clan was there and it was nice to get together, since it doesn't happen too often anymore. What a fun way to spend an afternoon.