Pancakes, Hikes, and Love!

It's been a while since I've posted anything, but here I am! :) We don't have internet at the new place and it's laundry day so I made my way down to Sips and Suds ( a coffee place and laundry mat) to get online and do the laundry I've been putting off for too long...

I think last time I shared anything, I had just gotten better from being deathly sick and we had just got into our apartment! Things are still great! Our apartment is feeling more and more like home! We've got stuff we need to make it homey and it feels so great to have a place to lay our heads at night, take a hot shower, cook for ourselves, and store our stuff! We've run into little break downs here and there. The other day while doing dishes, the sink broke off and I had water spraying up to the ceiling and everywhere, but fix it David came in and put a new faucet it on it, so no more giezers in the kitchen! 

Seward just keeps getting more and more beautiful! This week has been the warmest it's been since we've got here! Tuesday was 80 degrees! And let me tell you, for some reason, when it's above 60 here, it feels hot! Maybe it's because it's so cold most of the time, but once it's 60 you see people in shorts and sandals acting like it's Hawaii! :) But the warm weather has been so nice and it feels good to know that it's also melting the snow so we can get out there on the trails! 

Our Apartment above the garage! A lil run down, but feels like home!

Since moving in, we've started to explore the neighborhood. We live on a road that goes a few miles out of town, leading to some cool stuff. There is hikes up the mountains to the left (still waiting for snow to melt), there is a place to fish on the right, and if you go far enough down you get to the prison (hoping I don't have to spend anytime there! LOL!). I see at least a moose or two every week, hanging out in the marsh lands by our house. The coolest thing I've seen by our house so far, minus the beautiful landscape, are the eagles! There are usually at least 2 flying around the same place everyday, but the other day, we were driving and I looked up and couldn't believe it! I started to count and there were at least 8 eagles flying about circling where we live! It was crazy! I've never seen that many eagles together at once before! 

The view on our street as we drive into town!

View of the Bay from the area behind our neighborhood!

I've also been really enjoying making new friends and getting to know Seward! A girl I work with, Rubye, grew up here in Seward and we became instant friends! Turns out she and her twin have been living in Turlock, CA going to CSU Stanislaus and has been through Folsom tones of times! Small world! She is a runner, I mean like competitive! So her and I have started a lil running club between the two of us and we get out of a run a couple times a week. Maybe running with Ms. 4 minute mile will make me faster! :) She also took me up the famous Mt. Marathon yesterday! The mountain is known for it's 4th of July brutal race! Of course Rubye's family either wins it or places in top 5! The snow finally melted enough on this trail for us to go up! It was awesome and the view is the best I've seen so far! This trail is not messing around though. It's straight up for the whole thing. Halfway through once you get to the clearing, your views are breath taking and you're sweating! We didn't go all the way to the top, but pretty close. Even though I won't be participating in the mountain race, I'm already excited for the next time we go up. I told Rubye I'd be her trainer/motivator to get her ready for the race! :) 

Me and my new friend Rubye! 

The past couple weeks, I've fallen in love with running again. For a few years there, running had lost it's sparkle to me and felt like more and more of a chore to keep fit. But lately, running has become an oasis of peace for me. Maybe it's the beautiful scenery around me, I'm sure it doesn't hurt, maybe I'm finally feeling stable and comfortable in my own skin so running is no longer used for being thin, or maybe it's just the eb and flow...Whatever it is, running has been making me feel so amazing. I find myself craving it and allowing it be the time of my day to clear my mind and work through things. Who know's maybe I'll get real crazy and try to get back into distance running...but for right now, I'm just letting myself enjoy the run! 

View of Seward and Rez Bay from Mt. Marathon!

Up and Up we go! Then we get to slide down the snow to come down!

The girls made it to the top!

Conquering the Mountain!

We got to see David's boat take off from the Harbor from the Mountain!



The fun part! Getting to slide down the mountain!

Me and David have been working a lot lately. Finally, my work is picking up and I'm working more and more. But it's been an adjustment for me because our schedules are basically opposite. He's up and out the door for work before I get up and I'm working til 10 or 11pm and he's really to go to sleep. So we're trying to find time to have together to do things. But I've really enjoyed our late night pancakes and picnics at the table. The good thing is though, we're getting another server at work (we were WAY under staffed for memorial day weekend, it was crazy) and my manager is going to give me set days off from work! And David's manager said he'd give him the same days off too, so we'll have those days off together to get away and go explore Alaska! The weather is getting nicer and we can't wait to get out and do stuff!

           

           What a sweetie he is! Bringing me my favorite wine and flowers! I love this man! :)

Late night pancakes! :)

I think that's about it for now! I've got work today and my laundry is about done! :) David and I have Monday and Tuesday off together this coming week and we're packing up and going to get out of Seward! Sunday night when he gets off work, we're going to head to Homer! It's on the other side of the Kenai Penisula, about a 3 hour drive from Seward. There is fun stuff to do over there and the weather is supposed to be semi nice so we'll try to camp! I am excited to get out and play with David in Alaska! Another post and more pictures will follow our lil trip to Homer! :) Until then...


Hugs & Love! 

Finally Feeling Better & Getting Settled into our Summer Home!

After 4 days of being really sick, I finally am starting to feel back to normal! And I have great news, we finally got to move into our apartment that we'll be living in for the summer! Yahoo! So we're starting to get all settled in and making it our own!  

Our Apartment (before putting the loving touches of it!)

More of the unpacked apartment...

Progress David made in the living room!

Sunday I started to feel a bit icky, but I thought it was because I didn't sleep so great the night before. But as the day went on, the worse and worse I felt. I picked up David from work Sunday evening and we headed out to our new apartment anxious to unload the car and settle into our new place. Once we got there and got inside I felt so terrible. I had the worst chills, achey bones, and fever. I made up the bed and climbed in. I can barely remember leaving the bed for last few days. We did make a trip to Anchorage (which I should of stayed home, but went anyways) and got some essentials for the new place. Once we got back, back to bed I went. I slept more than I have in a really long time. But when I woke up, David had cleaned up, put some things in order, and made the apartment cozy. What a sweet heart! I knew I must of been feeling better when David came home yesterday and with a smile said "you're out of bed!". I didn't realized how long I'd actually been out for. I am so grateful for his help these past few days, he's been my personal care taker! :) Thank you babe!

This was the sickest I've been in a really long time, probably since I first moved to Bellingham 4 years ago. Something David said got me thinking. Do our bodies know when it's ok to get sick? Is getting sick a way your body finally releasing pent up stress? In this situation, it seemed like both applied to me. I conveniently had 5 days off from work, we got to move into our new place, and I had no obligations. Leading up to getting so sick, we'd been traveling, living in hotels and a broken down hostel, eating out way to much, drinking lots of beer and lugging around everything we own in our car which all seemed to push my limits and at times push me over my limits. It is interesting to think that as soon I set foot into our new apartment, I got this sick. Maybe it's my body's way of telling me to take deep rest or more likely forcing me to take deep rest. Now that I'm on the mend, I feel so peaceful and rested, even grateful for being so sick. 

Finally feeling better! Pulled out the photo printer to do some scrapbooking!

I even managed to kick David's butt in some card games! ;) 

In those few days of best rest, I got to finish a book and start a new one. I finished reading Rhett Butlers' People, a different account of the story Gone with the Wind and I began to read One Hundred Years of Solitude. I'm already half way through and so far I love this book. I won't spoil anything for those who want to read it, but all I will say is that it's written from the heart and totally captivates you. So in a way, being sick, rekindled my love of reading! Luckily we've got a whole book shelf of books that I want to read this summer. I also, got to admire how much my Grandma Opal plant has grown! I first some some budding on Saturday afternoon and over the next 4 or 5 days, I've seen them grow to be about 3 inches! 

Starting to bud!

2 Days after they started to bud!

Up, Up, and Up they go! 

These little things are amazing. We put them next to window were they will get lots of sun light. And after about and hour we noticed that they actually bend in order to face directly into the sun. So we turned them around and then watched them straighten up and turn the other way. It's incredible! The little things have been given the nickname of WhoVille. We could just hear the little Who voices "we love sunshine, we want more!".  :) 

Today we woke up to snow, snow, and more snow! It had blanketed my car and continued to fall until about 1pm. I sat inside and read while I watched the snow fall for hours. It was sort of magical. It was so quiet, beautiful, and peaceful. Even though it's the middle of May, and most places are getting to enjoy the warm spring weathers, the sight of snow falling and dusting everything in sight always gives me that child like excitement and twinkle in my eye! It's a beautiful surprise! 

Winter, oops I mean Spring Wonderland! 

Other than being sick, reading, printing some pictures to scrapbook with and watching the plant grow that's all I've been up to this week. Sort of boring, but there you go! I'm just glad I'm feeling better and that we've got a place to call home for the next 5 months! 

Blessings from the Fridge! :)

I also can't wait to get back to cooking once I'm fully well! We have a brand new stove in our apartment that needs to be broken in! Give me some of your best recipes to christen our new apartment with! :)

Lots of love! 

Jillian

The Orca Voyager!

Yesterday I got to go on a whale watching tour through the company David works for and had a chance to see what he gets to experience everyday as a deckhand! Our vessel was the Orca Voyager and we had just about 4 hours out in Ressurection Bay and the Ocean  for whale watching and viewing other sea life and scenery. So far, it was the best time I've had here in Alaska. When we woke up in the morning and heard rain pouring down, I have to admit I was a little irritated, the weather forecast had said that it was supposed to be sunny with a few clouds. But I really wanted to go on this tour and get a chance to see the whales and other things that are out there. So I just dressed as warm as I could in clothes that would stay dry. However, after grabbing a coffee and getting to the dock, the weather cleared, and the wind settled. It ended up being weather that the captain called "a mariners dream day at sea". So we checked in, boarded and waiting for departure! 

Waiting for the Voyage :)

Soon enough we were off and within 20 minutes or so we were out of Ressurection Bay and exploring.    The first bit of the tour, we didn't see much except for the beautiful mountain scenery. We got some really amazing binoculars for the tour and I had them around my neck the whole time at the ready! The captain did spot some otters, who are usually very friendly and love attention. But for some reason this day, they were shy, so after spending a few minutes looking for them, we headed farther our in search of whales. On the way out we saw a few mountain goats, who without someone pointing them out to me looked like patches of white snow. Theses goats are insane! They spend their lives scaling steep cliff sides! I even got to see one climb a little bit. Let's just say, I would not like to be a mountain goat in my next life. :)

It gets pretty windy out there! First part of the tour we were surrounded with snowy mountains!

We kept going farther and farther out. We saw a few blows made by the whales and the captian would take us over to that area to see if we could get a better look at the whales. For the first little bit, it was hard to find or see anything. But with a little patience, there it was! The very first humpback whale I'd ever seen! Sadly I do not have pictures due to the limited ability of an iPhone camera. But I saw a massive tail come out of the water and slowly slide back in. The captain turned the boat towards the whale and it was swimming towards us. He turns off the engine and everyone gets  really silent. Through the binoculars I just saw this ancient massive creature slowly swim, sticking it's dorsal fin out of the water. I mean these whales are HUGE! Then after a few shows of it's fin, it dives, giving us one last show of it's tail. It was so amazing! But, the captain kept onward. We went to a place where there was a bunch of rocky cliffs and beautiful blue green waters. We got to spot some seals and sea birds (Oyster Catchers?). The sea birds we saw can dive up to 60 feet into the water to feed. They're small and stealthy little birds and it was fun to watch them fly around dipping in and out of the water.

Handsome David with the Rocky Cliffs! It reminded me of the Goonies and I was waiting for a pirate ship to come out any minute!

The natural scenery the whole tour was breath taking. I think when I dreamed of coming to Alaska, the things and places I saw on this tour are what I had in mind. The most beautiful, pristine, clean, untouched, and absolutely amazing place I've ever seen. 

Another Cliffside

Happy to share this incredible day and experience!! 

We kept on going and going. I looked at the clock and we still had 2 more hours left! I got excited because I didn't want the day to be over so fast! On the way we saw a couple for humpback whales, mostly their tails dipping down for a dive. But the captain got a call from another boat that was out who had spotted some pods of Orca (Killer) whales. So we made our way over to the area they were spotted. Sure enough, there they were! It was so amazing to watch them, they were so close to the boat! It was a pod of about 5 or 6. There was a big bull (the male) and even a little baby who seemed to like to flick his tail out of the water and give us a little show. The captain explained to us that our here there are resident Orcas and transient orcas. The resident Orca's stay in the general area depending on where the food is. They usually feel on the fish. But the transient Orcas come from all over and are the Orcas who will feel on seals. So we watched these Orcas for about 10 minutes swim past out boat, listening to them breathe each time they came up. I got to see the faces of a lot of them, but my favorite was the cute little baby. The whole time it was such a neat feeling to be out there on the boat, away from our normal lives, getting a chance to watch these amazing creatures in their normal lives. It felt like a gift to spend the day in their home and they graced us with letting us see them! Again, I wish I could of got better pictures of them! But iPhones are the greatest for whale pictures! :)

Best pic I could get with my iPhone of the orca! Baldie included ;)

For the next hour or so, it was more and more soaking up the beautiful scenery. We spotted some more seals. These little dudettes are so cute. They look like little, well actually fat little sausages. They got up the rocks were lazily lounging in the sun. I saw some playing in the water splashing around, but mostly just snoozing in the sun. 

More Beauty!!!

Enjoying the day!

Enjoying the amazing beauty of Mother Earth!

Say "ALASKA!" Cheese!

The whole day was full of amazement and beauty! But we received two grand finales to the tour. On our way in some playful propioses made their way to our boat. These little cuties love attention and love to swim on the wake of the boat. They made their way to the front of the boat and the captian slowed down a bit. The captain said they can swim up to 25 miles per hour. So they swam in front of our boat for a few minutes popping in and out of the water. It was so cool to stand in the front of the boat and watch them swim! They are black and white so you can see them even when they're under water. The captain explained they love the noise so we were encourage to clap, whistle, and cheer them on! A woman who works for the company and has been on over 30 of these tours says it's the best show she's ever seen! It was definitely the most exciting part of the trip! 

Luckily I got some video of them playing!

The 2nd grand finale we got on this tour was one last sighting of a humpback whale. The whole day when we spotted whales it was usually it's tail fin or dorsal fin. This time it was their pectoral fin or side fin. This whale was sticking it's pectoral fin straight out of the water and smacking it on the surface of the water. The whale did this for at least a minute, smacking the water, raising it's fin back up, and smacking down again. I just stood viewing it, imagining the whale saying in some ancient wise voice "Thanks for coming, see you again later". It felt like it was waving goodbye to us as we were starting to head back into port. Then after a it's waves goodbye it dove, giving us on last full look at it's huge tail fin! 

The day was magical and showed me everything I thought Alaska would be. I was humbled by all the beauty of the scenery, wildlife, and pureness of this place. The day also reminded me that it is only May and I have at least another 5 months here! The weather, scenery, and wildlife viewing will only get better (as some of my local friends have told me!). I can't wait to go on another tour! I think next week, we are going on a longer tour that takes us around the National Parks, including glacier viewing! 

The day ended perfectly. It was sunny and the warmest day we've had here so far. We walked over to local's favorite resturaunt called 'Chinnocks' to have a bite and beer. To make the day even more perfect, they have my new favorite beer on tap (Kenai River Oatmeal Stout). We got a beer and some food and our new friends Rubye and Issac came down to join us! They are a super nice couple who grew up here in Seward and so are sort of like our personal Seward tour guides! 

I really couldn't of asked for anything else yesterday! It was perfect and all I can say is that I am so happy I made the choice to come to Alaska! Now everyone come book your tickets to come visit me! :) 

Lots of Love!!

Until next time, 

Jillian

The Alaskan Adventures Begin!

This week I've had a lot of fun new experiences. The weather here in Seward is warming up and more snow is melting. I think we've even had a day or two that's reached 50 degrees! We are still in the cabin until Saturday and then Sunday, we can FINALLY move into our apartment whether it's finished or not! I've been settling into Seward more and more as the days go by. I feel more at home and feel like I'm getting to know the energy  and people of this place. Work is great, I still really like it, but just wish it would pick up a little bit. It's still slow, but locals say once memorial day comes it will be much busier. So until then it looks like I am still just working 3 days/week. I've been trying to be constructive with my time off, but also just enjoy being free and doing whatever I feel like. Mornings usually begin whenever I wake up without an alarm about 8 or 9 (I'm really enjoying this part!). I put on some coffee spend and hour or so reading, journaling, catching up on emails and meditating.

Me and My Coffee :)

Then I feel like it's time to get outside. I've found a trail that runs from the harbor to a place called Lowell Point (spelling??). It's right along the waterfront, surrounded by mountains, and more importantly not a likely place where I will get eaten by a bear or attacked by a moose. It's a gorgeous view the whole run. Usually I have a bald eagle or two soaring overhead and see an occasional otter playing in the bay or a sea lion out for a swim. I've mapped out a route of about 4 miles, but it goes by in a blink of an eye because I'm busy admiring the scenery and cool fresh bay air. Turns out part of this trail is the historic Iditarod Trail. It originally began in Seward (but now leaves from Anchorage) and travels almost 1000 miles to Nome, Alaska.  Here is a link if you're interested! (http://iditarod.com/about/history/). It's actually really cool to read about it! The trail became popular not only for the famous dog sled race, but for carrying mail and people from Seward to other places in Alaska. It would be so cool to see the dog race in action!  It's neat there's little spots along the trail where there is information on the history of the race, information on the wildlife around you, and other little gems like that! 

Trail Marker-I feel like I've got the speed of the sled dogs with me on my run! :)

View from the Trail, I think that is Mt. Alice....

It feels good to be getting outside and enjoying the great doors Alaska has to offer. On Monday, I went on my first hike here in Alaska with my new friend from work Maria. I was a little nervous because there is still snow and well, this is Alaska, you don't mess with it. Maria decided to take me up Mt. Alice which is on the opposite side of the bay from the town. It was amazing and challenging! First off the trail is still snow/ice covered so luckily Maria had cramp ons we wore. We hiked about 2 hours up to a base camp on the mountain, but decided to stop there because the snow was so wet and soft. When we stopped were about knee deep in snow and found a little piece of dry dirt to sit on. We stopped and had a picnic of hot tea and topramen. Normally I'm not a fan of top ramen, but when you've been hiking and are freezing, it never tasted so good! Hiking down was even more challenging, my feet were frozen (I kept asking Maria if I was going to get frost bite, she laughed at me). About half way down after slipping and sliding our way down, my feet got their feeling back, so I wasn't worried about amputation. But the views were amazing! Even when were hiking in the trees it was so beautiful. It feels like you're in a place that is so untouched, so pure, and so serene. It feels like these ancient mountains know so much more than us. When I was hiking on them, I could feel their ancient age, their wisdom, and their history. I almost felt like they were going to come alive like the trees in the lord of the rings and start sharing their knowledge in ancient tongue. It felt like for the few short hours I was hiking I was allowed to share in their wisdom and beauty. Being on the mountain was humbling and an amazing experience. It quiets your mind and allows your to soak in the indescribable beauty of the surroundings. 

View of Resurrection Bay From Mt. Alice

View once we got above the tree line!

I've also started to turn the cabin into a hot yoga room! I signed up for HitPlayYoga. An online site for full length yoga pod casts.  It's been really awesome to get back to the things I love most after settling in for a bit. Yoga is just what my body  needed after all that traveling & trying to settling in. My body and mind are saying "THANK YOU!!".

My home yoga studio :)

So that's this week so far! But I think the best is yet to come! Tomorrow, I'm going WHALE WATCHING!!! David can get me on his tours for really cheap when he has a day off. So tomorrow we're heading out in to the ocean to see some wild life! He says so far since he's been working the tours, he's seen gray whales, killer whales, proposes, pelicans, and beautiful amazing scenery! I really can't wait til tomorrow, I'm really excited! So I'll probably post again with pictures and stories from out tour! Until then! 

Hugs & Love! 

Jillian

When in Alaska, Stay in a Cozy Cabin

Grandma Opal's flower seeds from Brigett, the perfect housewarming gift!

The past week has been really great! We came to the conclusion that staying at the hostel with all it's challenges and lack of amenities, we needed a space to call our own while working and waiting for our apartment to be ready. It was getting difficult shuffling back and forth between the hostel,  the gym to shower, not eating fresh cooked meals, and not getting good solid rest at night. So, we rented a cabin for a week in hopes our apartment would be ready to move into today. But after talking with our landlord last night, our apartment still has a few more days of work until he feels comfortable with us moving in. However, as I'm still learning, everything works out perfectly. Our landlord is going to pay for each night of housing until we can move into the apartment and there is vacancy in this cabin for another week. That means, one more week of cabin bliss for us!

(The Petersen Cabin aka The Perfect Cabin)

This place is an oasis of peace and comfort. It's situated about 5 minutes from the main part of the town of Seward, away from the noise of traffic, back in the woods. Moose sightings are pretty regular now and the sound of the rain falling on the tin roof is so tranquil. On my days off from work, I have absolutely no problem with not leaving the cabin all day. It's actually been a really amazing experience having so much free time. I'm only working 3-4  nights/week right now and so I've got lots of time on my hands. Most days, David is at work so I get this place to myself. It's been such a change for me and helped me to see how busy and stressed I let myself get sometimes. It's been quiet the experience getting to know myself more and more and letting go of the need to "do, do, do". Because right now, the only thing I have to do is to enjoy myself and go to work when I'm scheduled. This experience is helping to show me that life doesn't have to be all business. It's been nice to learn that life is more about enjoying the experiences you are in and loving them! I still have times where I feel like I need to "do" or be productive and busy, but I just remind myself, when it's time to be busy or work, I'll know and I'll do it. But for now, while given this gift of peace and stillness, I am letting myself enjoy it!  If I get too cooped up inside, I just make my way to the to cute for words, porch swing for an afternoon soak in the sun (if it's out) with a good book.  It is still a little chilly, even during the day, so I just bundle up and enjoy the vitamin D. 

(I feel like someone should be playing the banjo while I sit here...)

This cabin feels like exactly what I needed after traveling, living out of the car, and eating subway for 2 meals a day. Last night I finally got back to my culinary passion and made stuffed mini peppers with home made tomato creamy sauce served over grilled asparagus and wilted spinach (sorry forgot to take pictures)! MMMMMMM!! I don't know if they were as good as I thought they were or if it's been so long since we've had a really good hearty home cooked meal. Probably a bit a both, but we stuffed ourselves! It feels like it had been so long since I cooked and it felt so good to be in the kitchen. It makes me miss my job at Magdalena's where everyday felt like some culinary adventure! But it also makes me look forward to getting into our new apartment and starting back up cooking there! There is a lot of things to learn here with cooking. My goal for myself this summer is to become more familiar with cooking fish (it's everywhere!) and other meats (moose, deer, etc). I've heard also that blueberries grow wildly here in the summer and you can just hike up and pick them! So looks lie jams, pies, and other treats will be in our future once snow melts! I also would like to start a garden of some sort here in the summer. We've got a small deck at the new place and it would be so awesome to grow our own veggies. I've got a lot to look forward to on the food scene here and this foodie is happy! 

(where the magic happens...)

On Monday, I was in Anchorage (2 1/2 hours north of Seward) for some errands. It was a really fun day, I ate the best seafood chowder I've ever had, spent hours at a used bookstore, and got a pedicure! I spent the evening with my second cousin Brigett and her husband Eric who are the sweetest! They are like big kids! Brigett made an amazing chicken pesto dish while Eric and I got all caught up on the show, The Voice. Then we all watched the new episode. Brigett gave me the sweetest and most housewarming heartfelt gift. She'd harvested flower seeds from my great grandma Opal's (who passed away last year & was so dear to us all) and planted them in a hanging pot for me. They'll sprout soon and it'll be a little piece of Grandma Opal with me here in Alaska. Then I got a good nights sleep, had some hot coffee, and was back on the road south to Seward. It feels comforting to know the I've got family close by who always make me feel so welcome and right at home. I look forward to when we've got our own spot where we can have them over and return the favor! 

Beautiful drive to Anchorage from Seward

Seafood Chowder that will change your life! Wash it down with Oatmeal Stout! Glacier Brewhouse.

This week I only have 3 nights of work. It's a pretty great schedule right now. Since it's still slow season (for about a month longer), they just have one server on during the week. It's great, I go in at 3:30 and stay until about 9. I work one week night and then 2 weekend nights.  I work Friday and Saturday night and have the bar section so it should be a good money making weekend for me! David thinks he has Sunday off which would be great since we haven't had a full day off together in a while. He is working for a company called Kenai Fjords Tours and as an employee perk he gets to go on the tours on his day off at bring me as his guest on his days off for only $20! There's a couple different tours and one includes an all you can eat seafood buffet! Our mouths are already watering for that one! Right now the whales are migrating and there is tons of other sea life to been seen including sea otters, seals, and porpoises! So maybe if he does get the day off on Sunday, we'll be out on a tour getting more familiar with Alaska and it's amazingness it has to offer! Or maybe we'll make our way to Homer and play tourist before the season gets in gear! So many things to do here and I can't wait to do them all! But for now, maybe time some more coffee and to curl up with a good book while the rain serenades me as it pours on the tin roof of this perfect cozy cabin! Happy Thursday!