Leaving on a Jet Plane

Glade got to go on a business trip with Dad to visit some fun cousins in Arizona.

The big bunch of boys had a great time at the zoo, cooking out, and just playing together.

It was so nice to be able to wear shorts!  It was still winter in Alaska.

Thanks Uncle By and Aunt Jessie for having them!  They had a great time!

Solo

I had the opportunity to travel to Arizona by myself in September to attend my sister's sealing. It was such a nice trip. It was nice to not have to worry about kids in airports and on airplanes. It was so wonderful to see my family and share the joy on my sister's happy day. I did take the camera, but didn't manage to take many pictures. It was fun to celebrate a nephew's birthday while there and stay a night with my brother's family. Also, I loved that my friend Karen took time to drive up to Seattle to see me on my layover there. Such a great trip! Thanks to my sweet husband who made it possible for me to go by keeping the kids happy and healthy while I was gone.

Oh, and by the way, it turns out September in Arizona is still very hot. I have forgotten what it is like, having not lived there for quite a few years.

The Wilds of Alaska

At the end of July, Ryan and I had the unique opportunity of driving up into the Brooks Range of Alaska. We dropped our appropriately named friend, Brooks, and his brother off for a backpacking trip in Gates of the Arctic National Park. It was a nice drive up into country that is wild and remote. It was gorgeous though. We saw lots of neat things and had a good time. Katie and her sister-in-law kept the kids so that we could take them up and drop them off. It was nice to have a little time with just us two.

We drove over the Yukon River. It was gigantic. Neat to see.

There is a Visitor's Center by Coldfoot, AK for Gates of the Arctic. It is a really neat place. We enjoyed looking at all of the neat displays they had. Here is a huge globe showing the Arctic Circle.
Another display of animal skins they had. Look at this enormous wolf!

One thing that is unique about the Dalton Highway (of Ice Road Truckers fame), which is the only one going into the Brooks Range that I know about, is that it is only paved on and off. After Coldfoot (about halfway to Prudhoe Bay) I think it is completely dirt. The mountains were beautiful and besides the big trucks driving by occasionally, it felt pretty isolated. We had a little rain and so the roads looked like this:

This is what happens when you drive several hundred miles on a dirt highway.

At the drop off location, Brooks, Jack, Ryan, and (of course) Jessie. She is a great dog for this kind of trip. We loved keeping her for a few days and were sad to see her leave.
The riverbed where we dropped them off. Cloudy, but beautiful!
They had to cross a river first thing. Looks a little cold, don't you agree? I think Ryan was a little jealous of them at this point.
The camp Ryan and I made up stream a bit. It was a glorious place to stay. So quiet and peaceful. We enjoyed a little fishing, but didn't have any luck in the blue crystal waters.
Not that many people can say that they've been to the Arctic Circle.
It was a nice little getaway from everything. We enjoyed being together and experiencing a new part of Alaska. Hopefully someday we can go see Brooks and Katie in the village where they are teaching, Anaktuvuk Pass.

Lots of Lovely Lunts

On our drive from Utah to Arizona, we drove by the Grand Canyon and crossed the Navajo Bridge. We HAD to get out and walk across the mighty Colorado River. Amazing how far down it is.



A little preview of what the Grand Canyon is like. If you've never been there, this is definitely the small part. You should go!


It was good to get to Duncan and see everyone. Uncle Scott and Aunt Mindy are always fun. They are the game King and Queen. They are always so good to play games with the kids.


In the evenings it was good to get outside. During the day it was too darn HOT.


The lawn is doing great and everyone loved playing out there.


Riding Grandpa's ATV is always a bonus! Glade especially loves it!


We spent a few days at the Old Virden Church with huge trees, a great big room for playing in, and lots of other fun things. The kids loved being boosted up into the trees. Kimberly especially enjoyed staying up there.


We did lots of fun things. This was building towers with spaghetti and marshmallows.


Mason, Lauren, Karleigh, and Uncle JT with their marshmallow towers.


We had a treasure hunt and all the kids got punch balls at the end. Unfortunately, Liberty and Glade also ended up getting sick for a day or two.


Sack Races were fun. Kimberly and Ryan especially enjoyed this activity. This was followed by a 3-legged race, which Ryan and I did really well at, until the handkerchief connecting our legs tore.


We always had a pinata at my Grandpa and Grandma Lunt's house at Christmastime. Jessie found this monster in Mexico and the kids really enjoyed hitting it and loved the prize bags she put together.



We stayed so busy that any down time was gratefully received. Glade sat down to watch the ice cream freezer and unwillingly fell asleep.


Our family took a little side trip up to Catwalk in New Mexico. The drive was great and we were happy to have Emilee go with us. I have great memories of going to the Catwalk when I was younger. They have improved the trail since then.


Liberty and Mom on the last bridge. Bouncy!


We made it to the end!!! Everyone was happy!


We were especially happy to get in the water. It was COLD, but fun. We went back by a waterfall, but couldn't take the camera, since Ryan and I were chest deep to get back there and we had to carry most of the kids.


Emilee was a real trooper and good help. Love you Em!


Almost out! This is where they've added a handicapped trail. It goes 1/2 mile into the canyon.


We had a great time seeing family, playing, meeting JT, and just having a party! Thanks to Calvin and Terra for letting us use one of their vehicles so we wouldn't have to rent one for a whole week! Thanks for everything! We loved seeing all of you!

Awesomely Amazing Adventure with ALL Abbotts

On July 1st we left for our big adventure of the summer. We flew first to Bozeman where we spent a night before heading to the cabin in Island Park, ID. The cabin was built by Ryan Grandad. Grandad spent every summer there for a long time. Needless to say, it is a special place that is full of wonderful memories for Ryan and his family. We love it too. (We actually spent our honeymoon there in late December, can you say, SNOW!) Although short on sleeping quarters and space, we managed to all enjoy ourselves. We thought a lot of Grandad and Boppa while there and we loved spending the time with family.

We went to Yellowstone one day. We did a pretty good hike down a LOT of stairs to see a waterfall. Kim enjoyed climbing up by the path.

Glade enjoyed it too.

Unfortunately, we lost a car in our group and had to wait a bit. They never did find us though. At least we enjoyed being together! It was fun to see Reed and Katie's new little one, Grace.


Glade really enjoyed Addie. They played together a LOT on this trip.


We took family pictures at the cabin.


And pictures of everyone. Always tricky, but Katie did a great job! It was so fun to see everyone. All of the kids were so much bigger than the last time we got to spend time with them.


On the 4th of July, Aunt Natalie organized a parade that the kids really got into.

It rained in the evening and we were afraid the fireworks would get rained out. We haven't seen fireworks in a few years since it's not dark enough in the summer in Alaska. We didn't want to miss this chance! Ryan thought ahead enough to bring along a tarp, which came in handy as we hid from a little rainstorm using a tree to help support the tarp. It was an adventure!

The beautiful lake right before fireworks. They shot the fireworks off from the outcropping between the flag and the tall pole.


The fireworks were great! We were so close and the kids really enjoyed the experience. It was a little loud, but totally worth it!


Another fun thing we did is take out the boat, again Grandad's. I've been wanting to do this for a few years. The kids LOVED it!


When others were taking their turn, we swam in the lake. Uncle Rob even swam to the other side and back.
Ryan enjoying the water.


We went to Yellowstone a second time and Ryan and his brother Rob rode bicycles through the park.


We met them at spots and saw the geysers with them. We even saw a small grizzly bear running through the area. After a fun day at the park, we attended a play in West Yellowstone.


Ryan managed to go out fishing one day with his Dad. He was successful and ate this poor fish for lunch. Yum!


We did lots of ATV riding during the week. Everyone enjoyed it except for Liberty.


The girls picked lots of flower. Some even thought there would be none left by the end of the week. Smell it!


We had such a great time with the Abbott family, but it was time to travel down to see the Lunts for a week. Wish we could have stayed longer!

I Love to See the Temple

We finally made it down to Anchorage in May for a temple trip. Our dental school friends graciously let us stay with them, even though the movers were coming in only a week or two. It was great to see them! It was so refreshingly green down there. Spring hadn't quite made it to Fairbanks yet and we were really loving how green things were. It was a good trip that we really enjoyed! Thanks again!

Ryan and our friend Richard went for a run in the mountains.


The main reason for our trip to Anchorage was to go to the temple. We stopped by with the kids when it was closed and explored the grounds a little bit. It was a gorgeous sunny day.



We went to the zoo in Anchorage. It had been a long time for the kids. They loved it!
Bear Hug!


Kimberly getting good use out of her new camera.


We borrowed a stroller from our friends, but Liberty preferred to walk most of the time.


Glade going 90 miles an hour, as usual.