First Cross-Country, Leu Gardens, Baseball, etc.

Summer is now a thing of the past and we are fully back into the school routine. The kids have finished two weeks of school. They all seem to be good with their class schedules and teachers.

I took my dad to the doctor last week. I don't want to keep belaboring the point, but it is hard to be at this stage of life where I have a family at home to care for and an elderly parent who also needs attention. I am glad that I am here to help him, especially because otherwise it would all fall on my sister, but it can be tiring. The only thing that makes me lose my patience (inwardly, I don't act on my annoyance) is when older people make the comment "never get old". I seem to hear it a lot from my dad and have heard it from others as well. It is like nails on a chalkboard. I wish my mother had the opportunity to get old. I understand what they mean, but the only alternative to getting old is dying before you reach that point and that's not really a great alternative.

In happier news, Thomas and I love doing day dates on our Fridays off (every other week) when the kids are in school. Unfortunately, Jack and Anna had an early afternoon dentist appointment on our first one of the school year. We went to Leu Gardens in the morning and enjoyed walking around before their appointment. 

Same tree, forced perspective is amazing!

We love to smell the roses

Friday night, Kara, Luke, Thomas and I went to Universal. The plan was to pick up Jack after halftime from Dr. Phillips high school, which is literally across the street from Universal. Jack is in the band, but due to his early report time for cross-country Saturday, we got permission to pick him up early from the game. However, it started storming like crazy. The kids got held on the bus for over an hour and then they called the game. Meanwhile, we got stuck in the rain. We ended up riding the train, then the Mummy 3 times in a row hoping the rain would stop. It didn't. We all got completely soaked. Florida weather is crazy. Even while it was raining, the radar showed it clearing up in 15 minutes, but it was a downpour for hours! I wish I had thought to take some pictures.

Luke had a baseball tournament over the weekend. They finished in second place. Luke did a lot of pitching and played well. I did not go either day. Saturday, I took Jack to cross-country. It was his first race of the year and he finished it in 21.24. To me, that seems pretty amazing for 3.2 miles, but the winner was 16.29! Jack finished 92/226. Not bad for his first race! Hopefully he continues to improve and enjoy it. 

After Jack and I got home, I took the girls to Kohls. Anna got a dress (originally $108 and marked down to $24!) and Kara got a bathing suit. We all bought sunglasses. Then, Anna, Jack and I went to pick up the car. It needed all new ball bearings and the repair came to $1800! I was a little frustrated; the car is a 2018 Honda that we bought new and it only has 47K miles. That seemed like a hefty repair at this point in its life. Plus, earlier this month, we had to pay $470 for freon. So, over 2K in repairs for the car this month. But, what can you do? 

After dinner that night, Jack noticed water leaking from one of our air vents. Thomas tried to trouble-shoot, but we called in reinforcements. Fortunately, it was not a major repair, but still Saturday was a pretty lousy day with the car repair and leak.

Sunday, Luke was back at baseball. Kara had a lacrosse practice. Anna went with me and while Kara played, Anna and I drove around a couple of the new neighborhoods looking at model homes. We went to one gated community with super fancy homes and one that is more comparable to where we live now. We also went to Publix and bought sodas and snacks. We had a really fun time.

Today is Tuesday, Marta and Elizabeth drove up. We went to lunch, then they picked the girls up from school to take them shopping for bracelet supplies. Marta is going to teach the girls how to make charm bracelets/necklaces on Saturday. Marta is very artistic and has lots of talents. I am glad to see the girls taking advantage.

And, I think that just about covers it.

First Week of School!

The kids have completed one full week of school. I don't think any of them are happy to be back. Some are more unhappy than others who are mostly indifferent. Jack is driving this year, which means an extra 30 minutes of sleep in the morning; the bus picks up at 618, so they'd have to leave the house around 605. Now, they leave at 640. That has been nice.

The new high school opened this year, so their school (the old school) has considerably less students. Last year it was close to 5000, this year it's around 3000. However, it is still over capacity because they don't have any seniors at the new high school, so the senior class is still over 1000. With all the building in our area, I strongly suspect the school will never be under capacity. But, definitely better than previous years. 

I think all three of our high schoolers have reasonably tough schedules, with multiple AP classes. Anna got some new, and hopefully fun electives this year--piano and ceramics (along with AP Art History for her third elective, which still sounds fun to me, but not as fun as the other two). Jack has band, Spanish III, and AP Seminar as his electives and Kara is in ASL 2, theater 2 and AP Euro History. Then, of course, they have the usual English, Science, Math and History classes. 

Luke is in his last year of elementary school. I don't know how that is possible. I still remember walking him to Kindergarten and it doesn't feel that long ago. He has two teachers again this year and one of them taught Kara in 5th grade! We were really surprised to see that because after Kara's 5th grade year, a new elementary school opened and they had to reduce staff. Both of Kara's teachers were forced to move (they did it by who had been there the shortest). This year, we were surprised to see she was back. She still vividly remembered Kara and recognized me when I brought Luke in for back-to-school. Kara really liked her, so we were all very happy.

The first week went reasonably well. Luke was sick all week with some sort of cold. On Monday, I just assumed he was run-down from baseball on Sunday. They had tied one game and lost one game Saturday, so they were a pretty low seed on Sunday. Then, they won their first two games and almost won the championship (lost by 1 run!). It was three games in a row and the kids were absolutely exhausted. It was in the upper 90s with a feels-like temperature of 107. Luke said it was the hottest he'd ever been. They only had 9 players, so there were no breaks and the games were played back-to-back. Luke pitched and I just assumed his body was still recovering. But, he spent the whole week a bit under the weather. I actually tested him for covid, as it is apparently going around again, but it came back negative.

Jack had either band or cross-country every day after school. He made the varsity team for cross-country, which is very exciting. But, his days are super long. On Tuesdays, he does both activities. He goes to cross country from 230-415, then to band until 7. He doesn't really like marching band, and somewhat regrets that he is still doing it. Hopefully, he will have fun when they start playing at football games.

After school Friday, I took the girls to Michael's to get charm necklace supplies, but they didn't have what they were looking for. Friday night, Kara went to a movie with a friend and it was in 4DX, which I had never heard of--the seats shake and there is wind and water. Kind of sounds like a Disney theater show. Luke and I went out for ice cream and I went to the band's friends and family night to get a preview of the halftime music. They sounded great! Saturday morning, Jack went to cross-country practice, then Jack, Kara and I went to the downtown library. Jack really wanted to go, but we are not ready for him to drive there on his own. Downtown Orlando isn't super busy like many cities, but there are a lot of one-way streets and you have to parallel park, so I want him to do it with Thomas or I a few times first. Tonight, Jack is hanging out with his friend (girlfriend?) who unfortunately got rezoned to the new school and the rest of us are going to Universal for a few hours.

That covers the first week. Hopefully the kids have the best year yet! And, now, the pictures:

Three high schoolers!

Off they go!

I 

I can't believe it's his last first day of elementary school!

End of Summer

Today is Saturday. School starts on Monday. Another summer has almost come and gone. It has been a pretty good one. The trip to Alaska was amazing and I can't wait to go back. But, the everyday adventures weren't bad either. 

There is a bit to catch up on. Luke went to his first ever sleepaway camp. He had a good time and is looking forward to going back next year. Baseball is back in full swing. In fact, today was his first tournament of the season. He is now in 11U, which means the fields are a bit bigger. 

Jack has been running all summer in preparation for cross-country. Unfortunately, he spent a couple of weeks with some sort of virus. We went to the doctor, but he didn't test positive for anything, so he just had to wait it out. He is continuing in his two summer classes, a financial literacy class and intro to law. We are slightly annoyed at him for not finishing either prior to school starting, but they will get done eventually. I hope we will remember next summer to say no when he asks to take a summer class. He has the best intentions, but the classes definitely haven't been a priority. On a positive note, it is nice that he has his license and he has been driving more and more. I am enjoying seeing him more independent and it is especially nice to send him on little errands for us. 

Kara spent a lot of time babysitting. Her lacrosse season ended a couple of weeks ago. Now, she is just waiting for Halloween Horror Nights to begin at the end of the month.

Anna had a pretty low-key summer. She got her braces off last week. After almost 5 years in braces, and years before that in pre-orthodontia, it was a pretty big deal. Thomas took her to the appointment and then to Target to pick out some sticky, gummy treats and some popcorn. She had been counting down the days and it did not disappoint. She has an Invisalign retainer that she has to wear all the time for the next three months and then hopefully it will switch to just at night. She is feeling stress about only having two years of high school remaining. I am not worried, as I know everything will work out and two years is still quite a bit of time. We having been talking to Jack and Anna more frequently about what their next steps will be, but we are also trying to be clear that they still have years and years to try and get it all figured out.

Thomas is the acting supervisor at work this month. That means a lot more days in the office. He doesn't like it, but is doing a good job. We are still anxious for them to hire the new supervisor and are hoping that not much will change.

My last weeks of summer have been uneventful. I did finish the Harry Potter puzzle Luke got me for my birthday and I have enjoyed our days at Disney. We went for our last summer visit yesterday and sprung for the paid fastpass (I think it's called Multi-pass, but I don't remember). It was a somewhat frustrating day, as some people didn't want to be there. I had a long tangent, but I deleted it. Suffice it to say that we are a family of very different personalities.

The older kids got quite a few volunteering hours this summer. We did some Special Olympics events. It was a good experience and we are signed up for another event in September. 

On one of our trips to Animal Kingdom, we saw a baby zebra.

Luke, Kara and I saw Despicable Me a couple of weeks ago.

Another Year Older

July is passing quickly by. In fact, there are only 2.5 weeks left of summer break. 

The weekend of the 13th, Kara had a lacrosse tournament. It was about an hour and 20 minutes away. It was a 7 v 7 tournament and Kara's team had 16 players. And, the games were really quick (less than 30 minutes). I was pretty annoyed at the whole thing. The coach invited guest players, which I found frustrating when our team already had so many players. Kara didn't play much on Saturday. The team lost both their games and as a result, only had one game on Sunday. But, Kara played more on Sunday and we had fun stopping at Buc-ees, so alls well that ends well. 

One of Luke's requests for the summer was to go to an aqua park. We tried to make it happen, but they close if there is lightening within 10 miles. In central Florida, that is pretty often. We drove over one afternoon when the forecast was clear, but as soon as we arrived, lightening struck somewhere in the radius. We waited for about 20 minutes, but the weather got worse. There ended up being a massive storm. So much for the forecast.

Anna brought one of her friends to SeaWorld. Thomas and I went along and we all enjoyed walking around the aquariums. We also saw the new summer show (acrobat type show) and had dinner. The four of us had dinner for about $32. That seems great, right? Well, what if I told you we used $50 in free perk money plus a passholder discount? Our mediocre dinner was over $80 (no drinks, just food)! But, it was fine for $32. We also had some free coupons to feed animals. We fed the sting rays and the sea lions. The sea lions were especially fun. They are smart and recognized the food trays and would do things to try and get our attention. One sea lion, Lotus, has learned that if she "waves" she is more likely to get fish. The trainer said she taught herself this trick. 

Lotus "waving"

Thomas and I celebrated our birthdays. My birthday was Sunday. On Saturday, we went and visited my dad. He was in a good mood and we had a nice visit. We actually stayed about twice as long as he can normally tolerate us for :) Then, we went to Marta's house. It was also her birthday week. So, we had a Publix cake to commemorate all three. Marta made us a nice late lunch and then we went swimming. Marta has an amazing pool. It is huge and has a big shallow end and a huge deep end. So, we practiced our dives and cannonballs and played Marco Polo and Sharks and Minnows (well, some of us did, the girls did not want to swim). It was a very fun day. Unfortunately, no pictures.

Sunday, Thomas took Luke to Elks camp. He is there all week for his first ever sleepaway camp. They aren't allowed electronics, so I am not sure if he is having fun. I was hoping to get a letter from him today (Wednesday), but did not. I am assuming no news is good news. We miss him. But, the celebration must go on. We had a birthday brownie and Thomas made my requested dinner of "what we had on the fourth of July". We played Clue. I also opened my amazing gifts (fun t-shirts from Anna and Kara, Harry Potter puzzle from Luke, and Haunted Mansion themed gifts from Thomas and Jack). 

Luke looked happy at drop-off, then told Thomas he needed to pose looking sad.

Monday, we took the day off from work and went to Disney and even sprung for Genie+. We asked Luke if he wanted us to do it before, after or while he was at camp. He said while he was gone (all day at Disney is not fun for Luke). We did everything I wanted to do at Magic Kingdom and Hollywood Studios. Well, almost everything. Slinky Dog got shut down for weather and Rise of the Resistance had technical troubles. It was fun to have the fast passes. Normally, we watch everyone else walk by us in line, this time we were the ones doing the walking. We rope dropped at MK and stacked our Hollywood Studios lightening lanes. So, I think our longest wait of the day was maybe 20 minutes. And, we rode a ton of major attractions (including Tiana's, which I liked better the second time). My favorite at MK is still Haunted Mansion. And, at Hollywood Studios, it is Tower of Terror. 

I made Jack and Anna recreate this photo. Now, I just need to find the one from when they were 4. 

Kara knows some sort of trick and always gets a super high score.

I always get the lowest score. Can you tell what I think of this ride??? 

Three out of four look like they're having fun (Anna does like it, no matter what her face says, Kara doesn't like it and wouldn't ride)

Tuesday was Thomas' birthday. We had to work, but we went to lunch at Taco Bell (his choice) and I made his requested dinner (lemon noodles). We gave him his presents (books, a Marvel loungefly, and baseball cards). We are doing his day at Disney on Friday. 

This week, Jack has band camp. He also volunteered at the library. Kara is out right now thrifting with friends. Anna is making dinner. I wish I knew what Luke is doing. 

End of June/July Begins

The rest of June passed  ???. I had to look at my photos to see exactly what we did. Here is what my pictures reveal:

On Wednesday, June 26th, we did a karaoke night. Well, Luke, Thomas and I sang. Kara watched. I miss when the older kids would sing with us. Luke is a pretty good singer. I had videos, but no pictures.

On Saturday, June 29th, Kara played a lacrosse scrimmage...as goalie! The regular goalie was out and no one volunteered. Kara said she was willing. She did a really good job. She actually blocked a fair number of goals. They played two games and lost the first by 1 and won the second by 5. Kara said she would try goalie again, but she prefers to play on the field.

On Sunday, we went to Lakeland for our first Flying Tigers game of the season. First, we visited with my dad. He was not feeling well and it wasn't a great visit. After visiting him, we went to the game. We had tickets for the 34 Club. Sundays are also kids' day. Luke played in the bounce house and Luke, Kara and I did the large Jenga. I was the one who toppled it. The game ended in the 7th due to rain and the Tigers lost, but we had fun.

We ran into South Paw, so we had to take a picture.

From there, we drove to Sea World. We had some free Veteran tickets. Unfortunately, it was a bring-a-friend-free day and it was insanely packed. Rides had been closed for weather and opened right as we got there. We quickly got in line for the new standing roller coaster--Pipeline. We only waited for about 15 minutes and it was super fun. But, after that, the lines for everything were 2-hours long. We went through the shark exhibit and saw the penguins. We had fun, but Luke especially was disappointed that we didn't do more rides. We last had season passes in 2020 and he was too small for the big coasters. They were having a big Fourth of July sale, so we decided to buy passes again. Jack did not want one, but we have enough guest passes that he will be able to go with us on occasion.

On Tuesday, Sea World had a passholder preview for their newest ride, Penguin Trek. We went right after work. I wanted to love it, because I love penguins so much, but it wasn't as smooth as I would have liked for a brand new coaster. The others liked it; though, I don't think it will be anyone's favorite. The park was much less crowded and we did lots of other rides. We had a nice night, but left kind of hungry and cranky. Food there is super expensive (significantly more than Universal or Disney) and they don't let you bring anything in, so we wanted to eat when we left, but we tried to pack too much in and left kind of late. We'll plan better next time.

Getting ready to ride Penguin Trek

Thursday was Independence Day! Anna and I had plans to make a cake, but I couldn't find one of my cake pans. So, we ran to Walmart. Then, we all went out to lunch and to pick out some fireworks. After lunch, Anna and I made a fun flag cake that we were pretty proud of. We also made cake pops. Kara went to a friend's house. Then, Luke and Anna swam. Thomas grilled and we had burgers, watermelon, corn on the cob, and macaroni and cheese. It was super good. After dinner, we played a few games. Then, we watched Remember the Titans. Around 9:30 we went outside and saw some fireworks around our neighborhood and did our fireworks and sparklers. Kara got home in time to do a few with us. We all thought it was one of our best Independence Days. 

You can kind of see the fireworks in the park nearby. 

Saturday, Thomas, Jack and Kara went to another Flying Tigers game. Anna, Luke and I went out to dinner. I wasn't up for the traffic or heat. But, they hardly hit any traffic and they said the weather wasn't bad, so I slightly regretted my decision. We did have a fun night at home. We went for a walk and swimming. The others had a great time at the game, one of the Tiger's top prospects hit a grand slam!

Sunday, Thomas woke up with a very sore throat. I started my day with a step aerobics workout. Luke came down midway through and decided he wanted to try. So, when I was done, I put on a beginners class for him and he did great! I have always been a good exerciser. Unfortunately, I am a better eater. :) After lunch, the girls and I did some shopping. Then, Kara and I watched A Quiet Place (starting our HHN prep) and Anna and I went swimming. Thomas rested. Jack hung out with a friend. It was a nice weekend, except for Thomas not feeling well.

A Day in the Life

My two blog regrets are 1) that I didn't start sooner. It would be awesome to have a record of those early days with twins and then 3 under 2. And 2) that I didn't do more "day in the life" posts. So, I am going to do one today.

Our days now are much more separate than they were when the kids were small. But, here is a brief one. 

Today, I started work at 6. At 655, Jack left the house to go to cross-country conditioning. It is at a park near our house and Jack biked there. Over the course of about 1.5 hours, he ran seven miles at varying paces. He said the first 3 were good, the last 4 were okay.

Luke woke up around 8 and got himself breakfast (a bagel). Then, he went to camp. This week he is doing a sports camp at the YMCA where they do a different sport each day. Today's sport was basketball, which is his second favorite sport to play (baseball is #1).

Kara babysat from 10 until about 3. She had fun with the kids and at one point was watching 5 little girls. She took three of them to Panera for lunch (within walking distance of our house).

Thomas wasn't feeling great so he called in sick to work and spent the day mostly relaxing. He finished reading the Bourne Identity, which he mostly enjoyed but said is not at all like the movie.

Jack worked a little bit on his Intro to Law class. He is doing two summer classes, just for fun. The other is a financial literacy class that is a new requirement for all Florida high schoolers graduating in 2027 or later. Jack graduates in 2026, so not required for him, but he decided to take it anyway. I also heard him cleaning our outside furniture. And, he finished a science fiction book he was reading. Jack likes to keep busy. I feel like he might be making the rest of us look a little bad. He was getting ready to practice his saxophone when we called him down for dinner. 

Luke got home from camp and did his required Bridge the Gap book (summer learning) then watched Minecraft videos and played Roblox with Anna. He had a lot of fun at camp.

Anna spent much of the day hibernating in her room with her iPad. I did see her around lunchtime, when she made a frozen pizza (which I think she and Jack shared). 

Thomas made an early dinner, salad. We have this salad about once a week: romaine blend with cherry tomatoes, garbanzo beans, corn, tortilla strips, cheese and santa fe chicken. Anna cleaned up after dinner. At 5:30, Jack went to the gym with his friend, Gustavo. Kara and I left for her lacrosse practice, but it started raining and was canceled while we were on the way, so we turned around. The early dinner was for nothing (we often eat early, but not that early). There was a pretty major storm with very bright lightening and loud thunder. Luke said he saw a lightening bolt strike behind our house. (Update, the news said our area got almost 5" of rain, it really was crazy and filled our pool to the brim.)

Often, Anna and I go for an evening walk, but obviously the weather prevented that tonight. Now, Thomas and Luke are watching a baseball game. I just finished a meh book. 

This is a pretty typical weekday in the summer. With Thomas and I working from home, everyone is kind of left to their own devices and its up to them how productive they are going to be. In fairness to Anna, today was a lazy day, but she did spend a lot of time cleaning and organizing her room last week and she went to Volcano Bay yesterday so a day of rest was deserved.  She said she spent a lot of time trying to follow a bracelet tutorial.

We always have dinner together, but we don't have nearly the same level of interaction that we did when the kids were small. After work, I talked with Jack about the book he read and his run this morning. And, we talked with Luke about camp and Kara about babysitting. So, we do have pockets of interaction throughout the day. 

That is a day in our life right now. Not very exciting. Often, the girls and Luke will night swim in the summer, but this storm is not showing any signs of stopping, so likely won't happen tonight. Yesterday, Anna and Kara were still in the pool at 9:45 when I went to bed :)

Our weekends are filled with much more activity. Maybe I will do a "day in the life" on a Saturday or Sunday at some point this summer.

The Long Road Home and Final Thoughts

Welcome to the 10th and final blog post about our vacation! Our cruise ended on Saturday, June 8th, in Whittier, Alaska. By now the days were super long. It was barely dark at midnight and the sun was out again well before 5am. Crazy! 

After disembarking, we did a narrated tour to the airport that included a stop at the Alaska Wildlife Center. They are a rehabilitation center and had all the Alaskan wildlife: black bears, eagles, brown bears, caribou, moose, coyote, bison, reindeer, etc. We only had an hour and felt like we spent it running around to try and see everything, which we didn't.

We aren't sure how Thomas survived this crazy encounter!

Animal sampling

The narrated drive was interesting. The kids' side of the bus saw bears and Dall Sheep. Our side had pretty views, but no animals. We enjoyed learning more about the area and how glaciers form and the impact they have. 

We got to the airport around noon. Our flight didn't leave until 4, so we had plenty of time. Anna got selected for extra screening at security, which she hated. Jack's bag also got flagged (due to a Clorox wipes container). After waiting for that to get sorted, we had lunch and walked around the airport. Our 3.5 hour flight left on time and we had a 2.5 hour layover in Seattle. 

The pilot on our first flight invited Luke into the cockpit (before takeoff). He was super nice to Luke and answered lots of questions. Kara went in and talked to him too.

The flight home felt really, really long. The final flight itself wasn't bad (5.5 hours), but on top of the first flight, layover, and the long morning it was hard. We walked off the ship at 8am and walked into our front door around 8am the following day (4 hour time difference, so 20 hours door to door). Everyone went to bed. I slept the shortest, thanks to a new cough. And, I finally woke up Luke and Jack at 3pm. One of Thomas' good friends is in town, so after their naps, the girls and Thomas went to meet up with him at Universal. But, they didn't last long. 

Final thoughts on the cruise. We loved it! It was amazing. I know I keep saying amazing, stunning, beautiful. There just aren't enough words to describe the natural beauty of Alaska. We had an aft-balcony, which was perfect for scenic views.

This was our 10th cruise (9th for the older kids, 8th for Luke). Eight have been on Royal Caribbean, one on Disney and now one on Princess. I really liked Princess. We chose it based on the itinerary, not all cruise lines go to Glacier Bay, and the long-standing relationship Princess has with Alaska, which theoretically meant better berthing spaces. For example, in Ketchikan, NCL has to dock in a different town and bus passengers. It was a medium-sized ship, 3800 passengers, so comparable to Mariner of the Seas, but much smaller than our favorite Oasis-class ships.

What I liked: all the venues and places to sit. On RCL, it often feels like the spaces aren't big enough to accommodate all the guests. They run out of seats for things like karaoke, trivia, comedy, etc. On the big ships, you have to reserve seats for the main shows. Princess felt a little more relaxed. There was more entertainment, it was just smaller scaled. The venues had plenty of room. And, the afternoon tea was a nice touch. However, the RCL ships have more unorganized activities (ping pong tables, bigger arcades, shuffleboard, mini golf, etc.).

RCL ships are easier to navigate. Dining on RCL was better, although the food itself was comparable. I prefer the RCL buffet layout and the drink variety (flavored waters and Coke Freestyle machines). On Princess, you couldn't really get your own drink, you had to wait for a waiter, which could take a while during busy times. I also don't like my-time dining. It was a pain to get a reservation and we didn't want to stand around waiting for a table. I prefer set dining times with the same waiter nightly. 

I really liked Princess' Medallion system. I could see where everyone in our group was at any time on the app. And, it was fun to be able to order drinks to our location. The room doors unlocking as we approached was also nice. We also liked that the ship had laundry facilities, which definitely made it easier to pack.

I would be very happy to sail Princess again. I think the kids might be a little bored if we were on Princess in the Caribbean. Although both Kara and Jack really enjoyed the teen club. But, it is hard to compete with an Oasis class ship, which are almost twice the size. Overall though, I was pleasantly surprised by most aspects of the cruise. 

And, for the trip itself. It went really well. People (mostly) got along. It was nice to cruise with my brother. There was no significant complaining. It was pleasant and enjoyable. Alaska was everything we'd hoped it would be, in fact, I think it exceeded our high expectations. Two weeks, well 13-days, went by very quickly.

People's favorites for each part of our trip (Seattle/Vancouver/Cruise):

Thomas: baseball games/Stanley Park/Mendenhall Glacier

Kori: Space Needle/Capilano/College Fjord

Anna: Space Needle & Starbucks/bike ride in Stanley Park/long Yukon bus excursion

Jack: baseball games/Capilano/Mendenhall Glacier

Kara: Space Needle/train ride and Capilano/Yukon bus excursion

Luke: baseball games and playground/bike ride in Stanley Park/Yukon bus excursion