Fairbanks - Day Five (sunday)

Sunday we went to the wedding site (well we thought it was the wedding site, but then there was some more ideas. I believe they have now decided, but we don't know yet what the final decision is...hmmmm). It's beautiful and rustic and very Alaskan. The view is spectacular and if chosen be a great place to get hitched!! We explored the buildings, the rock outcrops, the bathrooms (only heated place we could get into - it was chilly)....

and the ski lift area. Tate performed his amazing balance beam routine complete with back flips off the end. It was quite magnificent. 

There was also an impromptu photoshoot for Dan and Adrian. Photos to be used for wedding website and save the dates, and also I believe because there just weren't many recent photos of them together. It was goofy and funny and even evoked a sense of art history with a re-enactment of Grant Wood's "American Gothic" - ski pole, no pitchfork - after all we were at a ski resort! Tate got in on that one... "stone-face Tate, stone-face!!"

Next we went to an old gold dredge, ate the last of the sugar kettle corn and Dave, Dan and Adrian explored the dredger while Tate and I stayed on higher, safer ground to plunk rocks and watch the very large, very burly Alaskan man with the shotgun attached to the front of his 4-wheeler give rides to the middle-aged Japanese tourist women to the barge from the roadside cafe. These women looked rather satisfied on the back of that 4-wheeler and if I had to guess would say that that was their "favorite part of the day!"

We had a great dinner that night at the Pump House (a possible site for rehearsal dinner) very nice, great food and fun stuff for Tate to look at. Then to Hot Licks the great homemade ice cream place for an end-of-the-season last cone. We were bundled up and eating ice cream. I wore my gloves - it was a site to behold!

Fairbanks - Day Four (saturday)

Saturday began with a trip to the farmer's market and subsequently eating our way through the market with the purchase of 3 vanilla cream horns, one almond cake, one rhubarb cake and one reindeer hotdog for Dan. Then it was the large bag of sugar kettle corn for sharing... imagine a large steaming kettle in which popcorn, sugar and a bit of salt are dumped and stirred into an amazing confection of light, airy, just-sweet-enough, with a bit of saltiness, warm popcorn!!

After snacking on all things good at the Alaska Farmer's Market, we went to the Alaska Bird Observatory for some owl fun!! Observe our observations....

After that it was lunch at the Chowder House!! Very good smoked salmon chowder and build-yer-own sandwiches. Tate had nothing except a cookie! And then was subjected to the photography show. Here's how he enjoyed it...

Since Adrian and I were going out that night by ourselves and leaving the boys to fend for themselves I decided that a nap was not needed for Tate (hahahaha) and we proceeded to the Large Animal Research Center on the UAF campus. We saw the cool musk ox and caribou through the fences and hiked around the property with Inai.

There was lots of hiding in the woods and Tate finding us. And lots of running!! We got home and like I said Adrian and I were off to a girl's night out party with some crazy, funny, very wonderful Alaska-living women, complete with fabulous fish tacos, wine and fancy bejeweled, flowered, toe-polishing. I haven't been to something so girly since I was... well... a girl!! Adrian said it was over-compensation for living in such rough climates - I can believe it!! So I have pretty blue toenails with white flowers painted on them - because... when in Rome!!!!

Fairbanks - Day Three (friday)

What a great Tate-kind-of-day!! We awoke to another breakfast waiting for us and leisurely got ready for the day. We went to Pioneer Park (formerly AlaskaLand - not kidding) where if it had been summer then lots of stuff to do like train rides, food courts, river boats to explore... but it was off-season so there was just the playground. That was ALL Tate needed!! 

He swung, slide, climbed, ran, bounced, and had himself one great time. After all the playing, he announced, "I'm hungry. Let's go get some lunchy!" So off we went to "downtown"  Fairbanks. I feel funny calling it downtown but that is what it is!! There are some blocks, with some buildings, some shops and some restaurants... oh and a few drunk people swervily meandering the streets... so I guess it's a real downtown after all! 

Then after his nap, Tate went outside for fun on the tire swing and some driveway baseball. And then a kid came over!!! Owen arrived with his parents for Adrian's birthday party and Tate found his new Alaskan best friend. 

We had a great time, ate great food and great cake - and heard all about the bear and moose sausage that Mark and Shannon were making the next day. Yup... bear and moose!! Just in case you forgot we were in Alaska.

FAVORITE PART OF THE DAY

T: playground monorail ride

M: playing on the see-saw with Tate and Dave

A: riding her bike down the mountain

Instructions On Parenting

Lesson #1: How NOT to let your kid drink out of a glass in a restaurant.

Home Sweet Home

We are home after 17 hours of travel, no sleep for the adults and although we arrived on time in Boston our luggage did not!! Here's hoping it shows up at our door later tonight. 

UPDATE: Luggage was finally delivered at 12:07pm Friday. Good thing we didn't really need it... although Dave did... he had to use my toothbrush last night.

Open Letter to Eames

Dear Eames,
I miss you lots and lots. But as you can see I've got a great substitute furry creature to love in your absence. Inai is soft, warm and will sit on my lap for hours...you'd HATE her! I hope your behaving for your caretakers and tell Nana and Grandpa that we are fine...sorry for not calling back (we have gotten their messages) just too late to call each evening on our return. Adrian has sufficiently berated Dan for not calling back. Out time is running out here in Alaska and soon we will be home and picking you up. Save me some snarfs, wiggles and whines and tell Grandpa we've decided to leave the cats at their house!!
Love to you,
Me

Interim Update

We are having a grat time! Here's a quick update as I'm just too tired to give a full update right now...

Friday :: playground with Tate where we met a woman who grew up in Warwick, RI. Birthday party complete with friends, cake and presents for Adrian in the evening.

Saturday :: owl fun and photo gallery show in the day and girl's night out for me and Adrian at her friends house, then late night shoot for guys.

Sunday :: trip to mountain wedding site complete with impromtu engagement photo shoot then to abandonded gold mining dredge. Then dinner at the Pump House and ice cream (yes, ice cream) at Hot Lick's last day of operation for the season.

Monday :: Denali National Park!! We saw caribou, moose, hawk owl, red sruirrel, chipmunk, and wolf, no bears. But we did have a great view of Mt. McKinley!

tomorrow :: Chena Hot Springs!

Fairbanks - Day Two (thursday)

We awoke to the sounds of Unkie Dan preparing french press coffee and the smells of eggs scrambling with spinach, tomatoes and cheese. After the "I-don't-have-to-think-about-anything-spoil-me-breakfast" we headed to the Uninversity and it's brand-spankin' new museum of art and natural Alaskan history. Tate was not too thrilled about the enormous stuffed brown bear blocking our entrance and it took some coaxing to get him by.

Once inside it was running from side to side to look at mammoth tusks, gemstones, stuffed rabbits, carved toys, clothes made of seal intestine, and a very relaxing movie about the Aurora Borealis. Upstairs in the art gallery I got solo time to walk and look, while Tate and Unkie Dan played hide and seek.

Back to the house for dog cuddling, naps and relaxing. And Dan made dinner, again another "I-don't-have-to-think-about-anything-spoil-me-dinner" and frosted the birthday cake he made for Adrian that afternoon. Tate "helped".

Fairbanks - Day One (wednesday)

Seattle: warm 80 degrees

Fairbanks: cool 55 degrees

Seattle: loud
Fairbanks: quiet

Seattle: tons of people
Fairbanks: 25 minute drive from airport saw only one car pass us

Seattle: busy
Fairbanks: relaxing

Seattle: bad sleeping up every morning at 6am
Fairbanks: dark and peaceful, slept until 8:30am

We spent our first day lounging on the couch, walking Inai, watching the birds, playing "clutchie-bomb", napping and rejuvinating!! We soooo needed it. We finally ventured off the property for dinner at "the country's Northern-most brew pub" for great food, great beer and great chocolate stout cake.

Seattle: fabulous and fun

Fairbanks: will too be fabulous and fun

Seattle - Day Four (tuesday)

It's Childrens' Museum Day!! Danni had to work most of the day so we were self-sufficient tourists and hit the streets on foot to the Children's Museum in Seattle Center just a few blocks from our hotel. It had lots of great stuff to do... art room, international wing (complete with sushi restaurant, japanese subway and african drums), water table, mountian, construction zone, mexican taco stand and theatre. Tate loved the firetruck the most...

... and only shopped in the grocery store for crabs, ice cream and flowers for mommy (awww, thank you).

Next to the Space Needle gift shop for snow globe #2. Then Tate's much anticipated monorail ride to downtown and Dave's much anticipated trip to the architecture bookstore. Tate loved the monorail ride. Bookstore...not so much.

By the time we monorailed back to Seattle Center, I barely had time to run through the NW Artist's Gallery (mostly pottery...nice) and buy a wonderful little vase, before Danni picked us up and we headed to the airport for our Alaska leg of the trip.

Plane took off late, then medical emergency on board. Actual words over the loudspeaker "Is there a doctor on board?" There was not. But there were two army EMT's who helped a woman with an asthma attack - she was thankfully fine and we did not have to make an emergency landing in Anchorage. It was very late when we arrived, Tate slept the whole bumpy car ride from airport to Unkie Dan's and was carried half conscience straight to bed, rolled over and was out for the night.

We are in Alaska!!

FAVORITE PART OF SEATTLE
T: riding the monorail
M: visiting Danni and exploring the city with Dave and Tate
D: wathing the seaplanes with Tate from the tippity-toppity of the Space Needle

Seattle - Day Three (monday)

T: Mom?

M: Yes dear?

T: What day is it?

M: It's Monday.

T: And what's today?

M: It's Space Needle day.

T: SPACE NEEDLE DAY!?!?! YEAHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!

So up we went to the tippity-toppity... ahhhh... finally after weeks of looking at it's picture in the guide book and days of seeing it everywhere he went "Mom, LOOK.... I see the SPACE NEEDLE!" we were finally gracing the Seattle skies with our presence in the famous strange tower that looks like a UFO. We walked around, looked through the binoculars and secured a prime spot overlooking the water where sea planes arrived and departed. I believe we spent most of our time in that one spot... "Look. There goes another one!"

"Seaplanes don't have wheels...they have pontoons!" he said to me.

Danni had to work for a few hours that morning so she picked us up at the Needle after a trip to the gift shop for the requisite t-shirt and snow globe, then onto Pioneer Square for gallery stops, bookstore ventures and live music in the square. After he asked me to pick him up for the 131st time that day, I wisked him up, bumping his arm into my leg which sent the newly acquired, much-loved Space Needle snow globe spiraling to the ground and upon impact splitting open and spilling it's necessary water and snow onto the pavement! Whoops.....

We tossed it in the trash after saying goodbye to it and promising a second trip to the gift shop for a replacement snow globe. He was satisfied with this arrangement, however has since told two waitresses, Unkie Dan and Tia Adrian how "mommy knocked the snow globe out of my hand and smashed it to the ground!" I will never live this one down.

Lunch was in the International District for dim sum.... yum yum! And then to the hotel for naps. However I was on a secret special mission with Danni, so we dropped off the boys and off we went. Now I'm not one for surprises. I like to know what's coming up, I like to be prepared physically and mentally. But I've learned that when Danni wants to take you on a secret mission you just say "OK" and trust her. So glad I did as she led me into the warm, dark, quiet day spa and hooked me up with a 90 minute - incredibly needed - massage. Sometimes friends know just what you need!! Those are good friends!!

Dinner was at Danni's apartment. She cooked. I drank wine. Tate played on the giant red ball which is a prop for a performane piece that Danni performs at the Little Red Studio.

After dinner Dave was dropped off at Gas Works Park for a night photography shoot and Tate and I were dropped back to the hotel for our own special adventure to the hotel roof deck. Then tubs and lights out!

Seattle - Day Two (sunday)

He woke up CRANKY!!!! I woke up cranky. Dave got a coffee and was not cranky!


We went to breakfast at a close by cafe and the only thing that finally got a smile on Tate's face was builing towers, train tracks and roads with the jelly packs and creamers (many ended up on the floor). Danni picked us up and we went to the Olympic Sculpture Park. Great, big beautiful sculptures in an outdoor park setting overlooking the water and train tracks! Tate liked the trains. I liked the sculptures. Dave took photos.


Then to Pike Place Market - because how can you visit Seattle and not go there. We ate doughnut peaches while walking amid the hoards of people, Tate only wanted to be picked up by me, but I was too tired, hot and hungry to comply with his demands, which led to him being crankier, me being crankier and a quick exit from the market to find a lunch place and get us back to the hotel for a nap.

Once the napping commenced, Dave took off to explore alone - smart man!!

We ended the day at Danni's friends house (Ben and Heather) for dinner. We had invited ourselves so we brought all the food and took over the kitchen in their peaceful home and whipped up food for six! Tate and Ben entertained us with a concert and then Heather read Tate books while they cuddled on the couch and we cleaned up. Thank goodness for Danni's good friends - a restaurant visit would have been a nightmare.


We all slept well, but not long enough.

Seattle - Day One (saturday)

And oh how early did we awake! Too early! We were on the road by 6am for our flight... Tate loved the tunnel to the airport. Then a six hour straight flight to Seattle. Tate was wonderful! He played, ate, watched DVDs, never complained...

...he took some of his own photos.

We arrived in Seattle (sans nap...uh oh) and quite literally hit the ground running with Danni. We went for lunch at Boom, a cool, mod asian fusion restaurant that served Tate a neat little bento box with his sticky rice, strawberries, edamame and crispy shrimp. He ate the edamame only and then began dancing!

Danni had an extensive collection of funky, wacky sunglasses in the back of her car and Tate tried them ALL on.

We stppoed at the coffee hole in the wall (which was actually very cool with great coffee) and while waiting for our individual beverages, Tate wandered into the next door tatoo parlor where after asking if he could get a tatoo he looked through the stacks of tatoo options and found a rather scary skull complete with knife through mouth. I steered him towards the pretty daisy flower... Dave was not appreciate of the daisy idea. We left with no tatoo.

But rather headed toVolunteer Park for running, climbing and a trip to the Conservatory. Then to Gas Works Park for more running, rolling down hills and dancing. Then to a playground for more running, swinging, spinning and digging. Tate was quite worn out after all that which led us to the hotel for tubbies and sleep.

Well, Danni and I dropped off Dave and Tate to fend for themeselves (sorry about that Dave) and we went to a party complete with root beer keg in the shower! I ate, started feeling the buzz of utter tiredness, shook it off and headed to the bar with Danni for drinks and dessert. At 11pm we finally headed back to hotel so I could try and get some sleep - I mean really - I'd been up for the last 22 hours straight. Dave and Tate were asleep when I arrived, but Tate did not stay asleep... he fell out of the bed at 1am (he was fine), got up to pee at 4am and then was up at 6am with the sun saying

"It's morning day!"

We have arrived...

... in a place so further north than I ever expected I'd bring my extra sensative climate-challenged body!! And I'm currently sitting in Dan's living room watching him and Tate play airplane in the kitchen - it involves lots of yelling, running, crashing and refueling with grapes dropped into the most "injured plane's" waiting mouth. Every once in a while I get a grape fed to me too. Inai watches cautiously from the living room floor wondering why her master keeps making strange noises and falling on the ground.

Trip updates to commence soon....

FAVORITE PART OF THE DAY
M: Finally sleeping past 6am

Awww...geez....a MINIVAN!!!

I just couldn't resist sharing. Dave in Baltimore....

"This is the first and LAST time you'll ever see me driving a minivan!"