Tenakee Love & Katrina's 40th birthday

I recently returned from a much needed 5 day vacation in Tenakee. It's a wonderful little town where cell phones, internet and even cars cease to exist. Right after school let out for summer vacation Stephenie and I packed our backpacks and headed for the ferry. 

After a 7 hour ferry ride (also known as the poor man's cruise!) we arrived in Tenakee. A whale greeted us while the ferry was docking and the sun peeked out just a little. 

The sun came out in full splendor the following day and we took advantage of it by hiking out and finding an amazing beach where we had a picnic lunch, sun bathed and listened to the whales in the channel. 

 

The following day our friend, Katrina, flew out to join us on our adventure. She had never been to Tenakee before so we flew her out as part of her birthday present. 

Sunshine, whales and morning coffee on the' deck was the perfect way to celebrate a birthday. We soaked up the sun and were absolutely lazy all day. That evening we joined up with Wally and Cindy at the Palapa Bar and were treated to an amazing dinner of fresh halibut and crab. 

This was the perfect way to start our summer break and I could not have asked for a better trip!

Summer Break!

We celebrated our official last day of school with a BBQ at Sandy Beach. It was gorgeous the entire day but decided to start raining during our BBQ. We still had a great time and enjoyed good burgers and wonderful company. 

Adam and I plan on sticking close to home this summer. We have a lot of house projects we'd like to get done but we would also like to get out and kayak, hike, fish and just enjoy a summer in Juneau. Hopefully we'll see some decent weather. 

I've neglected my blog for the last couple of months so I'm hoping to be a better blogger now that I have some free time! Happy Summer!!!

Lots of catching up to do....

It's been awhile since I've posted anything on my blog. We've been doing well but have been busy with the end of the school year.

It was a hugely successful year with the kids. I love the relationships we've developed with families, students and staff members. Next year brings on new changes and unknown territory but for now we will savor the memories of the school year and enjoy our summer before gearing up for a new school year. 

Haines weekend trip!

Over Memorial Day weekend I headed up to Haines for their 20th annual Brewfest. I went with a group of friends from work and we had a relaxing and fun weekend. We enjoyed good food, great company and lots of outside adventures. 

Saturday was a little rainy but no one let it spoil their good time. A lot of people took their bikes on the ferry and rode into Haines. We had a car so we didn't have to do that but we still donned the rain gear for the trek down to the fairgrounds. 

We intended to camp in a friend's back yard but the rain brought us inside for a living room slumber party. 

The sun came out on Sunday so after a delicious breakfast we headed back to the fairgrounds to try out the disc golf course. 

 It was my first time disc golfing and I wasn't very good but I had fun. :-) 

It was a lot of fun being able to escape Juneau for the weekend and ferry over to Haines. It was just what I needed to make it through the last week of school!

Fossil Huntin'

Last Friday was a fun day in Mr. Berkey's classroom. He had a hometown artist (Ray Troll) visit his classroom! The kids were stoked to see pictures of his artwork and listen to his many adventures. For those of you who haven't heard of Ray Troll (you must not be from Alaska ;-) ) he is an amazing artist who lives in Ketchikan, Alaska and is best known for his "fishy" artwork that can be found anywhere from t-shirts to the walls of local schools or museums. His most recent artwork is taking on a more "science-ey" form as he travels through the U.S. hunting for fossils. 

His fossil expedition was the focus of his lecture when he came to talk to Adam's students. This lighted a fire in Adam and he made it his mission that weekend to find a fossil! 

We spend the weekend out the road in hopes of finding a fossil to bring to the classroom on Monday. Unfortunately, we didn't find anything but we did enjoy a lot of sunshine and quality time together. I think this summer will be spent breaking up rocks and hoping to find a fossil! 

Folk Fest 2012

It was the perfect week for Folk Fest here in Juneau, Ak! The sunny weather was a welcome surprise for both visitors and the locals. Hundreds of people poured into Centennial Hall to hear artists from around the state play their 15 minute sets during the week. While Adam and I weren't able to make it to as many shows as we wanted (SBA testing was happening this week as well) we were able to catch a few of our friends show off their talent. 

Pat & Ray Troll playing at the JACC. It was an awesome "science" performance which included slides of marine life and fossils. Each song had a science-ey theme and if you paid attention you might actually learn something! 

My friend, Erin, entered the 1st annual Folk Fest karaoke contest at the Viking which was hosted by our local brewing company. Unfortunately, she didn't win but it was fun listening to her sing. She has an amazing voice! 

Our school's fantastic music teacher, Mike, performed with his band at the JACC. The music was fun and it was great to end the night with a little dancing! 

I love that our little town of Juneau offers so many opportunities for locals to show off their artistic talents. Folk Fest is a week long music festival that is put on by volunteers and is 100% FREE!!!!!! It's definitely a yearly tradition that we enjoy!

An outstide kinda weekend...

The weather in Juneau has been perfect recently. I started my weekend with an early morning bike ride. While the sun was out in full force it was still a little chilly. The optimist in me walked out of the house without gloves in hopes that it was nice and warm. It DEFINITELY wasn't "warm" but it was still a great bike ride despite the chilly fingers.

Later that day Adam and I decided to head out to North Douglas and find a spot on the beach for a fire. Laying in the sun with a good book was just what I needed.

Today was a sunny Easter Sunday so after sleeping in we got coffees at The Grind and headed out the road. We found a spot near Eagle Beach and let Rosco run around while we soaked in the sunshine and watched a family hunt for their Easter eggs on the beach. It's been the perfect weekend to be outside and I'm hoping this weather will last for a while longer. I'm ready for SUMMER!