Alaska pt 1

We were all so excited for our trip to Alaska!  It's been 5 years since we were last there.  We got to the airport nice and early so that Rich could go park the car at work and get an uber back.  Then our flight was delayed for an hour!  It gave us plenty of time to grab some dinner!

We also found a fun play area while we waited.

Lydia could hardly contain her excitement--she was clapping as the flight took off.  Five of the 7 of us had seats together.  William and James got to sit in the back together.

Day #1

Our first day in Alaska started off with trains on the deck.

Lydia and I were so happy to see the lilacs in bloom!

Lydia had so much fun playing dress-up!

The boys all played an epic game of monopoly.

In the afternoon we went on our first hike--Winner Creek Trail.  It is my favorite hike but we haven't taken the kids before.

We tried to convince Alex to reach in the hollow of the tree.  He wouldn't go for it.  

But James did!

The leaves are SO big!

The forest is so beautiful!

We had a great time hiking!

We made it to the hand-tram.  This is the best part of the hike--and also the reason we didn't bring the kids when they were small!

It is so far down!

We all made it across--safe and sound.

I love the waterfalls on the other side of the tram.

Everyone had fun going down to the water and skipping stones.

William found some really big stones!

Alex and William stopped to skip stones for quite a while.  William was so nice to teach Alex the tricks.

Henry found some colorful mushrooms along the trail!

We hiked further on the trail than we ever have before.  We came across this abandoned bridge.

We then headed back across on the hand tram.

While we were out near Girdwood we decided that we needed to try a new super short hike.  The boys were tired and didn't want to go on a second hike.  It was seriously a five-minute hike though!  Virgin River Falls were so beautiful and more than worth the quick hike to see them.

Day #2

It was Henry's birthday!  I grabbed him for a quick birthday interview and he showed me his awesome flexibility.

We went on another hike--this time to Flat Top--with Grandma, Grandpa, and Peter.  All of us started off together.

When we got to the fork Grandma, Lydia, Henry, and Peter continued around Blueberry Loop. 

The rest of us hiked to the top of Flat Top.  It was really a bummer that it was so hot that day and so smokey from all the wildfires so we didn't get the wonderful view we had hoped for.

It was a hard hike and we rewarded everyone who made it to the top with a treat from Tastee Freeze.

In the afternoon, James and Alex returned a new-and-improved flag over the fence to the Randall's. 

Henry had a fun time with Grandma on a special trip to the store.  In the evening he opened presents from Grandma and Grandpa and Jacob.

Jacob left his own special tie for Henry to wear on his baptism.

We had double chocolate banana cake for dessert!

Day #3


Saturday morning Henry was baptized!  We are so proud of his righteous decisions. (I dedicated an entire post to that event).

In the afternoon we headed to Kincaid Park.  We hopped on the trail and walked down to the beach.

The tide was low and the sand was like mud--literally quick sand.  It made me so nervous to have the kids so close to the water.

The sand was so gross!

There was a cool little shelter on the beach that they explored.

William walked ahead of us (we had to get all the muddy sand off of their feet) and ran into a moose!  It was the first moose sighting of the trip!

We had a long hike back to the car since we used all our water to wash dirty feet.

After all the kids bathed we relaxed in the yard.

Day #4


Sunday we went to church and played with the cousins some more.  In the evening Rich and I took William and James to Rachelle's house to play some games.

Day #5

Our 4th hike of the trip was to Byron Glacier.  It was a pretty easy hike and fun to explore the glacier!

My dad made us all nervous by standing under the icy overhang!  Especially since someone died at this glacier the previous year.  I guess that's why he had us bring his ice pick along... to dig him out just in case.

The kids had a little snowball fight.

James and Rich climbed up with my dad higher than the rest of us.

After the glacier we headed over to Whittier.  We made perfect time and got there right when the tunnel was open.

It was fun to explore this unique little town. 

Day #6

Rich and I took Alex and Lydia on a little walk around the neighborhood.  They checked out the Little Free Library and got some books to read.  

Alex couldn't wait to start reading his book.  He loved it!

When we stopped by Sand Lake a bald eagle flew right over our heads!  It was incredible!

In the afternoon we met up with Rachelle and her boys at Little Campbell Lake for canoeing and swimming.  Since it had been so warm this summer the water was really pleasant!

In the evening Rich and I took William and James to the temple with my dad to do baptisms for the dead.  (As we were leaving we ran into Andy Taylor who was in our ward in Las Vegas!)

Day #7

We were awakened bright and early with a call from Elder Fisher!  It was so fun to talk to him!

Rich and the boys went shooting with my dad.

Day #8

Happy Fourth of July!  It was so much fun to attend the Anchorage parade.

We enjoyed a nice barbecue in the evening with Rachelle's family.  The cousins had so much fun playing together again!

Later that night we said goodby to Rich and took him to the airport!  We squeezed in so much fun while he was with us!

Baptism Day

Henry made the choice to follow Jesus Christ and be baptized.

We were given permission to baptize him while we were up in Alaska.  It was nice to have family present.  Our friends, the Taylors, just moved to Alaska and they made it too!

Henry chose who he wanted  to speak at his baptism.  He chose Grandma Fisher to give the baptism talk and William to give the talk about the Holy Ghost.  Grandma gave the same talk (for the first time) at my baptism 30 years ago.

Even though Uncle Jacob couldn't be there he gave Henry the tie that he received for his baptism day.  It was really special.

We are so proud of Henry for his choice to follow Jesus and step on to the covenant path.  It was a special morning.

8 is great!

How did my cute little baby boy turn 8!  Henry is my cuddly, funny, friendly little boy but he can certainly hold his own with 3 older brothers (and he doesn't hold back when he feels he's being wrong or picked on!)  I really can't imagine our family without him.

He worked really hard to complete his goal of reading the Book of Mormon before his 8th birthday!  We are so proud of him to accomplish such a huge feat... and are so happy that he has chosen to follow Jesus Christ and be baptized.  We love you, Henry!

What is your favorite...
color? light blue
food?  calzones
toy?  legos
show? The Amazing World of Gumball
animal?  grimgroblin (from Gravity Falls)
book? The Notebook of Doom series
song? The Upbeat Inspirational Song About Life (from Teen Titans Go! To the Movies)
What do you like to do?  play video games
Who is your best friend?  Jayden
What do you want to be when you grow up? a you tuber or an animator
Do you have a girl friend? No!

I am - 8 years old
I am afraid of - komodo dragons

I like - trains

I like to eat - Costco pizza

I don't like - when I barf

I know - lots of stuff

I want to be -a lego

My hero is- me

I cry when - I just do

Mom gets mad when - I break a lamp (this has never happened)

Mom is happy when - we do jobs

I can't wait for - pizza!

Something Mom says to me - "no"

Something Dad says to me - "ok"

My favorite place to go is -  home

My Mom makes me laugh by -tickling me

My dad makes me laugh by - tickling me

I know my mom loves me because -she just does!

I know my dad loves me because -he just does

June 2019

Between young men camps and cousins visiting a few other things happened.

Henry continued to plow through the Book of Mormon.

Our neighbors, the Ritchie's, brought us some poop emoji cupcakes that the kids got a kick out of.

Lydia started--and then quit--swimming lessons.  Maybe one day she'll put her face in the water!

One night she was really grumpy and cried herself to sleep... she's so peaceful looking once she's asleep though.

Jacob left on his mission!  It was fun to talk to him right before he headed into the MTC.  He's going to be a great missionary!

We celebrated Rich for Father's Day.  He is the very best guy I could ever imagine raising 5 kids with.

Henry got interviewed for baptism.

Lydia went to Kora's birthday and had a blast with all the little girls.

We had our annual water balloon fight.  It was so much fun!

Since we were going to be in Alaska on Henry's birthday we decided to open presents a few days early.  He felt so loved.

The most exciting thing was that Henry finished the Book of Mormon!  He was so proud!  Such a big accomplishment for such a little guy.

Mad Scientist Party!

For Henry's birthday this year we had a Mad Science party.  It was SO MUCH FUN!

We first created bouncing bubbles.

Next we played with balloon helicopters.  They were a big hit... but I had to blow up most of the balloons!

Next we created bouncy balls.  Super fun!

The experiment that everyone looked forward to the most was exploding diet coke with mentos.

The final experiment was "cupcake concoctions".  All the kids were super excited to pile their cupcakes with candy!

It was such a great birthday party.  All the boys had a blast--especially Henry!  A fun party for a super fun boy!