A DREAM VACATION CRUISING WITH OUR CHILDREN AND THEIR SPOUSES TO ALASKA

For years, we have been promising our children that we would take them and their spouses on a cruise and this month it finally happened. On Sunday, August 14, we all made our way to the pier 91, in Seattle, to board the Princess Ruby on which we cruised to Alaska. After a day at sea, we visited Ketchikan, Juneau, and Skagway on consecutive days before heading south to Victoria, British Columbia and back to Seattle. It was a delightful week of relaxation and enjoying each other's company.

Seattle from the cruise ship

Meeting just before boarding the ship

The amazing jetted tub

The Ruby Princess cruise ship was big and beautiful. We booked the children in their own inside cabins and then booked the Aruba suite for ourselves so we would all have a place to gather. The suite was incredible with a jetted bathtub, nice size shower, living area, bedroom, and wet bar. Both the bedroom area and living room area opened onto a veranda with a table and chairs as well as two lounges.



Because we were suite guests, there was a fruit basket on the coffee table when we arrived, and during the week, candies and open faced sandwiches were delivered to our room. On our first formal night a corsage and boutineer were delivered, also.  We were invited to eat at the Crown Princess restaurant on the first night but declined as we wanted to dine with our children. So many nice perks when you spend the bucks for the added luxury. It was wonderful to have the suite so the children could come hang out whenever they wanted. Todd and Kailee especially loved it as it gave them somewhere to bathe Aria (yes, she came along with us). Kailee and I really enjoyed the bath as well. 

Part of us gathered in our suite waiting for Jon and Mindi to board the ship
before eating lunch.

Each night we looked forward to having dinner together. The food was exquisite but the company was the highlight.  We talked and laughed each evening as we enjoyed the fours course meals served. Often several entrees were ordered so we could try new things or because we couldn't decide between them.  We really went crazy for the desserts, many of us ordering 2 and 3 per person. Of course, we all had to try a bite of each one. Casey was the adventurous one when he ordered and ate escargot (snails). I attempted to cut one in order to try it but freaked out when it wouldn't cut easily.  I was especially thrilled when fillet and lobster were on the menu as it meant that Princess cruise lines had not cut the quality of the food as had the Carnival cruise line. They also did the parade of baked Alaskans which had been a cruising tradition, until we sailed with Carnival. Occasionally, we would meet together for lunch or breakfast in the dining room as the buffet on the Lido deck became rather repetitive in their offerings.The pizza and ice cream bar was a big hit with all of us, too.

 At dinner on the

first night. 

Funny thing - the photographer kept wanting to take
a picture of Ryan and Todd, thinking they were a couple.
Strange world we live in.

Casey eating 'snails'!

Waiting for one of the shows
to begin

We also enjoyed spending the evenings together attending the various shows offered on the ship. Of course, the shows with the singers and dancers were the bigger productions and were incredible. One show was all about dreams in which the backgrounds changed continuously throughout the show. It was all done by projecting images on walls which were ever moving into different positions. Quite effective. The show on the last night at sea blew us all out of the water.  It was called 'Magic to Do' and was an evening of songs about magic and watching magical tricks seamlessly performed. The staging technology used was like that found on big Broadway stages and amazed us all. The man who wrote the music for 'Wicked' wrote this show, using one original song and several of his songs from his other musicals. The show was so good that, while the rest of us went to see a singer comedian, Andrea and Casey went to see the show again. Other entertainment included Disney trivia, a newlywed type game show, a couple of comedians, and a 'Voice of the Sea' performance. This was a take off from 'The Voice' television show. There were 3 judges who vied for each of the 8 singing contestants to be on their team. In the end, 3 finalists were selected and the audience voted for the winner. It was a very entertaining afternoon show.

In the theater after
an incredible show.

The full size theater on the ship

Now for a log of our trip.  We left Seattle around 4 in the afternoon on Sunday and were at sea for the whole next day. It was a good time to explore the ship, eat, relax, eat, get our sea legs, and eat. Those who had not cruised before were amazed that all the food was free anywhere on the ship, except for a few specialty restaurants. If they wanted soda pop they had to pay $56 for unlimited non-alcoholic drinks, mocktails included. Several bought the pop package and enjoyed sodas and non alcoholic cocktails all day long, at dinner, and at the shows. This first full day at sea was one of two formal nights.  We all dressed up in our Sunday best and enjoyed dinner and a show together.  

Ready to board the bus for our days adventures

The next day we docked in Ketchikan, Alaska, the salmon capital of the world. (It is said the salmon 'gave their life for Ketchikan' literally.) We left the ship, on an unusually sunny day, and immediately boarded a bus to go to Totem Bight Park where we were treated to a narrative of the history of the native Indian culture.  We saw many totem poles and a clan house. The totem poles were carved as a history of a clan and the clan house was where a whole clan lived together. The only entrance to the house was called the 'living door' as only the living could pass through it. if someone died while in the clan house their body was taken out through the back wall of removable slats of wood. Each totem pole told a story of the clan. The Raven clan claims to be responsible for rescuing the sun, stars, and moon out of a 'sun' box to bring light to the world.

Andrea'a mode of transportation
for each of our excursions

Raven clan totem tells
the story rescuing the sun
for the Sun Box

The Living Door

The Clan House

 

One of many totem poles seen

Just relaxing in the park - Paul Millar style

 Our tour continued on to downtown Ketchikan where we were dropped off at the Great Alaskan Lumberjack show. It featured two teams of two men each with competition in everything from chopping and sawing logs to climbing log poles. The show ended with two teams on logs in the water trying to knock each other off the logs. It was a fun show and gave us an insight into the logging industry so vital to the Alaskan economy. After a little shopping in town, it was back on the boat where we enjoyed pizza for lunch to hold us off till another scrumptious dinner in the dining room. Just a side note: there is a Millar street in Ketchikan. Interesting.

This staircase is a street with a name and street sign. In Ketchikan, if a staircase has more than 100 stairs it is considered a street.

The blue chunks of ice

The amazing turquoise blue water

We left Ketchican in the late afternoon so the ship could make it to Tracey Arms Fjord by the early morning.  We learned later that the ship could not get into Tracey Arms because of ice packs so we went to another glacier instead. Where ever we were, though, was breathtaking.  You could tell we were in a glacier bay by the color of the water and the chunks of ice floating next to the ship. When the glacier came into view, I left our stateroom (at 6 am) to go up top for a better view.  It was there I ran into Andrea and Casey and Ryan who, too, wanted to see this spectacular view of Mother Nature's beauty. All to soon, the ship was turning around, doing a 180 degree turn in place, and heading out of the bay on our way to a stop in Juneau, scheduled for 1 pm. 

The Glacier

Too early to be ready for the

day but so worth coming up 

top to see the glacier.

Don't think they made it up top
but did come to our state room
to see pictures of the glacier

We left the ship for a 1:30 tour of whale watching and the Mendenhall glacier. The bus drove us through Juneau and out to Auke (lake) bay where we boarded a boat to go see some whales. Both Orca whales and Humpback whales spend the summer here until they return to Hawaii for the winter. We were fortunate to see both kinds of whales and really blessed to see the humpback whales 'bubble net.'  That is where several whales form a circle and all surface, with their mouths wide open, at the same time. We saw that twice right close to our ship. The ship's captain said that doesn't happen all the time so we were really lucky.  We also lucked out with the weather. It had been raining all week except for the day we were there.  We had blue skies and sun all day and it was supposed to rain again the next day.  

One of many orca whales seen
(I didn't get a picture of the humpback whales and their bubble netting)

Aria, always the center of the show - especially with Jon

Mendenhall glacier as seen from our tour boat

Our next stop on this tour was to the Mendenhall Glacier, the largest glacier accessible to tourists by just a short walk.  Again it was a spectacular sight to see Mother Nature in action. Jon, Ryan and Todd decided to walk, actually run, another trail which took them to the base of a waterfall and closer to the glacier.  We watched a film on the history of the glacier and that area while we waited for them to return. It was then on the bus and back to Juneau. Paul and I, along with Todd and Kailee, decided to go back to the ship while the others decided to do some shopping. It was a great day, again, of exposing us to the Alaskan way of life and her culture.

At the glacier

The beautiful Mendenhall glacier

The glacier, up close and personal, as a result of Jon, Ryan and Todd taking another
trail to get them nearer the glacier and to the base of the waterfall.

Aria enjoyed her ride with Andrea in the wheelchair
while we waited for the other boys to get back from 
their walk/run to the base of the waterfall.

Thursday morning brought us to Skagway, the northern most port on our cruise. It is a little town of about 700 people during the summer months and even less in the winter. Our tour was taking a bus up the mountain into Canada and then riding an old fashioned train down. The weather didn't cooperate at this port like it did the two previous days. It was drizzling rain and low clouds which made it a little difficult to see the surrounding beauties on the bus ride up. 


About half way down the mountain on the train, the clouds lifted and we could see the waterfalls, rivers and foliage which was already turning into fall colors. The ride was fun, just to be together, snapping pictures and warming ourselves by the pot belly stove.  When we arrived back in Skagway we boarded the bus again and were taken to the Klondike Mines where we enjoyed a lunch of barbecue pork and chicken before going outside to pan for gold. The unique thing about this stop is that most all of us found gold and we even got to weigh it to see what it would be worth. Ryan had the most, coming in at $27 worth. Pretty impressive. The driver dropped some of us off in town but Todd and Kailee and I opted to be driven back to the ship to begin the cold and windy walk along the pier to our ship.  

Keeping warm by the
pot belly stove inside the car

This was the only day Aria made any kind of a fuss. We think the elevation might have had an affect on her ears as she was a little congested that day.

 Some of the beautiful vista we could see from the train once the low clouds lifted.

Our barbecue pork lunch - yummy

The old miner who taught us how to pan for gold

Panning for gold

Dad needed a little extra help

On our way to get our gold weighed

Dad's gift to Aria - an Alaskan husky

The assayer weighing our gold

 A

fun 

day

Friday was a day at sea so we all just kicked  back and enjoyed the day.  Paul, Ryan and myself braved the misty cold up on deck to watch a movie, 'Now You See Me.'  It was an intriguing movie but it ended at 5, giving us only a half hour to get ready for our last formal night of the trip. I had to completely redo my hair but made it in time for a delicious lobster and pawn dinner, complete with baked Alaskan for dessert. That night was the fantastic show, 'Magic To Do.' The show was the early show so we went the the married match game and then to see a comedian/ singer who had been with the Beach Boys. He sang lots of 70's tunes to which we all sang along.  A super fun evening.

This was the last night we would be guaranteed to be have our wonderful waiters
so it was the night to tip them and take pictures with them

Aria all dressed up for this last formal night

Lobster and Pawns!!!

The Baked Alaskan parade

The whole group on this last formal night

We had another day at sea on Saturday awaiting our arrival in Victoria, British Columbia that evening. The morning was spent in the ship's theater watching a culinary demonstration that was enjoyable due to the humor of the chef and the food manager. The demonstration was followed by a tour of the galley, where all the food for the ship is prepared.

A carved watermelon
also on the tour

One of the edible animals
seen on the tour

An amazing operation

Grand Victoria Hotel

It was a sunny day so many of us took advantage of it by sitting up on deck enjoying the peace of the sea and visiting.  After dinner, we left the ship and walked the 30 minutes it took to get into downtown Victoria. We have been to this city many times so we accompanied everyone just for the chance to be together. We were grateful to catch a taxi back to the ship.

The Parliament building

It was then time to say our goodbyes as everyone, except Dad and I, would be leaving the ship as soon as it docked in Seattle the next morning. Gratefully, Jon and Mindy and Todd and Kailee got off the ship Sunday morning with little hassle and made their 10:30 airline flight with 2 hours to spare. Andrea, Casey, and Ryan also exited the ship early to begin their drive back home to Oregon. We all arrived to our homes safely to end a most enjoyable and memorable vacation.

And then it was time to board the ship for the last time as it was back to reality the next day.

The official mission call

We picked up the mail which had been held during our trip to Alaska and in it was our mission call.  We had put in our papers a few weeks ago and had been waiting for the official call to come. We will be serving right here in Heber East Stake on a missionary/leader support mission. We report to the MTC on October 17.  

Paul reading the specifics of our call

Taylor and his car

This month has been a birthday month having 4 birthdays in August. We celebrated with Taylor by meeting him at Fuji House in Sandy for a late lunch, Wednesday after our cruise. We had a great visit with him and were able to catch up on his plans for this coming year. He is going to work for a semester and then go the Utah State if he can get in. We advised him to start the application process soon.  Hopefully that will happen.  

We celebrated with Carly the Friday of that same week. She wanted to go to Cheesecake Factory but because ofnterrible traffic going into Salt Lake, she decided to try a new Thai restaurant in American Fork called Thai Thai. As we had no idea what to order Jon sent us the names of the dishes Carly would like.  We followed his advise ordering  a noodle dish and what is called Mossaman. We also added a yellow curry dish. The waiter brought us some complimentary egg rolls and we ordered a sticky rice and mango dish for dessert. We loved it all.  

That Sunday, the 28th, we celebrated Todd's birthday by having Todd and Kailee and Aria and Jon and Mindi and family as well as Jake and Nicolle and family up to dinner.  We had ham, at Todd's request, with all the typical trimmings anda  Dairy Queen ice cream cake for dessert. It was fun having everyone up to our home. 

Our fourth birthday was Julia's. Of course we couldn't take her to lunch or dinner but enjoyed a wonderful conversation with her about her her birthday celebrations.  A couple of days after her actual birthday, Katie and Ryan drove their family and 3 of Julia's friends to a water park two hours south of Medford. It was an all day affair and Julia loved every minute of it.  

Other happenings for the month included Paul going in for surgery for a hernia. It had been bothering him, starting in Russia with some stinging in the lower abdomen after walking long distances.  At our reunion, it finally popped out and kept doing so anytime he would exert himself. He knew it was time to get it taken care of and wanted to do it before the cruise. The day of the surgery was the day the hospital was switching its computer programs so the whole process took longer than usual. We arrived at 1, sent back home til 2, didn't leave the hospital until 7:30 - a much longer day than expected. It was, also, a little rougher recovery than Paul had planned but all went well and he is now back to normal, except for the healing of the wound.

Bill in the center and his brother
and sister in law on the left

This month, we also attended Paul's niece's son's wedding reception. Laurie's son, Ryan, got married in the Salt Lake temple and a reception was held in an old church building turned reception center in Salt Lake.  We were so glad we made the effort to go as Bill and Cheryl and Brian were there so we got in some good visiting.




On the last day of the month we visited with our stockbroker to assess our portfolio and then picked up Maxium Efoshen, one of our young single adults from Russia, for a lunch date. We took him to Costa Vida for some Mexican food. He had no idea what he was ordering but loved both kinds of enchiladas he chose.  We had a most enjoyable visit with him. He was in Provo visiting a missionary companion, waiting for school to start in Rexburg, Idaho. He will be going to BYU Idaho.  We are so excited for him.  






And then there is Aria for the month........

Hooked on the cell phone already?