Glacier Wonderland

What an awesome sight it was to see the glaciers. Very interesting to hear the history and see maps of how large they were when John Muir first saw them. The ship played "mood music" while we were cruising. So peaceful and then once in a while you would hear the sound of the glacier calving! Again, amazing! We have been so lucky to have the chance to take these trips and to see these spectacular views!

The Ramos Family

I love this photo! It's of Brenna, Isabel and Little Rudy at the beach by their home in Hawaii. The view is spectacular. Big Rudy was home from one of his tours in Iraq and took the picture. They were so lucky to be able to live on Oahu for almost three years. We were so lucky to be able to visit them at least twice a year.

Isabel's 3rd B-day!

This is Isabel's "official" 3rd Birthday Photo! She sure is a little ham! I wonder where she gets that from? It seems like yesterday that Brenna was 3-years old!

Goodbye to Skagway

Skagway is now behind us! I loved the mountain scenery, the history of the Klondike Highway and of the town! I loved the Skagway Brewing Co. (even though Sharon and I look a little tired)! What a great day with great friends!

My Sister's Birthday

Well, I have been going through all of my photos! I do believe that this challenge of mine is going to help me create some layouts with pictures I have had around for a bit! These photos are from my sister Regina's 50th birthday! We had dinner at one of our favorite Mexican restaurants, El Perico. Regina and Brenna couldn't resist the whipped cream from her dessert. Regina's special birthday was the best because her daughter Amanda surprised her! You couldn't ask for a better present! I love Regina and Amanda's happy faces!

Butterfly Girl

Roy titled this page "Butterfly Girl". It's Melanie at last year's Lemon Festival (2009). We enjoy taking her to this local event. Every year, we experience something new with her! This year it was facepainting! She was excited and proud to be transformed into a butterfly!

Smile!

Here is Little Rudy, we were at Disneyland to celebrate Isabel's 3rd birthday (June 2009)! He looks like he is trying to tell us something.....like where are all the guys? And where are my shoes? I can't run around without them! I just love the look on his face! He's such a fun little boy, full of life! He's my favorite two-year old little guy!

Gold Rush Cemetery

Part of the reason why I was interested in taking this tour, was that it drove us out to the Gold Rush Cemetery. The guide shared the story of why Frank Reid took down the town bully, Jeff Smith and pointed out the differences in headstones. Smith is actually buried right outside of the cemetery perimeter. Only two people attended his service, the local undertaker and the minister. Reid died about two weeks after Smith, due to his wounds, and the entire town attended his service and erected the monumental tombstone to him. Of course there were others in the cemetery and so many others who didn't make it back down from the gold fields.
The other page shows the ships taken at a different angle in town. It was nice to drive around and see where the locals live. I believe right now, they only have about four hours of sunlight.

S A T U R D A Y Night!!

What a great day! First, off to the CHA Convention in Anaheim with Brenda. Saw some amazing crafts and a couple of "craft" celebrities (Carole Duvall and Kathy Cano-Murillo)! In the evening, lasagna, drinks and dessert with a group of scrapbooking friends! Lots of laughing and talking and actually getting some pages completed.

As you can see, we are still in Skagway. These are photos from our tour that took us on the Klondike Highway. Our guide was very knowledgeable of the history of the town....as he should be.

Melanie Labor Day Weekend

Melanie and I went to the "big" hula competition in Long Beach over Labor Day Weekend, 2009. Heather was competing with her group. We took a break for lunch and enjoyed some shaved ice. Melanie's lips and teeth were all blue! It was a special day with my granddaughter and daughter!

More Skagway Scenes

It's Thursday night! I had one of my scrapbooking groups over tonight. It's so much fun to be with friends while your creating. Everyone shares ideas, supplies and pats on our backs for our layouts! Tonight I finished another couple of pages of downtown Skagway. The famous Red Onion and the building of the "baddest" man in Skagway history, Jeff Smith's Parlor......a real bully but more about him when we go to the Gold Rush Cemetery. My other layout is of some of the trains.....a very popular tourist attraction and Ron with the conductor!

Streets of Skagway

Here are a couple of photos of the view of the streets of Skagway. The building that Ron, Roy and I are standing in front of has a false facade. This was a Brotherhood Hall in its heyday! Lots of great shopping in this town also!

Sapphire Princess

You don't realize how large the ship is until you stand right next to it. We seemed to be closer to it in the Skagway port than any of the others. It was a great ship and I loved the room we had. We had connecting balconies with the Horaceks and the Sharps....lots of good laughs were had on the Sapphire Princess. Had to post the one of Melanie with my layout. She wants to go on vacation too!

Isabel Christmas 2007

Here is another shot of Isabel, Christmas 2007. She's probably thinking, "Why are they taking my picture again.....I just want to play with my toys"!

Skagway

Our next stop is Skagway! I love having my photo taken by the ships photographers! Makes it so much easier to remember where you are. On the next page, you will see Sheryl Bizzell and her family. I knew she was on the NCL ship and they were hitting the same ports as us everyday. But, with four ships in town I didn't think we would run into each other. So, I was so pleasantly surprised to bump into her! We had just come out of the first shop of the day and right in front of Starbucks someone grabs my arm and it's Sheryl!!!! Steve took a picture of us and one of Sheryl's family. I wonder who from work/hometown I will see on my next vacation!

More of Mount Roberts

After we got off the tram, we walked on some of the trails. If you notice the picture of the tree trunk, there is a carving in it. So many people just walked past it and didn't even notice it. It was amazing! It was so peaceful up there. The sky was so blue. I'm glad we took the tram! This was a little excursion we didn't plan through the ship.

Over the Top

The weather was just perfect in Juneau! In the 70's, perfect for walking around town and enjoying shopping, eating and the good company! Steve took a great picture of our ship when we were going up to Mount Roberts in the tram. It was the largest ship in the port. In the other photo, you can see the trams. One heading up and the other down.

Mount Roberts

We took the tram up to Mount Roberts. Our last activity in Juneau! What a beautiful place. The view was incredible. We could see the little golf course on our ship from up here. We couldn't find it by walking around onboard.

Gavigan's!

Here is my latest and it's before midnight! This photo is one of me and my siblings. It was taken in 1961. My sister Regina is standing next to me and my sister Nancy is the baby and the only boy is my brother Michael. We were living South Gate when this was taken. Here's a couple of unknown facts about the picture.......Nancy's dress was really red and Regina and I are sharing a pair of shoes (one each). We couldn't find the other pair!

More of My Girls

I had to add a second page showing their facepaintings. They were so serious about this experience. It was so much fun to share in these moments with my girls!

My Girls

This photo is of Melanie and Isabel, summer of 2009. We were at Disneyland and they had their faces painted over in the Princess area. They are both so precious to me. Did you know that the little girls can have a complete makeover to become a "princess" for about $75.00! They probably would have loved that but were so pleased with their designs. They are Princesses to me! I guess that makes me the Queen Mother! LOL

Brenna and Isabel Christmas 2007

Christmas of 2007! Yes, I have so many memories to still scrapbook! I could do this everyday for eight hours and may still not be "caught up"! Here we have Brenna and Isabel opening presents Christmas morning at our house. Since they were born, we have been so lucky to be able to see all of our granchildren during the Christmas holidays. We will have to see what happens next year. The Ramos Family have moved to North Carolina. I say thank goodness for iChat!

Red Dog Saloon

When the guys came back to the ship after their Mendenahall experience, we all headed into town for an afternoon of shopping and making a visit to the world famous Red Dog Saloon! The weather this day was perfect, in the low 70's. The wait to get into the saloon is usually long, but we were able to get in and thanks to a nice couple we had tables together. A fun place, sawdust on the floor, a ragtime piano player and some great refreshments!

Glacier Excursion Begins!

We were standing on our decks watching Roy and Ron leave for their excursion. You can see Steve waving to the guys. We're there with him but our arms aren't as long! Roy is very nice about making sure that I have ephemera for my scrapbooks. So, we have two of the brochures! It was a once a lifetime visit for both of the guys.

WaterBoy!

My grandson Rudy just loves the water! He had so much fun jumping and splashing around! These were taken in June of 2009. Rudy, Brenna and Isabel were visiting us from Hawaii. Do you think that's why he loves the water?

Mendenhall Glacier Trip

Roy and Ron really wanted to see and walk on the Mendenhall Glacier! And as you can see, they were there. Ron tasted some of the glacier water but Roy didn't want to try! They had a blast. The guys have been to the volcanoes in Hawaii and now they have walked on a glacier! What is next for these boys?

Margarita Tuesday!

Yes!!!! Even though we went out for our weekly margarita night with friends, I have made my deadline! I listened to a friend who asked that I put up different pages (not just Alaska! LOL). This layout is one of my son Michael and his daughter Melanie. They were up at Mt. Baldy last summer on a hike to one of his favorite spots. A couple took this photo of them. I love it in black/white! After vacations, my grandchildren are my favorite subjects to scrapbook! Tomorrow, we will be North to Alaska again!

Juneau, you know!

Ok, boy was it a long day at work. The time just didn't fly! Today is my son's birthday, so before he comes over for dinner I have to post the two layouts for today. So far, I'm a few layouts ahead of myself. In the next few days, I will work on doing some other topic.....not just Alaska. I want to thank everyone I spoke with today for your encouragement with my crazy idea! Here they are!

Last of Ketchikan

Good Morning Everyone!
I have finished scrapping Ketchikan! One of the reasons I enjoy this hobby is I can relive the memories. We had so much fun there, just walking around and going through the stores. Though there were quite a few tourists there from the four ships, the town had a peaceful feeling about it. Hope you enjoy the photos. Oh, I am so excited that a few of my friends have jumped "onboard" with their own scrapbooking challenge! Keep me posted!