Growing with the Gimlins: Sweet Home Alaska

I am proud to announce that I have finally compiled some key photos from our wonderful July trip to Alaska. (We won't call too much attention to the fact that we've actually been home from Alaska for a month now.)

Being that it was a week-long family reunion...and there were thirty of us in attendance...and each day had at least one photo-worthy activity...and Justin and I love to snap lots of photos, there is no way I can possibly post all the photos here. Instead, I have narrowed it down to one or two photos for each of the 9 days we were in Fairbanks. If, however, you are on my Shutterfly mailing list, you can expect to receive the full album from our trip shortly.

Now, let's begin...

BINDER FAMILY REUNION 2010: FAIRBANKS, ALASKA

No reunion is official without a t-shirt:

The back reads: "Some family trees bear an enormous crop of nuts. -Wayne H."

Day 1 Activities: I actually woke up early and went for a 5.6 mile run (ouch!) with my sister-in-law, Kia. What a way to start my vacation! Then it was off to run some errands with my sister-in-law Kathy for last minute preparation for the Reunion Kickoff Luau. Kathy and I were in charge of decorations:

In mid-afternoon everyone arrived at the P's house for party time.

I love cuddling with my little man, especially on vacation!

My Pops and brother-in-law Mike worked on the pig while the kiddos looked on. Shortly after this photo, and the decapitation of the pig, my 4-year-old nephew Dominic (the worried-looking one in the background) inquired: "Excuse me? Did you just cut his head off?" Hmmm...I wonder if we made vegetarians out of any of the kiddos this reunion?

Then we wrapped up Day 1's festivities with my Pops sharing the story of how he met my Mom - thus creating the legacy that is our family - followed by a game of family trivia.

Day 2 Activities: HAPPY 4TH OF JULY!! We headed off to church on Sunday morning, where a tired little Kendry promptly fell asleep in my brother John's arms and slept there the entire service. Where is the camera when you need it!? Then we all ended up back at the P's house again for a traditional July 4th BBQ. It doesn't get any more American than this, folks: my red, white and blue clad kiddo chowing down on his first piece of buttery corn on the cob.If you know anything about my family you know we aren't competitive in the least.

Okay, thats a lie.

But maybe you would believe me if all the adults in this photo didn't have incredibly intense expressions on their faces during the 3-legged race. Jaimee and Greg (third from the left) were the winners.

FYI: No pregnant women were harmed in the taking of this photo. My little sis, Angel (third person from the left) is due in October, and my sis-in-law, Kathy (sixth person from the right), is due in February. This family just keeps growing...

Anyway, we did a few more games, which included one very memorable egg-on-a-spoon race incident not many of us will soon forget (ahem, Gho family!). But like I said, its not like we're competitive anyway.

In honor of the 4th, my Grandmother did her intriguing presentation on the symbols of our nation. Then it was on to some hot-tubbing and hanging out around the fire pit before calling it a day.

Day 3 Activities: The morning was kicked-off by a professional photo shoot of the entire family. My P's have a beautiful yard and porch, perfect for such a photo op. Sadly, it was raining pretty steadily when the photographer arrived, so we had to move the shoot indoors. Talk about one cozy living room. We haven't received our prints just yet, but the proofs look great!

The afternoon of Day 3 was supposed to be spent hiking Angel Rocks. However, due to the aforementioned rain, everyone made alternative plans. Some of us headed off to go bowling. And some others headed off... well, I'm not really sure where they went cuz I wasn't in their group.

The boys' bowling team:

And, yet again, it was back to the P's in the evening. By this time the rain had let up and we had beautiful weather for some volleyball in the yard.

This is my sister Jaimee (w/ her new puppy Cruise) sporting one of my Mom's many animal print get-ups.

Day 4 Activities: We awoke early and headed up to Hilltop truck stop with my Pops for our traditional breakfast. Yummers! (For you newbies, this is the truck stop where my hubby proposed to me.)

Then it was time to pack up the P's RV and head out to Chena Lakes for an overnight camping trip. After setting up camp (in all we took up 4 camp sites), we took the kiddos down to the lake.

This is Alexis, my beautiful little niece, who is 3 weeks younger than Kendry:

It does my heart good to see Kendry so at ease with my family when he only sees them about once a year.

Day 5 Activities: Breakfast time at the P's campsite!

That's my sis, Stephanie, cooking for us:

After some more time at the lake we packed up and headed back home mid-afternoon. Once we were unpacked and showered, it was relaxation time.

Talk about a full tub:

Day 6 Activities: The morning activity was floating down the Chena River. Our family opted to pass on this activity and headed to the mall instead, hoping to find Justin some sunglasses to replace the beloved (and ancient) Oakleys he lost on the flight to Fairbanks. No luck. Not that we were surprised since the mall has a whopping 7 stores - and thats including kiosks. It makes Lewiston's mall not seem so pathetic.

Then we met up with everyone else at Alaskaland for lunch and fun in the sun. This park is a neat way to experience Fairbanks' history. It was renamed Pioneer Park several years ago, but the loyal Fairbanksans refuse to conform to the new name. It will always be Alaskaland to me.

Brett Favre meets a malemute (my high school mascot, BTW):

The hubby and me:

Day 7 Activities: In the morning we said goodbye to John, Kia and the kids. Then we drove out to Angel Rocks for a 3 mile hike. When it was all said and done, I'm pretty sure we did more than 3 miles since we took a wrong turn along the way. Whoops!

Kendry and Mommy taking a break for lunch at the top:

My Dad drove his Harley out to the trailhead to meet us when we finished. I rode back in to town with him, experiencing the thrill of riding a motorcyle in the rain. (I didn't get nearly as wet as I thought I would.)

In the evening we said goodbye to GG.

Then several of us headed over to Jaimee and Greg's new house for a nightcap, and stayed up WAY too late.

Day 8 Activities: With activities winding down, the big mission for the day was getting Alexis' ears pierced. Mission accomplished!

She was such a trooper!

Shortly afterwards, we said goodbye to Justin, Kathy and the kids. Then Angel and I headed off for some sister time (aka Thai food lunch and shopping). Mom, Jaimee and Stephanie joined us for a girls' dinner a little later.

Then it was time for a big highlight of the trip: segwaying! (Can segway be a verb?) This is a new tourist activity in the Fairbanks area. The owners made a special exception and squeezed us in at the last minute. If you ever have a chance to ride one of these things, DO IT! It was awesome!

Move over, Mallcop - there are some new riders in town:

Alas, after this adventure I had to say goodbye to Jaimee and Stephanie, as our flight was leaving Fairbanks at 7am the following day.

Or so we thought...

Day 9 Activities: We got up at the crack of dawn, finished packing everything up, dragged our sleepy toddler out of bed, gave him some Tylenol on the way to the airport, and were checking in at the ticket counter at 5:45am. Of course, this was news to Alaska Airlines. It seems our reservations got screwy between our flight up and our return flight. They told us we were supposed to fly out the night before, and now that we hadn't, they could put us on the current flight, but we would have to sit in Seattle all day because our original Seattle to Lewiston flight was now overbooked. Hmmm...sit in SeaTac all day with a toddler? I think not!

This was Sunday. Justin and I had both taken Monday off from work to just be at home and relax before heading back into the routine, so we weren't pressured to fly back no matter what on Sunday. Long story short, we re-booked our original itinerary for Monday instead (goodbye relaxing Monday at home), and then headed back to my P's house for our bonus day. Our Tylenol-influenced toddler went right back to sleep, as did we.

As we didn't plan to still be in Fairbanks this day, we didn't feel obligated to take any pics. Sorry! But it was a wonderful day just the same. I got a pedicure and had some much-needed girl time with my Mom while the guys hung out at home. Ahhhh, just the right finish to a wonderful vacation!

We love you, Binder Family! And we miss you all so much already!

On a side note, one of the most precious memories of our trip was seeing Kendry play with his cousin Addysen, my sister Angel's little girl. They are 5.5 months apart. I cannot tell you how many photos I took of these two spunky kiddos together. This is only the beginning of a beautiful and, no doubt, mischievous friendship.

Baby joy ride in the RV, anyone?