The First Trip to Alaska!

John arrived safely in Anchorage, AK on Dec. 20th after a three day ferry ride and three days on the road, then Christmas night I got to join him there! My initial impression of the place was BRRR... Actually I really can't complain, it's not that different from Spokane. It's cold but the land is beautiful, as you can see in the pictures. It was a great time and of course, I can't wait to go back!

The local moose, across the street from the favorite coffee shop!



Cross-country skiing at a park right in Anchorage, these trails are filled with bikers, runners, skiers, even horseback riders!
Notice John is covered in snow, I am not... he spent most of the time on the ground.


This is crazy!!

Mountains outside of Anchorage

The top of Alyeska Ski Resort: we took a tram to the top where they have a restuarant

This years Christmas was really interesting for me. It began with a Bah-Humbug attitude. I'm not really sure why, but I'm going to pull the Sierra Leone card. There is all this commercialism, buying people things they don't really need, and then people being rotten to each other because of the stress of the season. But what is this season really about? However, I had to force myself to get out of this slump and enjoy it, remembering what I was feeling last Christmas. Last year I wanted so badly to be home, sitting by the fire, Kelsy and I laughing so hard that our stomachs hurt, nigthly walks in the snow... As much as I missed my family back in Sierra Leone this year, I realized that I needed to make the decision to enjoy and make the most of it this year! So I decorated cookies, went on our yearly Christmas night walk(on the 23rd), laughed enough with Kelsy to make up for last year, and soaked up ever moment with family that I could! As life continues to change, I realize the importance of living in the moment and taking it all in when you can, knowing that it won't always be like this.