This is the Schmidt Family in Alaska, Signing Off!

.....Well, not signing off completely. We still have year to go, after all! This is just our last blog post coming to you from the great state of Alaska. This time next week we'll be somewhere in central Canada heading to our next destination (cowboy country!). If we have internet access I'll try to post a little update to let you know we're all alive and well and made it back down the Alcan.

Leaving Alaska will be bittersweet for us. On one hand, we're ready to explore a new region and discover new things. On the other hand, we love Alaska. It's beautiful, the people are kind, and there's no shortage of things to learn about. I'm sure we could be here for the next ten years and still not satisfy our curiosity! For now we're happy to have had this experience and to have gained a better understanding of "the real Alaska." As we prepare to leave, my youngest son and I are scheduled to camp out this weekend with a local Cub Scout pack. It's a great way to spend my birthday and complete this leg of the trip, I think.

As of Wednesday, school has officially started for the Schmidt kids. It's an adjustment for them, as the older two have been in the public school system their whole lives. It's been hard to see the pictures of their friends in line for the bus, knowing the timetable of how the school works and what everyone is probably doing at any given time. There's a feeling of "missing out" even while their friends are cheering them on and are telling them that they wish they were on this adventure too. We went through this last year when our youngest was homeschooled for the first time. It takes time to "deschool" but we'll all find our new learning rhythm eventually. They're all motivated to stay on top of their basic studies (math and languages), so that has made the transition easier so far. Most of what they'll be learning for science, history, geography, etc. will come naturally over our travels. We've been discussing what else they'd like to study this year. So far I have two votes for Spanish and one for French, and the older two want to learn about computer animation, which is all possible with our flexible schedule.

As for our explorations, last weekend we drove down the Kenai Peninsula to Homer and drove through Anchor Point, which is the westernmost point on the U.S. roads system. There are other roads in the western parts of Alaska but you have to fly or sail to get to them first. So that makes two checks on our "Must Visit Places" list-The northernmost and westernmost points. Hooray!

Here are some fun facts you might enjoy. Alaska is the most extreme state because:

1. It's the northernmost, westernmost and easternmost state because the last few islands in the Aleutian chain cross the International Date Line.
2. It boasts the highest elevation point- Denali (formerly Mt. McKinley) at 20,320 feet.
3. The top ten tallest mountains in the U.S. are located here.
4. It's home to the most remote location in the U.S., Ipnavik River, which is located 120 miles from the nearest sign of civilization.
5. Alaska is home to the largest number of volcanoes in the U.S.
6. The biggest earthquake recorded in North America was the Great Alaska Earthquake of 1964 at a whopping magnitude 9.2 for four minutes. You can still see the effects of it today! It liquefied land, petrifying trees. They actually stand in the same place today where they stood then, like sticks in the ground.
7. The coldest winters have been recorded in Alaska because of it's proximity to the North Pole.
8. Alaska is home to the most glaciers in the inhabited world.
9. Alaska is the largest state.
10. Alaska has more coastline that any other state.

Pretty amazing, right?! Here's a glacial view from Homer that's also amazing.

When we arrived in Homer, we had a wonderful view of the Spit. It was smaller than I thought it would be, but then again I'd never seen a spit before so I don't know what I was expecting. You can find the definition of a spit here. This particular one is large enough that boardwalks have been built on it and you can visit stores and restaurants. There are even apartments at the end, although I don't know if I'd want to live there in the event of a Tsunami.... Regardless, the view of Kachemak Bay is fantastic!

This is a view of the spit. See that little line snaking out in the middle of the water?

Here's a view of some of the buildings on the spit as seen from the tide pools during low tide.

You access the majority of the buildings via boardwalk.

We made sure to stop and pay our respects at the Seafarer's Memorial.

If you're a fan of the show "Deadliest Catch," then you'll recognize the boat "Saga." It was docked at the marina while we were there. Elliot Neese, former captain, is from Homer.

Another TV family from Homer that you might recognize are the Kilcher's from "Alaska: The Last Frontier." Their daughter is singer, Jewel. We drove by their homestead too.

The view of Kachemak Bay and the glaciers over it are glorious! There's no guesswork why the homesteaders who settled there chose to stay!

We loved the drive and made sure to stop by Two Sisters Bakery for breakfast. Believe me, it was worth every calorie!

We had lunch at "Little Mermaid", a small mermaid-themed restaurant with delicious local fare. I had the beet salad and the kids loved their pizza. My husband ordered tuna poke and finished every bite. The Alaskan food scene is pretty fantastic if you know where to look. If you're ever in the 49th State, be sure to consult Edible Alaska.

And now our final blog farewell to Alaska: It was our privilege to share some time with you. Thank you for your generous hospitality and big personality! We'll never forget it.

Wishing everyone a wonderful week, or two if you don't hear from me before we get to our next destination!

- Jen

The Final Countdown

It's here! The final week before we leave for our big adventure! In all likelihood, the next post will just be a quick note to let you know we’re somewhere in Canada on the “Alaska Highway.” Did you know there’s an official marker for that in British Columbia? Me neither! You’d better believe I’m going to try to convince my husband that we need to take a detour to find it in Dawson's Creek!

We’ve been swamped with milestones and contractors this past week, which is why this post is a few days late. The school year ended. Our oldest graduated from eighth grade, which means he’s officially in high school now- Yikes! He also finished all the requirements to earn his Star rank in Boy Scouts. Our daughter performed beautifully at her choir concert and ended the year with a banquet. Our youngest moved up from Bear Cub to Webelos in Cub Scouts, and had his last fiddle and speech therapy sessions. We’ll miss our music and speech teachers. They're awesome! On that note, we also visited the WHO (Washington Homeschool Organization) convention. Our math curriculum for next year is ordered and will arrive when we're in Alaska. Did I mention I like checking things off my lists? ;-)

Other than that, the dogs are  now up to date on their shots and have their health certificates for the  Canadian border. Our wills are finalized. And last, but not least- our house is empty and ready for the renters to move in. I can't even begin to tell you how thankful I am for all the people who helped us with the final details in order for this trip to come together!

In spite of all the craziness, I actually finished something creative. This quilt is for a young man who is near and dear to our hearts. He graduated from high school a few weeks ago and is on his way to the Air Force. We are so proud of him! I hope he likes it.
 

It's backed with flannel, which won't do him much good during these hot summer months (He obviously doesn't live in Western Washington- our summer doesn't arrive until after July 5th- Really!) but it will be super cozy in the Fall when he's missing home. The picture below was taken before it was quilted by Vicki Stratton. She has been wonderful in helping me finish all these projects before our big launch!

Five days to go and we are SO REDAAAY!! 

- Jen

The Squeeze is On!

It's June! This means we head out in just three short weeks. Fortunately, we're still on track with preparations. Here what the next three Fridays look like for us:

Next week- The movers come to take all our furniture to storage.
Two weeks- The house will be scoured from top to bottom in preparation for the renters.
Three weeks- We hit the road!

In the midst of all that we have an eighth grade graduation, Cub Scout crossover ceremony, visit to the veterinarian to make sure the dogs have all their paperwork for international travel, orthodontist appointment, dentist appointment, DAR meeting, choir concert and banquet, renter walk-through, will signing, and a homeschool conference. Not to mention all the meetings at work for my husband and visiting with friends to say "See you later!"- Crazy, to be sure, but all good.

This week has been low-key here on the home front. Monday was Memorial Day so everyone had the day off. Our family spent part of the day packing and the other part at a local retirement community where our youngest and his Cub Scout Den performed the flag ceremony for their remembrance barbeque. It was such a joy to see the older generations interacting with our young guys. The boys made cards for the veterans and gave them out after the ceremony. If only you could have seen the faces of the veterans and how proud the boys were. So touching!

Also, as of this week we've officially made it through our first homeschooling year! Hooray! Testing was on Tuesday and I think it went pretty well. Our youngest was nervous when I dropped him off but was having a grand old time when I returned. Apparently he made a new friend and they finished early. We'll get the results in a few weeks.

It's amazing how many things we've done together this year. We put together a Shutterfly yearbook and were blown away after seeing it all in one place. He loves having his own book for his friends to sign- and this year he made A LOT of new friends! I'm thinking next years book may be slightly larger (to say the least!)....... I'm totally up for the challenge!

- Jen

Salmon and Sinks

Our two older children are just ending spring break. They really enjoyed being able to sleep in and take it easy, although I did hear complaints because their friends were either out of town or enrolled in camps/sports practice. I tend to waffle between the two schools of "It's not my job to entertain you" and actively planning fun things to do during our down time. I guess you could say that we're sort of a mixed bag. Either way, I told them that soon enough they too would be out of town.

One event we took part in over the break was the Kokanee Quest http://www.govlink.org/kokanee-quest/ with my youngest son's Cub Scout den. It's a geocaching treasure hunt to help raise awareness about our local salmon population (unique to our area alone!), the Kokanee. This quest began at the Issaquah Salmon Hatchery http://www.issaquahfish.org/ and we were treated to a class about how the population began and how it came to behave like it does. When our training was completed and we had answered the questions, we went on to find the cache. It was a lot of fun and I highly recommend looking into it, even if you don't live in the Puget Sound area.

As of today (since I'm a day late in posting. Sorry about that!) we have 69 days until we launch. We've been checking things off my checklists to make sure we're where we need to be. As the date gets closer, things get a bit more stressful. We are looking forward to the day when we head out of the driveway with the knowledge that everything is safely stored and the house is clean and ready for the new tenants. Then we can exhale and fully embrace our adventure. The kids are coming around. They're still not thrilled about leaving their friends for so long, but I have every confidence that once we're on the road, they'll be as excited as we are. Especially since they are going to help plan our side trips.

One house project I've been teasing you with is our upstairs bathroom remodel. Well, today is the day you finally get to see it! The hardware is still missing, but with the busy week my husband has had, that's totally fine with me. I'm going to show you anyway!

This is what the bathroom looked like before. My husband took these pictures with his phone. It was dated and just didn't flow well. The room had a door that separated the shower/toilet area from the sink and I had been counting the days until it was gutted. What a thrill when that day finally came!

Down came the doorway. Out came the old tile and cabinet. Out came the floor, until we were left with nothing but the skeleton. Then, the magic happened. The tile that we so meticulously selected from the tile store went up. The new, sleek cabinet and sink were installed. The sliding shower door was set in place. Then we just stood in awe of the new room. Is it weird to be so excited about a bathroom? Well then, call me weird, because I totally am! I find myself walking down the hallway and pausing just to look in. Our house is very Northwest-y and now the bathroom in in step with everything else. This is what it looks like now.

 

 

 

I couldn't be happier! It feels much roomier and is now a peaceful place to be. My husband did a great job. It's so nice to have this project checked off the list. Now on to packing...

 

- Jen