Zoo day with Grammi

Today was our last day with Grammi. We decided to spend the day at the Oakland Zoo. The kids always love going there and today was no exception. Finn was most excited to see all the different monkeys and Kenzie spent the whole day talking about Zebras ( the closest thing to a horse). We ended our trip with a ride on the airplanes. Finn hit a milestone...36 inches tall. Just enough to go on the ride. So today he got to go on the rides for the first time by himself. We let him sit in the cockpit and do the steering. Mackenzie sat behind him and gave him directions. After our day we headed to the airport to drop Grammi off. They were sad to say goodbye and are already talking about her next visit.

Demolition

Today I took the girls to Kenzie's last dance class and then we headed to the airport to pick up Grammi. We left the boys with a work list. This is what I found in my bathroom when I came home.

there used to be a shower here

Looks like our bathroom project has begun!

One enchanted evening

Today we finished setting up Kenzie's new room. The walls are two shades of purple from the Disney collection. One enchanted evening and butterfly flutterby. We found a white bedroom set with beadboard and floral carvings. The perfect girly bedroom. We finished it off with a new butterfly quilt from Grammi. Kenzie was so excited to spend her first night in her new room.

My little helper

This morning while I was packing lunches and getting ready for our day I asked Mackenzie to play with Emersyn for a few minutes. I heard neighing and giggling from the living room and this is what I found.

What a great big sister!

8 months old

 Emersyn is 8 months old today. We've started transitioning her out of our bed and into the pack n play. There has been a lot of crying but she is sleeping more each night. She is Daddy's girl and lights up when she sees him. She also loves her siblings. Mackenzie talks to her and makes her laugh and its a great laugh! She has a beautiful fuzzy head of hair, something you don't usually see on Malcolm babies. When she smiles she does the cutest eyebrow raise and her eyes crinkle in the corners. She is such a ham and eats up any attention people give her. She is now a woman on the go and is crawling everywhere and pulling herself up to standing.

Daddy's girl

on the go

LB's Alaska pics

The Flight Home

Today we were sad to say goodbye to the Baysdens and Alaska. What an amazing trip this was. As we headed home everyone was tired and slept through the first flight. On our second flight we were lucky enough to have a couple of rows to ourselves. We let Kenzie and Finn sit together and watch a movie on the ipad. Got to love technology!

Swampy Acres Farm

Today was Swampy Acres family farm day so we headed over to meet the animals. They had horses to brush, rabbits to pet and baby chicks to hold. They also had pony rides. Finn was super excited to get on the horse. Mackenzie was a little disappointed at how short the ride was, but she really enjoyed  holding the chicks. This was the first time she has done this and she was amazingly comfortable. She also loved petting the bunnies and kept telling me how soft they were.

holding baby chicks

Finn

Paige

Kenzie

Kenzie & the baby chick

petting the bunnies

Helicopter Tour

Today was our last day in Juneau and we ended the week with a helicopter ride to the top of Herbert Glacier. We got really lucky with the weather again and had clear skies. We took the tour with our new friends Nate & Nina Sargent. The helicopter took off from Juneau airport and headed north over the mountains of Juneau. We touched down on top of the glacier and got to walk around. The view was amazing and I just kept thinking I'm really on top of a glacier! Afterwards we headed back to the Baysdens for a cookout. What a great way to end our week.

Jim getting on the helicopter

Nina

Nina & Nate

yes he's updating his FB status

looking into a crevace

Julie & Nina getting ready to take off

Herbert Glacier

This morning we attempted to take the kids to the beach but it was windy and cold. All the kids were whining and complaining so we decided to send them back with the Daddies while the Moms took Emme and Ally on a hike to Herbert Glacier. It was a 10 mile round trip walk that ended at the base of the glacier. Emersyn slept most of the way, so it was a great chance for LB and I to have uninterrupted chat time and with 10 miles down some great exercise!

Ally

Julie & Emme

Boy Scout Trail

Today we woke up to rain, but really wanted to hike the boy scout trail to the beach so we headed out the road. It was drizzling when arrived at the trailhead, but in Juneau it rains a lot and everyone is out in the rain all the time, so we all bundled up and started our hike. As we continued the rain picked up and everyone was pretty miserable. We made it to a covered awning and stopped to dry out and have a snack. After waiting a while we decided it wasn't going to stop raining and playing on the beach wouldn't be much fun, so we headed back to the car. We were all cold and wet when we got back. Everyone except Emersyn. She was lucky enough to be inside the ergo carrier covered by a fleece and a raincoat. It was a true Juneau experience.

A very wet Malcolm Clan

Shrine of St Therese

This afternoon we headed out the road. We made a quick stop at Auke Lake for a few photos and then headed to the Shrine of St. Therese. This is a catholic church nestled on a remote piece of land next to the bay. Its an amazing piece of architecture located in a beautiful spot. Jim and I had fun looking through all the wedding albums in the church. We even found a few coasties that had been married there. The beauty was lost on the kids, but they did enjoy walking around the property.

Auke Lake

view from the church

Man time

Today Jim and Rob had a man date. They started their day by heading to Mendenhall Glacier to hike the west glacier trail. They stopped for lunch at the Island Pub for lunch and then headed to the top of Juneau to hike the Perseverance Trail. They found a lot of snow and were not able to complete to the trail, but still had a good time exploring.

A walk to the Glacier

This evening the rain let up so we headed out to Mendenhall Glacier for a little walk. We met up with the Sargent girls, Nina, Catherine & Lauren. The kids were instant friends and had fun playing in the sand together. The Daddies had fun teaching everyone how to skip rocks. There were more bear sitings up in the trees and reports of a mama and her cubs. Luckily we didn't see any up close. On our walk back to the car we stopped to touch a piece of the Glacier. The kids all wanted a turn holding it and Mackenzie was even eager to take a taste. Who knew ice could be so exciting. 

Taku Rob

Kenzie holding a piece of Glacier

Catherine

Paige

Lauren

new friends