It is hard to believe that Timmy and I have been married for a little over 2 months. I have loved every moment of it, and God is continually reminding me how lucky I am to have found such a wonderful husband. Since the wedding, time has flown by and Timmy and I could've used a jet pack to keep up with it! Our lives have been jammed packed and it doesn't look like it is going to slow down anytime soon. Immediately following the wedding, our travels commenced!
Some of my family rented out a house in Charleston, the week after the wedding, for some much needed relaxation, beach time, and good old fashioned family fun! Even though Timmy and I were exhausted after our wedding extravaganza, how could we pass up a beach trip? We had a wonderful time catching up with family. Every time I see them all, I am reminded of how lucky I am to have such a wonderful family and how much I miss them all!
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| Family time in Charleston! |
After a couple days at the beach Timmy and I headed back to reality. Timmy went back to work for a couple days while I tried to organize our house, which was quite an undertaking... However, after our short slump in excitement Timmy and I were packing up our bags and heading across country on our honeymoon! Our first stop was in Seattle, Washington were we quickly boarded The Sapphire Princess cruise ship and headed off toward Alaska!
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| Waiting to depart in Seattle |
The boat was absolutely beautiful and a labrynth of new places to discover. We were lucky enough to book our trip through a travel agent and they upgraded our room to a balcony, since they knew it was our honeymoon, which was truly a blessing because there was so much to see along the way. Our first port of call was Ketchikan, Alaska. This quaint little town is know for making incredible totum poles; therefore, we were able to see some unbelievable craftsmanship!
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| Eagle statue in Ketchikan, Alaska. |
Timmy and I decided we would go on one excersion per stop, and in Ketchikan Timmy really wanted to go to the Lumberjack Show, and since I'm never up for seeing anything entertaining and over the top, we made our way over to meet the Brawny Paper Towel men. The show was extremely entertaining, and some of the things those men can do are absolutely insane.
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| We were lucky enough to meet those talented men |
I don't think I ever truly comprehended how tiring being a tourist can be! I mean shopping, site seeing, taking pictures, asking locals to take multiple group photos, walking around town, and eating the local cuisine can tire a person out! Well, after our day in Ketchikan we fully understood what it takes to be a tourist, and in response we entered into a short lived coma. However, the next morning we were raring to get out and explore our second stop, the capital of Alaska, Juneau! I was particulary excited because I was able to cross an item off of my "Bucket List" in Juneau. Timmy and I boarded a small boat and went whale watching! I was wild with excitement as we waited for a sighting of our first whale. However, the wait wasn't long at all and we got our first look at a beautiful humpback whale.
It was a magical moment. Seeing a majestic animal like that reminds me of how small and insignificant we are and how we serve such a BIG and powerful God!
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| I thought we were going to have a Pinocchio moment on our hand with a whale swallowed boat! |
Not only did we see one humpback whale, we saw sea lions, another mama humpback whale and her baby, but then we stumbled across the Holy Grail of whale watching! Normally humpback whales do not travel in pods, they usually only group together during mating season. However, it was our lucky day! Our boat stumbled across a pod of 12 humback whales! It was the most amazing thing I have ever seen. The whales were doing this feeding ritual called bubble net feeding, where the pod dives under the water and surrounds a group of fish with a ton of bubbles, which understandably confuses the fish. Then the whales swoop up in the center of the bubbles with their mouths wide open and swallow the unsuspecting fish. Watching this phenomenon was like stepping into a discovery channel special!
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| Bubble Net Feeding Humpback Whales |
The Teacher in me has to post this link to show what bubble net feeding really is! Check it out, it gives me chills just watching it!
A look into Bubble Net Feeding
Our last Alaksan port of call was Skagway, Alaska. In Skagway, Timmy and I decided it was a neccesity to go dog sledding while in Alaska. For me, growing up watching Balto, there was really no other choice of what to do while in Alaska. Since we went to Alaksa during their "summer" season (which was quite a joke because I was freezing 90% of the time) we were able to help summer condition some sled teams. The set up was a little different for the summer, we didn't ride on an actual sled, more like buggies with wheels since there wasn't any snow, but the experience was worth it. I was excited to find out that our musher was the grandson of one the men who originated the Iditarod race! My dream of reinacting Balto was complete!!! I would highly advise anyone who goes to Alaska to try dog sledding, it gives you a true feel for the Alaskan culture!
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| Our dog sled team! Believe it or not, but these are true Alaskan Huskies! |
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| I was so excited to get my "puppy fix"! |
Unfortunately, we couldn't stay in Alaska forever, I probably would have froze to death if we did, but sooner than we wanted we were headed back down the coast. Even though our cruise was "in the country" we were able to make one brief stop where we would actual need our carefully packed passports. The last stop on our agenda was British Columbia, Canada. Now granted I'm not a huge fan of Canada, but the land was beautiful and there sure were a variety of entertaining people there. Our stop was only for a couple of hours, so Timmy and I decided to go exploring. There were a ton of dock shops and craftsmen. I met quite a few wonderful.... characters.
Finally we arrived back in Seattle, as seasoned travelors, and decided that we should take advantage of the time that we had before our flight home. Seattle is a great town with some wonderful places! We went to the Seattle Aquarium, The Space Needle, and The Seattle Food Market (which would make a move to Seattle totally worth it...but no worries on that front!)
Our honeymoon was fantastic and we were so blessed to be able to see all that we did, but we had to head home and face the music. When we arrived home we made a quick trip down to Alabama to pick up some more of my never ending nicknacks and visit my parents. Afterwards, Timmy headed off to Columbia to start his 3 week training at the Police Academy. He was nervously anxious and I was dreading being home alone for weeks! After a month of being married, I became a "three week widow" (as Timmy's mom correctly nicknamed me!) Luckily the three weeks flew by without a glitch and Timmy excelled (as always) at the academy. I was able to go down there for his graduation, which was a riot! I never thought I would see him marching in a uniform singing cadences! Nevertheless, I was so very proud of his hard work (even though I did laugh a little...)!
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| Marching and singing! |
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| Salute! |
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| He's a mature police academy graduate now... |
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| I'm a proud wife! |
Married life is such a new and wonderful adventure for both of us. Some interesting event comes around every day; whether it's braving the grocery store together, bathing the cat, cooking new recipes, trying to decorate/ organize the house, or pretending the cat is a zombie, while running around the house screaming and jumping on the furniture. I know we will have some hilarious stories to tell and memories to keep, but the thing I look forward to the most is the journey.
