A busy weekend...

This weekend was a busy one.  It was my bro's birthday, I graduated with my Master's Degree, and we celebrated both!

Today was the perfect Sunday for a family celebration.

The weather was nice, and the sun was shinning!  Goose spent hours in the backyard.  This was a new experience for her.  We have had her outside before, but we never really had her out for extended periods of time.  We kept a water dish out, and kept heading out to play with her, but she pretty much wanted to just be outside, relaxing in the shade.

Before all the festivities began, the sis and I hit up the gym for some body pump, and I followed it up with some broccoli and a veggie corn dog.  It was major yumm-o!

We had a great dinner, followed by some awesome cake.  The bro and I opened some wonderful gifts...much more than we deserved and it was just so relaxing.

Then it was time to get ready for the week.  I made sure to pack some good, healthy lunches.  I hard boiled some eggs, cut up fresh veggies, and prepared two lovely looking salads.

Added some cabbage, cheese, cucumbers, and carrots.

Packed my fav yogurt dressing and bbq sauce-I love adding just a dash of bbq sauce to salads...gives them a hearty feel.

Threw the salads in a big ass lunch cooler (thank you hubby-finally getting some use out of that huge lunch sack you gave me a few Christmases ago!), top with a banana and sparkling water, and I am set to go!

I also cut up a special k bar my dad brought in from Buffalo for me...little bite size pieces in a good portion size!  Way better then chowing down the whole bar...and it will last longer!  Woo hoo!

And I brewed a pot of strong coffee which I put in the fridge, and in the morning, I will add the coffee I have steeping in the french press.  Should make for the perfect Monday morning jolt!

 Here's hoping all this prep work will help me start my week on the right foot!  With being ridiculously sick last week, I am ready for a fresh start!

Adventures in Alaska...Part 2

Monday morning when we arrived at 4am, Laine met us at the Port.  It was so great seeing her!  We hadn't seen her since Christmas vacation.  And we were super stoked she pulled herself out of bed at 4am after spending the weekend at a Brewfest!

She took us to the hostel she works at and we all crashed for a few hours.  Possibly the best sleep ever!

We ran a few errands, and Laine showed us around her town a bit, then we headed off to West Glacier trail for a hefty hike.

It was a bit rainy, and cloudy, as seems to be the usual weather for Juneau, but the scenery makes up for that.  It was just beautiful to be surrounded by the most pristine mountains I have ever seen.

The beginning of the trail was pretty smooth and wide.  It definitely crossed my mind a few times that this trail would be a piece of cake if it stayed like this.

Then it started getting a little steeper, and the path turned from dirt and rock to simply rock in many areas. The rocks were a bit slick, but we all had great boots on so I just kept trucking along.  In fact, I felt great.  It was a powerful feeling to be huffing along in the beauty of that trail, taking it all in and just plain being active in nature. I'm sure that sounds corny, but it's probably the best way to describe how I felt.

And then, I probably got a little to confident in my hiking abilities.  I started keeping pace with the head of the pack (our group included 7 people and a dog).  And as I jumped up on a rock ledge to move to the next height, my right foot lost its footing, leaving my left foot to support my body as I fell off the rock ledge.  I landed on a branch filled bush, which made a shit load of snapping noises, and scared the crap out of those behind me.  I am pretty sure  no one with me heard my ankle pop (only the branches cracking), but I certainly did.

I knew right away that something was wrong, but still tried to stay cool and keep my composure till I knew for sure if something was wrong.  Chaz helped me get up, and as I started to put pressure on my left foot, a sharp pain shot up my leg on both sides.  That's when I lost my shit.  Straight up bawling!  I think I said something along the lines of I did something really bad.

And I did, but it could have been worse.  I will tell you though, it's not easy getting through a trail with only one leg.  Wanna know how I got back?!?!?  You'll have to check back later for the next part of the story!

Adventures in Alaska...Part 1

Alaska was a blast!  I am definitely coming off of a high and have the "just got back from vacation blues"....I suppose it doesn't help that I have a bum foot, but going back to work today was hard.  I didn't go in until noon, and by 3 pm I was ready to blow that popsicle stand but I stuck it out.  

And the foot thing, well that's just one little (well, actually a big) part of the vacation, but I'll start from the beginning.

Our trip started out on Friday May 25th.  We flew to Seattle via Denver and hopped on a bus for a three hour ride to the ferry port.  When we arrived, Terri met us right away and we quickly met up with Denis.

We chilled for a bit while the cars were loaded onto the ferry, and once we got on the ferry, we got to enjoy watching the people set up tents on the decks of the ferry.  You can pay for a cabin, or set up a tent/sleep on chairs under a closure and heat lamps.  It was quite the site!

We spent the weekend on the ferry, playing games, taking pictures, and relaxing.  Chaz and I got off in Ketchikan to enjoy the town for a few hours but other then that, we just stayed on the boat...it was just like a little cruise!

Port

Lovely scenery

I was even a good girl and snuck in a workout in my cabin! You can take that 30 Day shred bizzo anywhere!

Cabin

We arrived in Juneau on Memorial Day at 4am and headed to the hostel Laine works at to catch some z's!

Check back later for Part 2!

Fun! I love these signs!

on www.laurenconrad.com/post/friday-favorites-33