We're back from cruising "up" to Alaska

A big adventure has come and gone -- last week we spent seven days aboard a "dam ship" (the Rotterdam, of the Holland America Line) cruising from Seattle to Hubbard Glacier in Alaska and back.

In the days before the trip, I prepped Soren with the line that we were going "up to Alaska" on a "huge ship," with the result that when he wanted to talk about our voyage, he pointed "up" in the air and then held his arms very wide apart.
This is our mighty cruise liner -- with a capacity of around 2000 persons; on this run, with about 1300 passengers and 400 crew! -- at anchor in the bay off Sitka, Ala. We see a parade of these ships passing Port Townsend every night through the summer weekends, and we were thrilled to finally be a passenger aboard one. [More photos of our ship.]
The trip was the brainstorm of Jeff's mother Gloria. She had the wish to see Alaska, Jeff handled the trip planning, and Gloria and Jim invited us three to go along as their guests. Here we are on their private veranda deck before departing Seattle.
The ship was a near-perfect vacation venue for a super-active toddler and his not-so-mobile grandparents. We were always on the move, there was always room to run, run, run, and yet the distance between their stateroom and the dining room was not too far. I'll let Soren tell you about the other big perk: the pool!

We had two separate rooms on different decks, and Soren slept better in ours than he did at home -- I think because the ship was one big, vibrating, white-noise machine. We also didn't fret about keeping to a sleep schedule, which was kind of freeing.

The above map shows our route. We stopped at three Alaska ports for visits of half a day each: Juneau, where Soren admired the Native art (below) in the Alaska State Museum; Sitka (our favorite -- felt kind of like Port Townsend, and Soren and I garnered the compliment of being mistaken for locals by an art gallery owner); and Ketchikan (had a nice playground within walking distance of the waterfront).
Here's Jeff and his mother on the dock in Juneau. Believe it or not, there were three more cruise ships the same size or larger docked behind ours! We followed or were followed by these three other ships all week long, but the captains did an admirable job of keeping our distance at sea, and taking turns at the glacier viewpoint.
So, northward to the glacier! We lucked out with the weather -- clear skies and very warm temperatures for this time of year. So we could see all the mountains surrounding us -- often on both sides, as we wove our way up the Inside Passage. Jeff got up early one morning to watch the sunrise.
Finally we reached the apex of our journey -- Hubbard Glacier, one of the largest and fastest-moving glaciers on the continent: 5 miles wide and 40 stories tall. We whispered through a slushy ice field in Disenchantment Bay...
...quite close to the glacier's face, and then the engines were cut and we could hear the thunder and booming of calving chunks of ice. A truly awesome sight!
May I just note that the lack of crowds of people in these deck pictures is both accurate and telling. There was a bigger rush of sightseers on the bow as we approached the glacier, but most soon retired to the dining room (with its constant buffet) or the bars or the library or their rooms... Let's just say it was not the hardiest crowd. But it was also an older crowd. We estimated there were maybe only 50 children aboard under the age of 18.

But our family gamely joined in the tradition of dressing up for two "formal" nights on board the ship. The first night, we dressed up Soren to get his picture taken with us, then Jeff and I went to dinner by ourselves. The second night, we roped Soren and Gloria into accompanying us to the formal dining room.
I'm afraid to say Soren didn't last the meal. Jeff had to take him away because he was just too fussy, and Gloria and I had to eat our baked Alaska without the boys.
However, before Soren defaulted, we were treated to the sight of at least three humpback whales crossing our wake in the sunset light. By some good fortune, we were seated at one of the best tables in the ship, right next to the stern windows. That was our big wildlife sighting.
Our most memorable shore excursion was a horse-and-carriage ride around the inner harbor of Victoria, BC -- our one foreign port of call, on the last night before returning to Seattle.
We really enjoyed this mode of transport, and the sights of this lovely British-inspired provincial capital (which of course Jeff and I are fairly familiar with, as it's just across the strait from Port Townsend). Here's our view of the Parliament Buildings.
And a happy family on the final day of the cruise. So glad we did it. Thanks, Jim & Gloria -- this trip will hold a special place in our memories.

Soren's passport debut

Since we live so close to an international border, we ordered a passport for Soren earlier this year and two weekends ago we found an occasion to use it.

We crossed the Canadian border at the Peace Arch to visit friends in Vancouver, B.C. Although it's only 3.5 hours door to door from our house to theirs if all the transportation links run smoothly, we hadn't seen them since before Soren was born. And in that interim, they'd had a second child of their own!
Here's a group portrait of Vince (Jeff's grad school roommate), his sons Ming (in stroller, 18 mos. old) and Matisse (a wise 5), and Jeff and Soren (now 20 months). This fun orca sculpture was outside the Vancouver Aquarium, where Soren spent a dizzying afternoon with his nose pressed to the glass of innumerable tanks. Ooh, look, here comes a sea turtle! "Wow" was Soren's refrain for the day. But perhaps just as much fun was the extensive wooden train set that Matisse kindly shared with Soren. He knew how to manipulate it for all sorts of thrilling action, like the ski-jump off the couch...
Hmm, says Soren. This doesn't look so hard to make. Dad has woodworking tools in his shop. I'll memorize the design and try some trademark infringement.
Well, Soren, you don't have to break out the router just yet. Last weekend I found a bag of assorted Take Along Thomas tracks at a thrift store (similar to these, only plastic) and then ordered some more used track pieces that should arrive soon and make a big track set. Friends and relatives take note: Take Along Thomas engines and cars will make great gifts for the foreseeable future!
One rainy morning we rode Vancouver's SkyTrain -- you can read Soren's take on his blog. And then we had lots of fun in the indoor pool at our friends' condo. Soren has discovered the joy of goggles within the last month. Jeff has rediscovered the joy.
But best of all, Soren made new friends. "Ming Ming" and "'Tisse" will be a part of his vocabulary for a while to come.
And now you can guess that Vince was not a fellow law-school classmate, but an architecture student. He designed his parents' house with this incredible facade. More photos on his website -- click on the first building on the Projects page to see a slideshow.

Holidays with the Garrison clan

Soren met several members of his extended family for the first time over the holidays, at the (in)famous Garrison family reunion, which has been undertaken in the week between Christmas and New Year's for at least 12 years running. In attendance this year were my new-to-Soren cousins Forrest and Gwen (the two oldest above, both college students in Montana and Oregon respectively) and also my cousins Luka and Shanti (lower center and on lap at right). Cousin Melanie (upper center) was introduced to Soren last year. What a wacky, fun bunch!
We rented a big house at Fort Worden State Park, which is a 7 minute drive from our house in PT, so we got to home at night but showed up every day ready for group meals and action. Soren loved hanging out with the big kids, especially Shanti (5) and Luka (8).
They live on Quadra Island in British Columbia, and their mom Robyn (pushing, below) made the two-ferry trip down with them.

The hallowed tradition of "Spoons" was faithfully followed one evening. A simple card game with cutthroat silverware grabbing. Like musical chairs, there's always one spoon too few, so someone is knocked out of the round. I was runner-up to Gwen! Speed Scrabble and Apples to Apples were other favored forms of table-top entertainment.
Another fun activity out-of-doors was exploring the batteries and bunkers of early 19th-century Fort Worden. Everyone had their own flashlight, even Soren, and with my dad and I "supervising," we had some adventures indeed. At one point I wanted to turn around in a tight tunnel, leave the others, and go back the way we'd come, but Dad insisted we stick together. Soren never made a peep on my back, just shone his flashlight all around. Quite the explorer.

One day we hosted a gaggle of relatives taking a break from their nearby family reunion for a day visit to Port Townsend. They hail from California, Kansas, New York and other points of the U.S. Left to right are Karina, Scott, Cayley, Seth, Megan, and my mom, Ann.
We're out walking around Point Wilson and the lighthouse at its tip. This is all part of the state park, and I daresay it's one of the most beautiful places in the world that we are so fortunate to live in. Don't disagree with me!
Aunties Jill (above) and Nora (below) enjoyed beach time with Soren (watched over by Mt. Baker). We had a spell of warmish sunny weather that we soaked up.

And this reunion story would not be complete without Soren's great-grandparents, Karin and Gerry. Although she is frail, they make the trip from Vashon and fund this gathering so that we can all build up stores of happy family memories for the years to come. Thank you!
A span of four generations washing dishes...

Returned from Jill's adopted hometown, Portland

So we spent four nights in Portland last week, returning home Sunday night. As always, it was good to get out of town, and we really owed my sister Jill a visit. She's been making the four-hour drive to visit us quite often since Soren was born, and we had yet to make the reverse trip. We experimented with taking the train down (and then we got a ride back with Sierra, a Seattle friend who joined us for two nights).

We are by no means regular Amtrak riders (it had been about five years since my last jaunt), but it was a great mode of transportation for an energetic, walking toddler. I chased Soren up and down the length of the 9-car train for what felt like the entire 3-1/2-hour journey. One of the conductors was kind enough to let him try on her hat!
But the friendly face at the final destination was worth it. Here's Auntie Jilly with her sweet nephew. She knitted that hat for him! The short story on Jill's career track is that she graduated from nursing school at the end of August, passed her certification exam at the end of September, interviewed for her dream job that week, and was hired and working by mid-October. She's an emergency room nurse at Providence St. Vincent and is part of a new-nurse training program, so she shadows a mentor during the day for her first three months -- before she starts a night shift on her own. We're very proud of her.
On our first full day, Jill had a playdate all lined up for us with the nephew of a nursing school classmate. Kimary (her parents liked both the names Kim and Mary) and Oscar met us at the park and we watched the ducks, shared a snack, chased a ball, etc. The next evening we took Kimary up on her very gracious offer to sit with Soren after he'd fallen asleep, and we gals went out to a wine bar for drinks and dessert. How adult!
Yes, Soren would rather push the stroller than sit in it himself. Jill's backpack got a ride down this sidewalk. Look at that grin!
This is the only good photo that was taken of Jill's 600-square-foot apartment, but it wasn't as crowded/noisy as I had feared. Soren slept in a borrowed Pack-n-Play that we screened in with a nearby closet door and a hanging sarong, and we would go whisper in the kitchen for 10 minutes and then he would be asleep and we would bang pots, talk normally, etc. Soren slept just like he does at home; a good lesson for me that he doesn't need tiptoeing around as much as we do. (Yes, those are Tweety Bird slippers Soren is trying on for size!)
This is the entrance to Jill's classic apartment building in a very walkable part of southeast Portland: near the Belmont and Hawthorne street districts. And very close to a Stumptown Coffee bar (a Portland original), which served the best cup of drip French Roast coffee I've ever had!
Happily, I was able to connect and have lunch with my sophomore college roommate, Karin, who is a surgical resident at the same university hospital where Jill just graduated from. We hadn't seen each other in over 10 years, but we both exclaimed, "You look the same!" Except that she's pregnant and due in a month (doesn't she look great?) and I have a Soren-appendage. Otherwise, exactly the same.
And here's the happy Testerman trio on the Portland waterfront (thus Soren's bollard seat). We browsed the Saturday crafts market and ate a picnic lunch. It was colder than it looks, but we are a hardy Northwest lot.
Here's our friend Sierra, who was the Seattle driver who joined us for her weekend off. We three women were all friends way back in elementary school. How wonderful that we still are!
We also attended a family-friendly contra dance one evening, took the MAX light rail to the Children's Museum (see Soren's account), introduced Jill to IKEA, went Goodwill shopping for new jeans for me (Jill and Sierra ordered me to throw out my old ones!), and generally had a good time.

I'll sign off with these shots of us on one of the pedestrian bridges that crosses the Willamette River. Portland really is a beautiful (and to my mind, manageable) city, and I'm sure we'll be visiting Jill lots more.

Snow in Colorado

It snowed four inches on our second day visiting Nora in Fort Collins, Colo., and here are some pictures as proof. It's a novelty for us Western Washingtonians, so we don't really mind the inconvenience. But I wouldn't want to have to coordinate getting Soren out the door in the appropriate outerwear every day for the next six months. Look at how wet his feet got!
Soren loved clearing snow from Auntie Nora's sidewalk and road. He is such a good little helper, once a task is demonstrated.
The next day the temps were still in the high 20s, so we bundled up to take a walk on a trail along the Poudre River. You can see not much snow had melted. Here's a family portrait, sans Soren: Ann, Nora, Shelly, Bill.
Here is Soren modeling the necessity of layering. We bought the vest and some other warm clothes at the ARC, Nora's favorite thrift shop here.
Down the trail he goes...

(Soren talks about his new friends on his blog.)