Alaska - part 4 of 5

After Nancy Lake we headed for Homer, which is back through Anchorage and then further another 4 or 5 hours. The Robbins' were loving Nancy Lake so much they decided to spend one more night instead of leaving with us. Since they would be behind us a ways and the weather was great now but turning by Sunday, we decided to go out on John's boat Friday instead. His sailboat is in Whittier and on the way to Homer so it worked out just fine. Here are Nelson and Caroline by one of many waterfalls we saw.

Cap'n David!

Goofy cheese!

Nelson and Caroline fishing for halibut. We didn't catch any, not a big surprise. We haven't caught any halibut on this boat since my mom died. She was the fisherwoman extraordinaire in the family and somehow could always get us some fish.

Me and John.

David and Stacey did catch a rock fish, ugly things but good for fish and chips.

It was such a beautiful day we put up the sails, turned off the motor and did a little sailing. John had Michael at the helm as we practiced coming about, the rest of us on the lines.

It is so amazing how teenagers can still text at all moments in time, even while steering a boat.

Hey wait! It looks like time has jumped backwards a decade or so. This is one of my favorite pictures of my kids. We went on the sailboat the summer of 1999 and Caroline, Katie and Michael surprised me down below and I had to have a snapshot of it.

Same window, some years later, hey, where's Caroline? Well, we almost recreated that one.

At the end of our day we went and had some halibut and chips in Whittier.

John, Jack and Stacey at the restaurant.

Whittier is on the other side of a mountain and the only way to get there is by boat or through this tunnel. It is 10 miles long, open from 6am till 11pm. It is only one lane, so it only goes one direction every hour of the day. If you miss your turn, you wait, hopefully not overnight. This is not a tunnel you can even try to hold your breath through.

We made it to Homer around midnight and it was finally getting dark. The next day we wandered along the shops of the Homer Spit. Here we are having ice cream.

John, David and Nelson on the husband's waiting bench, can you see the sign?

Katie, Lilli or Lani(sorry girls!) and Jasmin on the beach.

The twins are nearly impossible to tell apart, even for their parents. They usually dress differently so after the first time you call them the wrong name, you just memorize which shirt they are wearing and then you are fine the rest of the day. Except when they were younger and loved to change clothes 5 times a day. This, however was their birthday and they dressed alike. It was a rough day for the rest of us, just kidding.

Michael and Katie on the beach.

David, Lilli or Lani(???) and Jasmin playing with the legos in the motorhome.

Erika brought cupcakes and gifts for Lilli and Lani to open. One of their gifts were whoopie cushions. They each got one and we spent a good 20 minutes laughing so hard we all were crying. What a riot! It was definitely a party to remember!

Happy 9th birthday girls!! I have a special place in my heart for these girls and Jasmin, too. I got to go to Anchorage when they were born and play grandma, helping out. They are so much fun, we love them very much!