North for Easter

We just returned from a mini-vacation to snowy southeastern Alaska, where we spent Easter with Nana and Grandpa in Petersburg. It was a fun and relaxing trip, and Caden was a great little traveler, despite three jet flights each way. A few people made negative comments or groaned when we sat down near them on the plane, and Caden made sure to prove them wrong, to the extent that several of those same people smiled and complimented him on their way off the plane. What a good boy!

Of course, last Wednesday (over a week ago, now!) was Caden's first birthday, which was a reminder of how far we have all come this past year. On Caden's birthday eve, we made a breakfast dinner to commemorate the similar dinner we had on the 3rd of April, 2006, a few hours before we left for the hospital. On his birthday, we celebrated with more cake--Daddy made cupcakes using the same tasty banana recipe as the dragonfly cake--and tried to convince Caden to blow out a candle. We also opened more presents from friends and family. Daddy and Caden started to put together his new walker wagon from Grandma Jo and Grandad Bruce, but Caden kept trying to eat the tools, so Daddy finished the job after the little bug went to sleep.

On Friday, we got up super early to head to the airport in Sacramento, then flew to Petersburg, via Seattle and Juneau. Winter is slowly giving way to spring up there, especially since this past winter was the snowiest on record (almost 20 feet of cumulative snow in Petersburg!) in southeastern Alaska. Caden wasn't too surprised at the snow, since our trip to Missouri and Colorado in January featured plenty of it, but it was quite different from the 70-plus-degree temperatures we've been enjoying in northern California. The flight into Petersburg was really bumpy because of high winds, and the pilot received a round of applause when we touched down safely in Petersburg. Mommy and Daddy didn't like the rough ride, but Caden clapped after each round of turbulence. Nana and Grandpa met us at the airport with balloons for Caden, and the balloons became one of his favorite playthings for the rest of the weekend.

Right after our arrival, we celebrated Caden's birthday again, with pizza and cake. A few family friends joined us for the party. It was particularly fun to watch Caden open presents (he's becoming quite adept from all of his recent practice) and interact with Liam, a friend of our family who is a few years older than him. On Saturday afternoon, the weather cleared, and we went for a nice walk along the waterfront toward town.

Sunday was, of course, Easter, and Caden had a great time playing with his Easter basket and the goodies in it. He's had plenty of practice opening gifts and getting into things lately, so Easter was lots of fun. We went to church on Easter morning (and Caden was remarkably well-behaved), then to the pot-luck brunch after the service. A highlight of the brunch for the kids was the annual Easter egg hunt, and Caden really liked picking up the brightly colored eggs nestled in the snow outside. We spent the afternoon playing with toys from our Easter baskets (Caden especially liked the Easter iguana, complete with taped-on paper bunny ears, from the Easter Bunny's recent trip to the Galapagos) and preparing for Easter dinner. Our friends "Uncle" Brian and "Aunt" Tina joined us for dinner and bunny cake, a Bracken family tradition. Caden played "pat the bunny" and got frosting all over his hands. Yum!

On a walk in Petersburg

Bunny cake (carrot, of course!)

On Tuesday, we headed to Juneau for a quick visit with Daddy's family there. Grandpa Barry flew up with us, and it was really special to have four generations of Brackens--Caden, Daddy, Grandpa, and Great Grandpa--together for the first time. We arrived in time for a late lunch with Great Grammy and Grandpa, then drove over to the Mendenhall Glacier for a quick walk on the snowy trails. We then returned to Great Grammy and Grandpa's house for a tasty salmon dinner with our Juneau family: Great Grammy, Great Grandpa, Great Aunt Barb and cousins Kate and Amanda. On Wednesday, after we spent a few more minutes visiting with Great Grammy and Grandpa, we got on the plane and returned home.

Cozy with Great Grammy

Notice any similarities?

At Mendenhall Glacier

One last thing...

"Now you try a cracker!"