4th of July

We celebrated the 4th of July with lots of friends!

LDS Scout Encampment

Jared and Nathan were able to attend an LDS Scout Encampment here in Alaska last week.  There were approximately 800 LDS boys and 200 leaders from Alaska, Canada, and Washington areas.

Nathan was able to earn his canoeing and kayaking merit badge, and is now ready for his Eagle.  His project got approved while he was away, so now he needs to get busy!  Jared helped with the white water rafting, and spent many hours on the river.  They were also able to listen to Brad Wilcox, his son, Hank Smith, Michael McLean, and Elder Christensen of the Seventy.  I think it was a very spiritual week for them both.  They came home dirty and tired, so I guess it was a success.

Biking Adventure

We took the bikes to Eklutna Lake on Saturday night and rode around.  We didn't leave the house until 7:00, but we had plenty of daylight left.  It was so much fun and the views were beautiful. 

We ended the ride with Smore's....not my favorite, but the boys were in heaven.

 This is the picture I took as we were driving home, it was 11:30 PM!

Rafting

Some friends invited us to go rafting on the Matanuska River.  We left the house at 5:00 and drove 1 1/2 hours, loaded the boats and away we went.  I looked at my watch as we were floating down the river and it said 9:30pm....now where else could you go rafting in the evening and get home at 12:00 midnight and still have daylight?  It was a lot of fun!

Trek continued

I don't have many pictures from Trek (more to come), but my friend Cherie emailed me a couple she had taken.

Before they left:

Nathan's Trek family:

Out on the trail:

Fishing in Alaska

Since Jared has finished his military testing, he has had lots of free time, and the boys have benefitted with multiple fishing trips.  He has been taking them every weekend!  Josh is doing so well and loving every minute of it, as his smile shows!  Nathan hasn't been quite as lucky as Josh, but he is still enjoying himself.  This last trip Josh caught this Rainbow trout and he was so excited and couldn't wait to tell me and Grandpa Swenson!

FYI:  The reason his waders are so big is that we had to go up in size to get the right shoe size
(size 9)....dang kids, when will their feet stop growing?

Pioneer Trek

Jared and Nathan are leaving for Trek today!  The get to dress like pioneers and pull handcarts for 4 days here in Alaska!  I know, doesn't sound like much fun, but I am actually sad I can't go!