Daily Archives: June 8, 2010

Anniversary Weekend – Part 2

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Both Craig and I love the outdoors, so it was only natural we chose to go sea kayaking for our anniversary!! Neither of us have been sea kayaking before. We have kayaked on lakes and rivers before, but that isn’t quite the same as the vast, cold ocean waters.

We started the morning with a beautiful, sunny drive to Whittier, AK–only about 30 minutes from Girdwood.

In order to get to Whittier, you have to drive through a tunnel–a tunnel that literally goes through the mountain range!!

The entrance into the tunnel/mountain.

Inside the tunnel/mountain.

Once we got to Whittier, we found the outfitter – Alaska Sea Kayakers – and put on all of our gear of for the trip. We were decked out in waterproof pants; tall, waterproof boots; the kayak “skirt” that closed off the opening; and a life jacket.

Then it was time to walk down to the harbor to start our adventure.

We loaded our things up. . . .

and were on our way!!



We saw a ton of waterfalls!! Now that the snow is melting off the mountains, waterfalls were everywhere. I love waterfalls!! I also love the sound they make!!

After kayaking for about 1.5 hours, we stopped to have some (much needed) lunch. I am always extremely hungry the day after my long runs, so I filled up on a lot of food.

During our lunch, we had some visitors!!! (Can you spot them?)

Two black bears!! (FYI: My “one-with-nature” husband spotted them.) Luckily they were pretty far away, but it definitely reminded us that we were in the wild!!

On our trip we also saw bald eagles, seals, a seal lion, and tons of birds.

We kayaked for another 3.5 hours after lunch–my arms were extremely tired by the end!!

It was a beautiful day for kayaking in Prince William Sound!! We had a wonderful time on our trip. Our outfitter provided us with top-quality equipment and a great guide, Victor, who was very knowledgeable, kept safety as a priority, and taught us how to kayak in the ocean.

After our kayaking excursion, we grabbed a bit to eat at Varly’s Swiftwater Seafood Cafe. We know the owners from church, so we stopped in to get some food and say “hi.” We had an excellent meal and awesome service!!

Even though the sun made it seem like 3:00 p.m., it was time to head home, unpack, and get some rest.

Questions:
If you came to Alaska, what is one thing you would be sure to do?

If you live here, what is your favorite thing to do during the summer?

Breakfast Eats

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Breakfast is my absolute favorite meal!!

I am not really sure why, but I love oatmeal, pancakes, cereal, French toast, bagels. . . .maybe it’s my love of sweets and carbs?!?!?

Anyway, here are of some of my favorite breakfast foods.

Green Monster Smoothie

Yes, this smoothie does contain a large amount of spinach, but they taste SO good you would never know it was spinach!! Trust me–even my husband, who doesn’t like “healthy tasting” food loves these!!


Ingredients:

3/4 – 1 cup milk or milk substitute  (I’ve found almond milk and soy milk to be the best.)

1 tablespoon protein powder  (I use soy protein powder.)

1 tablespoon almond butter

1/2 frozen banana (Advice: peel banana before freezing.)

fill blender to top with spinach

Directions:

Blend until smooth, rich, and creamy!!!

Oatmeal

I love oatmeal!!! You can add so many different things to it each time to keep it interesting.

Ingredients:

1/4 cup old-fashioned oats

1/4 cup milk

1/4 cup water

1 teaspoon chia seeds

1/2 banana, sliced

1 teaspoon pure maple syrup (I’ve gotta feed that sweet tooth!)

Directions:

Add all ingredients to a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Simmer for 4-5 minutes or until liquid has been absorbed by the oats.

Optional add-ins:

- peanut butter

- Greek yogurt

- coconut

- fresh fruit

- dried fruit (dried cherries are a favorite of mine)

Oats In A Jar

Oats in a jar (OIAJ) is a favorite among many flood bloggers. You simply take an almost-empty nut butter jar (i.e. peanut butter, almond butter, etc.) and add your hot oatmeal to the jar instead of a bowl and put the lid on. The hot oatmeal melts the nut butter and you can then easily clean out your jar without any food going to waste!!

One time I had OIAJ in this bulk sized peanut butter jar since we buy our peanut butter from Costco. It was so fun to eat out of!!!

Egg and Turkey Breakfast Thin

The following is actually a breakfast Craig created. I’ve made something similar, but his was definitely prettier than mine.

Here’s what it included:

- toasted whole-wheat sandwich thin

- tomato

- fresh spinach

- deli turkey meat fried in frying pan

- over easy egg

- shredded cheese

- hot sauce

I snagged a bite and it was definitely delicious!! A perfect combination of carbs and protein!!

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With all this talk about food. . . I’m hungry. Oh wait, I’m always hungry.