Travel + Goodbyes

We had, hands down, the best summer.

But before we knew it, summer vacation was over.  

Our house was packed up, and our tickets said: 

August 12th PDX-ANC 9:45am

 So we met family at the airport and prepared to say goodbye.

 Goodbye to best friends...

 Goodbye to grandparents...

 Goodbye to cousins...

 {This pretty much represents how we all felt about it.}

Leaving these awesome loved ones after months spent making memories with them was heartbreaking.  When Gustav (the cutie in the red shirt) started crying, I lost my resolve and shed some tears as well.

But goodbyes were said, last hugs were given, and after checking 10 pieces of luggage and three car seats, we were off.

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 We meandered slowly, sadly, through PDX to find our gate.

 Having made it through security like old pros, we were relieved to slow down and breathe for a bit.

We even found a small play space for the kids so Josh and I could have a morning muffin before embarking on our journey.

Rather quickly it was time to board our plane.

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 Portland to Anchorage:

Our fourth son, Emmet, joined us.  

Kept us safe from the Kragle, he did.

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Anchorage Airport:

Our kids were awesome travelers.  Three hours+ on the plane, and nary a tear.  I was so proud of them.  Once we arrived, Logan Wyatt and I stayed with the luggage while Josh and Jack went to get the rental car.  

Our Stay in Anchorage:

 Once we had all our luggage and children situated in the rental car (which cost $250 for less than 24 hours) we headed to lunch.

 Then we took two of our totes to the post office.

And accompanied Josh to his doctor appointment.

 That night we got the kids settled in, picked up a pizza and I volunteered to stay if Josh would do our bush order by himself.

 He was a saint and did.

(Placing a bush order consists of filling a grocery cart or two with non-perishable items and pushing it back to the "Bush Department" in Walmart.  There you fill out a slip of paper with your PO Box, opting for a COD -Cash On Delivery- so you can write a check when the boxes they send arrive at the post office.  During peak season, which we are in, it can take a few weeks to receive your goods.  Other times of the year, it can arrive in as little as one week.)

 Meanwhile the kids and I watched cartoons 

and read stories on ABCMouse.com.

The next morning we had continental breakfast, showered and packed up.  

Anchorage to Bethel:

Then it was off to the airport.

 The boys were tickled orange when they saw this Honda Pilot (the same car we have in Washington) that was a Taxi!

 Once again, I waited with two kids while Josh and Logan returned the rental car.

Jack escorted Wyatt around the airport, showing him the wild animal displays.

 Then we waited some more.

Once Josh and Logan returned, we got in line to check our luggage.  This time we only had nine pieces of luggage (plus five backpacks and three car seats) but with only two adults, it still felt like a whole heck of a lot to tote around.

The process of waiting is long.

And boring.

 Which can, in some cases,

produce tantruming.

... I won't say for sure if we had any of that.
;)

 After our luggage was checked and we made it (again) through security (shoes off, ma'am; laptops out; any liquids must be removed from your carry ons...) we headed out into the slushy rain to get on our plane.

These crazy kids were my seat mates.

 Which meant there was MUCH fighting over armrests, feet space and who got which snacks.

Thankfully the flight from Anchorage to Bethel was only an hour long.

Hallelujah.

We arrived in Bethel at the Alaska Airlines terminal, gathered our luggage and caught the third ERA van that came over to the ERA terminal.  Our wait there was to be four hours.  Thankfully Josh had gotten McDonald's for the boys to eat on the plane from Anchorage, so we had full bellies, and I had withheld screens so they'd have something to look forward to while stuck at ERA.

 We played video games, watched movies,

and listened to stories.

Bethel to Marshall:

The four hours passed uneventfully and boy were we happy when the pilot called for the Cunningham family!

We climbed aboard a tiny 207 (seats five, plus two pilots) with only half our luggage and departed for Marshall.

The other half of our luggage was on another plane headed for Marshall with more people.

We waited our turn on the runway, then off we flew.

Wyatt sat with Josh and promptly fell asleep.
He always does on the small planes.

Our big boys sat side by side in the back of the plane, calm as could be.

So I sat back and enjoyed the ride.

{Bethel}

{Can you spot the moose?}

{What about this one?}

{Fish camp near Marshall}

{Mt. Pilcher}

{Marshall Airport/Runway}

{Ariel view of Marshall & the old airport}

As always I was happy to put my feet back on the ground.
Marshall is as beautiful as ever.

{In the truck with Wyatt}

We were joyfully greeted by a whole band of children near the teacher housing who were overjoyed to see their beloved Mr. C and his family.

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Home.
We are home.

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