A long winter...

I keep wanting to get inspired by the summery things I'm seeing lately, but our snow is still sticking around here.  In fact, as I type, there is a thick snowfall coming down outside.  At the end of April.  There are no words...

Anyway, we just got back from a visit to Anchorage.  My husband had some work to do there, so the kids and I went along.  

This drive is so beautiful.  My favorite part is going through Wasilla, with the surrounding mountains.

 

We packed lightly since our hotel has a washer and dryer. 

I was planning to rent a small U-Haul to bring home some stuff and not have to worry about stuffing it all in, but apparently there are no cargo trailers in the whole city of Anchorage.  

This was our car on the way home. 

Seriously.  That was after I returned a bunch of stuff to Target (and reordered it online, haha).  It was a masterful arrangement to get it all in, but I did.

 Poor kids.  I know it's unsafe in case of an accident.  I did the best I could to secure it all, but I was helpless in this case.  We really need to invest in a roof rack (who ever heard of an SUV with no roof rack?)

 

 The kids and I visited Target nearly every day...sometimes twice.

 

I love pretty much everything about Target; the prices, the pretty stuff, the calm atmosphere, the Starbucks...

 

I adore the Threshhold line.  It's all pretty gorgeous.

 

 

 I love the frames they have, especially the little details like paper and fabric lining.  I saw a lot of inspiration in there for redoing some of my old frames.

 

Costco was super fun. Sam's Club is just not the same as Costco.   I was especially excited to bring home new towels and pillows.

The 5th Avenue Mall is really nice. The kids love the 4 level see-through elevator and the parking garage.

I was going to take some sweet pics at the lovely mall, but their security informed me that photography is prohibited in every area of the mall unless I get permission from the store.  Ridiculous yes, but what can you do?

It was nice to get out of town for a while, but it also served as a reminder of all that I love about Fairbanks.  The interior of Alaska has an independent and homey feel that the big city cannot live up to.  Anchorage is still weird, as is nearly everything in Alaska, but it lacks the charm that the smaller areas offer.

I'm glad to be home.  

Tomorrow I'll share a couple of the other fun places we went to.