Alaska, Here We Come

For the next week we traveled by boat/ship and foot, even a shuttle bus too.

This was our first glimpse of this Grand Princess cruise ship.

I told my "live-in gardener" that if they served tea in the dining room, we would have tea one afternoon. And certainly there was a teatime while floating north along the Canadian shoreline.

 

At the center of the ship there was often games or live music. We thoroughly enjoyed having tea while watching the view. There were so many kids on the cruise, it was fun to watch them play and just be free to wander throughout this very large boat.

Another past time I thoroughly enjoyed was sitting out on the deck to watch for whales and sea life. From the deck we spotted a few whales, but also later on many glaciers.

This view was taken before we left Vancouver BC. It was a lovely sunny day and everyone we out on deck to watch the departure. I was amazed that even on a cloudy day the kids on the ship were enjoying one of the three swimming pools.

Another one of the pools.

After a day at sea we arrived in Alaska.

First stop was Ketchikan.

We took off on our own, by foot, to explore. The naturalist on the ship said make sure and view the Creek in town; so walking past totem pools we searched out the creek.

And here it is. It was a nature highlight for us and we were so happy we found it.

I wish you could see the salmon swimming up-stream to spawn or the otters and seal swimming in to fish. We were mesmerized.

 

There were several art studios and shops nearby with this one lovely salmon sculpture showing the way.

Oh those crows do love shiny objects. I loved this studio with their nature art.

I wish I could have snapped a whale picture here for you, but believe me when I say "there is a whale out there". It was probably a humpback whale. Just the evening light while sitting on the deck enchanted me.

And we said good night as we left Ketchikan, Alaska.

Sending love,

Marilyn

Travels with Mimi Vancouver BC

 Over the next week I will share some glimpses of traveling this month. I am calling myself Mimi in this post because that is what those dear to me call me.

Earlier this month my "live-in gardener" husband and I left our little apartment and ventured to Vancouver, BC and then on to Alaska. We always said when we get older we will go to Alaska. Suddenly we realized we were older and had better do it now. Actually by the end of this trip we realized we should have done it sooner. Alaska is gorgeous, but our old bodies just could not always keep up with doing the hiking we would have loved doing. 

That all said, we still enjoyed the adventure; but came home exhausted. It was sometimes just the little things that jumped out and grabbed us, life this pretty little bouquet in a gorgeous little coffee/flower shop across from our hotel in Vancouver, BC. 

The shop was like a gift given twice while we visited this amazing city.

The one full day that we were in Vancouver, BC we decided to take the Greyline On-Off bus and tour the city. If we had more time and energy we would have explored more. The next few pictures were taken at the one stop we did enjoy in Stanley Park. What an amazing park.

We enjoyed exploring the rose garden; though really it was much more than just roses.

It was a blue sky day and just gorgeous for a walk in the garden.

There was a wedding just about to happen. Wouldn't this be a beautiful wedding venue?

There were bike paths all around the park, an aquarium, plus gorgeous views of the water and city.

As you travel along with me this week you will find beside traveling by foot, we fully took advantage of shuttle buses, airplanes, cars/taxis, boat, and train. It was an adventure of technology and nature.

It had been a long time since we had visited Vancouver BC.

The multitude of tall buildings astounded us.

People out walking everywhere.

This was near the terminal where the next day we would hop on a ship.

Come along with me as we travel to Alaska.

Though the goal was indeed Alaska, we thoroughly enjoyed this city.

See you tomorrow.

Sending love,

Marilyn

Wow! Moments

 "Honor the WOW moments in life!" and the Quiet moments too!

After looking through old pictures on my computer I realized the "Wow" moments come quietly, like the gentle way the sun shines on the petals of a flower in the garden or the water sparkles on the sea. Most often my WOW! moments are connected to nature or the arts, such as a beautiful painting, dance, or music.

Recently Instagram has decided I need more music in my life and they post things for me to notice. Some of the music has touched my heart. I find myself saying "Wow"!!!

Art always intrigues me. I wonder 
"how did someone actually do it and what was their inspiration?"

The light and darkness, the shadows delight.

How is it that the light just captures the three cups, yet holds the fruit in the shadow?

The sunlight enhances the petals of a flower.

I love chatting with the birds or animals that cross my path. This parrot enchanted me. But the cat that shows up on my patio at unexpected morning moments will pause when spoken to and I say "Wow" "you are comforted by my voice".

The water sparkles on a slightly foggy day.

Light guides the way. It says here I am, follow me, notice what you notice.

What makes you say "Wow"?

I am planning on some "Wow" moments in the next 2 weeks, as I adventure to Alaska. I am sure there will be some nature involved, but maybe even a song. How I would love to hear the songs of a whale, a bird, or the strum of a guitar.

Sending love,

Marilyn

It Makes me Happy!

 When I was a young girl I dreamt of designing clothes. I would take small scraps of cloth and hand-stitch them into clothes for my dolls. But growing up in a conservative family I knew the only thing allowed was to be a wife, mother, or maybe a secretary. I kept my dream locked up tight. The high school counselor suggested I attend business school and become a secretary. My mother made the same suggestion. The only other acceptable family push was to attend a "Christian college" and find a husband, which I did. My secret remained and I worked in offices until I had children.

I would design and make clothes for myself and my two children.

As I was approaching 40 years I asked myself what do I still want to do. My children were more independent. I finally let the secret out and told my husband I wanted to go back to school. After much hard work I graduated with a degree in Apparel Design. The illustrations you see here were done during my time in design school. I hadn't looked at them in a very long time. 

Yes, that is me in those snap shots!

My mind has a bit of an engineering thought process and I ended up working for Jantzen, Inc. as a patternmaker. It was a good career choice and I loved it. When I retired I was working for Nike as a technical designer. A technical designer needed the patternmaking background and good writing skills. I worked with an amazing design team to develop street clothes, making sure the garment fit correctly and the quality was up to the standards of the company. I was the final approval before it went to production. My career makes me very proud of myself.

One of the 100's of sportswear outfits I worked on at Jantzen, Inc.

Now in writing this I was thinking we must acknowledge our dreams and gifts in every step through life, not just our careers. I have heard it said "what do you want to do with your one, beautiful life?" It is so important for our hearts to do the big things, but also the little things.

It's also important to encourage those around us to follow their dreams.

She doesn't look happy, but she shines. In shining and following her dreams, she is happy. She puts on her sparkle and shines, she dances.

I danced too, which is a story for another day.

The spirit of creativity still sits in the center of my heart. Each time I do something creative, even writing these posts, it satisfies my heart. It makes me happy. 

Just a little peak of my past dreams come true, living the dream.

Sending love,

Marilyn