Eklutna Lake

 I've been wanting to visit Eklutna Lake with the kiddos for awhile now, so I was glad we finally went with a friend and her kids. It was beautiful in Anchorage, but windy in Eklutna. I was so glad we stayed and didn't chase the sunshine in Anchorage.

 Eklutna Lake is off the Glenn Highway, exit at Mile 26. Follow all the signs about 10 miles to the lake. You can camp as well, but I've heard it has become really popular and hard to get a site. If you plan on camping, get there early.

 Quick fact, Anchorage residents get their drinking water from Eklutna Lake.

We brought lunch and had a picnic. The adventure started with throwing rocks.

  Then it moved to looking for frogs in the grass. Did you know we have frogs here? Yea, wood frogs! They freeze in the winter time and thaw as temperatures warm! Crazy huh?

Then to climbing dead tree stumps. I collected driftwood for a future Pinterest project.

 The boys explored. My friend and I were so amazed how long they stayed in the water. We put our feet in and it HURT!

  I LOVED watching my kids play. No plastic toys. They were entertained for hours with the water, sticks, clay and rocks.

The boys found the clay.

The girls splashed.

  We watched kayakers paddle out. There was also an older man swimming laps in the lake.

  I collected a bucket full of the clay to make pottery for later.

  Then we had to stop by Rochelle's Ice Cream Stop. They are open everyday from 10a to 9pm in the summer. They open Mother's Day and generally close for the season on Labor Day. It was delicious!

  We sat at picnic tables while we ate. After the kids scarfed the ice cream down, they ran around. I don't know where they got the energy from because we just spent hours exploring Eklutna Lake!

 "Kora, can I have a bite?"

"No!"

 This was another beautiful site for us mommies.

A great time to visit is in the fall as well.....which is right around the corner. (SIGH)



What To Expect Books Giveaway (Closed)

 Seems like forever ago that I was pregnant with my first child. That was almost 6 years ago, not really forever. But man does time fly!! I remember the first book I got when I found out I was pregnant, What To Expect When Expecting. I read through those chapters every month. Sometimes I would read the next month because I was so excited to see how my baby was growing. My favorite part of the book was the pictures month to month of the baby.

  Honestly, I was overwhelmed. Pregnancy was a new thing for me (obviously) so I was reading and researching all that I could. This book has A LOT of information. This is a great book to have on your shelf for a resource to go back to. It's actually kind of intimidating when you open the book and see mostly text and few pictures. BUT it's worth it. You have a question, you can probably find it in this book.
  I was actually contacted by What To Expect and they wanted to offer me three of their books for a giveaway! Lucky you!! I already knew What To Expect When Expecting was a great book to have on my shelf so I was excited to get the other two books.

 Honestly, I was overwhelmed (seems I've been overwhlemed a lot since having kids!) looking at those 3 books when they came in the mail. Those are some thick books! It takes me a whole day to read an article in a magazine, so I knew I wasn't going to get through these books anytime soon. I'm also on my third kid and my youngest is turning 2 so I've been there, done that, got the t-shirt... stretch marks, c-section scars and saggy boobs.

 What To Expect The First Year has some great topics. It goes through every month after the baby is born and touches on almost every subject. From breastfeeding, child care, feeding baby and more. I like that it has first aid do's and don'ts. I've visited this area in The Baby Book a time or two. I'm glad to have another book on the shelf to resort to when one of my kids are sick at 2 am.

  What To Expect The Second Year is a smaller book, does this mean it gets easier?! Cha, right! This book talks about toddlers eating, sleeping, their behavior, disciplining, heath and more. Like I said before, great resource book to have, especailly when they start becoming little people with minds!

 What To Expect also has a wealth of information on their ever changing web site. You can become a member and get advice from other moms. I think moms need a network of other moms. I'm SOOOO thankful for my mommy friends that lend an ear to vent or give me sage advice when I'm at my wits end.

Alright Jamie, get to the good stuff, what about the giveaway?! What To Expect is giving away 2 copies of each book! There are up to four chances to win one of these books, be sure to follow the directions.

 You have to go through the rafflecopter entry at the bottom, comments on the blog itself will not count! PLEASE< PLEASE do this, I really don't want to chase people down because I want people to win. Just follow the directions. =) PLEASE!!

Good Luck and happy reading!

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