SUPER DUPER EXCITED

Well as most of you know, ok, all of you know… I am very very excited to be coming HOME, to Illinois in June. I do love it up here, and I love my job, but I miss my family and friends more than I can express.  They can never be replaced by the beauty of Alaska and the life I have up here.  So I am looking forward to being home this summer so much.

I found out earlier today I should be able to purchase my plane tickets HOME this week.  I am so excited.  I know my sister Amber is planning to take the day off work when I arrive home, which will be AWESOME!!!  So, as soon as I know my date of arrive I will let everyone know.  I am sure I will spend one night in Mattoon, so I can see my family an

d friends there before I head south to Jasper/Richland county to see family and friends there. Since I start my job soon after arriving home, I will only a few days to make my rounds to see everyone and get settled in my summerhouse.  I know Lisa and Sarah will have everything ready for me… which is awesome, I will have little to do!

Now, traveling home is such an experience...

1^st a bush plan out of the village to Fairbanks...  A bush plane for those of you who have not heard me describe it is like the Ron White joke…  The pilot uses the microphone system to say they lost and engine when really he could just turn around and say, hey we lost and engine… RIGHT heard ya…. 

A bush plane holds 8 passengers, a pilot and a co-pilot. But I have never been on a plane when there has been a co-pilot, sometimes a passenger will sit in the seat or it will be empty.  Most of the plane holds cargo, like mail, stuff for the store and passengers luggage.  I usually try to take some motion sickness pills and get a good nap in during this flight.

Then probably a night or two stay in Fairbanks, which is nice, I can go shopping,(for Alaskan souvenirs) go out to eat, and enjoy what Alaska has to offer out of the village!  Then from Fairbanks, I get on a big plane... yes, that is what we call them.... we even call 19 hundreds big planes, (a 19 hundred is a 19 passenger plane) but I will get on a big plane in Fairbanks, which will take me to either Anchorage or Seattle...

From there, I get the long, long flight to Chicago... This flight is so long, I am not really all that found of flying anyway, but when I have to be on a plane for 6 hours, it makes it even worse....  BUT TOTALLY WORTH IT!  OK, so after I arrive in Chicago, I will probably take the amtrak from Chicago to Mattoon.  I really like to travel on the train, it is very relaxing.  As most of you know I took the train from Chicago to Seattle back in August, it was a very interesting 49 hour trip. I plan to make that trip again sometime too.

After I arrive in Mattoon hopefully Amber or Jason will be able to pick me up at the train station!!!  I know it is still 63 days away, but I am just so excited to get HOME!!!  I will keep my blog updated on my trip home.. and yes, I will still blog about Alaska... I am just so excited to get home it is kind of the only think I have been thinking about lately...

Hope everyone has a great week.

lots of LOVE from Alaska..