Newest Members of the Cavanna Family!

This fall has been quite busy at our house!!! We are very happy to announce the newest members of the Cavanna Family. Please welcome ....

Luigi & Lily!

Our babies are half Dachshund and half Rat Terrier and were born on June 1st, 2008. We brought them home on September 14th -- 8 years to-the-day from when Rob & I started dating.

Luigi (green collar) is a crazy pup! He loves to go tearing around the house, but usually has problems stopping. His favorite pass-time is to chase his sister around and around the couches downstairs. He is a very sweet boy, but he's a bit of a weenie. He sometimes gets scared of his reflection in the sliding glass door and he likes to bark at bigger dogs ... and then run and hide behind you so that they can't get him.

Our Lily-bug (pink collar) is more dappled than her brother. She has one brown eye and one blue eye -- we call it her bionic eye. She is definitely more brave, but more mellow than her brother. She's mischevious and is most definitely a "daddy's girl."

The pups have taken over our hearts ... and our couches!

P.S.: Just for the record, the pups were not thrilled with their Halloween costumes, as you can see from the look on Lily's face. The only way we could get them to sit still for five minutes was to bribe them with their favorite treat!

We're back to Seattle for the rest of the trip. While I don't think I can ever get enough of the Alaskan scenery, it was nice to be back under a sun-lit sky after all of that rain. We ended up staying at the Westin for the next few days while taking in the sights.


Not really knowing what to do, Shelley and I bought the Seattle City Pass, an inexpensive way to see the city. Our first day out, we ended up checking out the Seattle Aquarium and the bay cruise. That's a picture of the Blue Angels practicing over the bay during our cruise.


After the bay cruise, Shelley and I finished the day at Pike Place Brewery. Great food and beer are what you can expect at this place. I recommend any of the burgers along with a pint or three of the Kilt Lifter.

Victoria, CA

This was our last stop before heading back to Seattle... Victoria, Canada on Vancouver Island. This was another short stop, only lasting from about 7:30 in the evening until about 11:00. Not much you can do with that little time. Shelley and I took a walk and admired the scenery and architecture, only stopping for a short break at Darcy's Pub near the water line. Back to the ship to head home...

Timberrrrrrrrrrrrrr!!!

Ketchikan, Alaska. The home of the Great Alaskan Lumberjack Show. Remember that nice sunny day we had in Sitka (read the last post)? It didn't follow us to Ketchikan. This is one of those places that reminds you that the jacket you bought at Old Navy 8 years ago is water "resistant" and not water proof.

Despite the rain, Ketchikan was a nice town. We only got to stay a short while... until 1:00 in the afternoon, but that was enough time to catch the lumberjack show, Canada and USA in a gut wrenching, heart pumping battle of chain saws, axes, and very slippery logs. As corny as it sounds, the show was a pretty entertaining mix of comedy and skill with sharp objects. That picture is one of the last images of that little boy before being sawed in half by team Canada... just kidding. The boy is fine.

Sitka - Is that the sun?

Apparently, Sitka, Alaska gets about 5 days of sunshine per year. Fortunately, we got one of them. Shelley and I signed up to do a hike in the rain forest and were told to expect a grueling and soaking day. Lo and behold, when we arrive on land, the clouds part and we're in for a beautiful day.

"Did you say rain forest in Alaska?" Yes. Alaska has a lot of trees and rain which equals rain forest. Apparently they also have really shy bears cause we never saw one despite all of the recent sightings of a mama and her cubs. Nevertheless, we got to see a lot of small wildlife include banana slugs and some other mean looking slugs that like to attack the banana slugs. I was going to eat one then I remembered I'm not starring on Man vs Wild so I passed.

This is Shelley and I in front of a large body of water with jumping salmon. You can't tell in this picture, but there's a lot of salmon getting ready to jump... trust me. We also found some really tiny crabs hiding under the rocks on the shore. Our guide said that to prove you are a real Alaskan, you have to eat one. Thankfully, since I'm neither Alaskan, nor do I star on Man vs Wild, I didn't have to eat one. I'm getting enough calories on the ship, thank you very much.

Glacier Bay

Glacier Bay is otherwise known as the highlight of the trip. You know that moment when you get your first 50" HDTV, you flip on Discovery Channel, and they are doing some nature show about how global warming is melting the glaciers? No I'm not going into a rant about global warming. It's just that seeing these glaciers up so close was one of the most awe-inspiring sights and I'll never forget it.

Keep in mind that the Amsterdam was one of the smaller boats we saw going through the inside passage in Alaska. Thanks to the size (or maybe the captain was intoxicated) we got to pull right up to Marjorie, one of the most awesome glaciers you'll ever see. Not 20 minutes after we pulled up to Marjorie, a huge section of the glacier (must have been about 8 stories high) started to crack and then it fell into the water. That got our attention.

To our right, the park ranger was standing with her jaw dropped as this massive wall of 200-year-old ice slid into the water. To the front, about halfway between the ship and the glacier, was a group of adventurers on kayaks, unexpectedly caught face to face with a pretty menacing wave. They did what they were taught to do and turned into the wave, avoiding a very cold dip in Glacier Bay. Thankfully no one was hurt.

At last... Juneau

After a grueling night out in the open ocean, we have finally arrived at Juneau. It's raining, but Shelley and I were prepared with our waterproof jackets. If you forget a jacket, you can buy water resistant jacket with a hood at the gift shop just outside of the ship for about $20.

Now let me do you a favor and help you get around Juneau for a bit less than the cruise will charge you. Let's say you want to visit the glacier? That will be $7 billion euros (I choose euros because the dollar is a bit of a pansy at the moment) plus the souls of 8 defenseless kittens if you opt to go with the cruise excursions. Orrrr.... when you get off the boat, you can take the bus for $14 round trip every 20-30 minutes.

Mendenhall glacier is the first glacier I have ever seen. It was like watching Expedition Alaska on Discovery, but somehow you figured out how to get the 1080p working on the new 74' (that's foot not inches) LCD television. It was a cold and rainy day, but we got some nice pictures of the glacier and had a nice time hiking around the park.

So after freezing and soaking yourself into a chilled raisin for about 2 hours, what better way to warm up than to have some beer. That's right. I'm talking about the Alaskan Brewery in Juneau. But let me stop and save you some money. The cruise will happily book an excursion to the brewery for $90+ per person... on a bike. Hmmm... something doesn't sound right here. Bike riding and beer tasting (in my case gulping) go together like rollerblading on a Nascar track mid-race with a blindfold. Not a good idea. How about taking the bus for $3 per person to the brewery. It's about a 1/2 mile from the bus stop and here's the best part... THE BEER TASTING IS FREE.

When you get to the brewery, the nice brew master (pictured above) will hand you a glass and start you on the light beer. It's all good beer but I am partial to the Alaskan Amber. Shelley and I almost got through the beer line twice. The tour isn't so much a tour as it is a story-telling session in the middle of the brewery. Every so often, if the brew master sees too many empty glasses, he stops the tour for some refills. But all good things must come to an end. Shelley and I took the bus back into town and ended up at the Red Dog saloon and met some new friends that happened to be on the same cruise, and surprisingly, close to our age. It's a nice little bar with some live music and plenty of Alaskan Amber.

More pictures of Juneau? Go to Picasa.

A Day At Sea

Well it's our first full day on the boat.. err.. ship as we sail towards Juneau Alaska. Keep in mind, we are currently on the outside of the inside passage... Translation: Those are really big waves. That's a view of the indoor pool as the ship plows through the huge swells. If you look closely, you can see the remnants of the children who were repeatedly slammed against either wall of the pool. Good times though.

Any activities on this cruise? Well I decided that today would be as good as any other to hit the treadmill and start hammering away at those calories from day 1. 5 miles shoud do it. No sense in coming home looking like Jabba the Hut. Keep in mind that we are still plowing through 865 foot waves. Actually I have no idea how big they are... I just know the ship is moving a bit more than any ship should. Any minute now they're going to start calling the passengers to help drop a few crab pots. I didn't think the Bering sea was on the way to Juneau. Anyway, I'm running on the treadmill which happens to be on the top of the boat in the front. If you're going to feel the boat move, this is the best place to do it. I don't remember pressing the incline button, but apparently my treadmill has an off-road simulator. I've only made it 1.7 of my 5 miles, but that's good enough for me. I get to walk away with my lunch and no broken bones from being catapulted into the weights behind me.


Dinner Time
Shelley and I decided to book dinner in the "reservations, jacket, and tie required" restaurant in the ship. The restaurant is called the Pinnacle Grill and to my taste buds' delight, they serve all sorts of quality cow parts. Shelley ordered the filet mignon, and I had the 22oz porterhouse. [Insert drooling sounds here]

While this was the most delicious steak I've ever sunk my pearly off-whites into, neither one of us could stomach the movement of the ship for too long. Or perhaps it was the $14 double Captain and Coke that did me in. Needless to say, we both turned in for the evening right after dinner. Don't worry... there was no encore to the dinner. A few seasick pills later and we were both out.

For more photos from this day, visit Picasa. I must say that was some odd presentation with the crab cakes.

Off to Alaska... Part II

Well it's about time Shelley and I took a real vacation. We took the 7-day Alaskan cruise leaving out of Seattle.

• Seattle
• At Sea
• Juneau
• Glacier Bay
• Sitka
• Ketchikan
• Victoria (Canada)
• Seattle

Not much action the first day other than the obligatory life vest drill and the great views of the Seattle skyline on the way out of port. Oh and did I mention that we both consumed about 9000 calories just for walking onto the cruise ship? Well now I mentioned it.

Let me introduce you to the ship. We are on the Amsterdam, a really big boat from the Holland America cruise line. Actually, it may be one of the smaller boats sailing the Alaskan inside passage.

First impressions?
It's a bit early for a full review of the cruise, but so far, I have to say that the state room seems bigger than other ocean view state rooms on other ships, and the food is better. "What was the first thing you ate when you got on the ship?" you ask. It was the prime rib. I'm sure there was other food, but I was in a food coma by about 5:00 p.m.

For more day 1 photos, visit Picasa.

Off to Alaska ... Part I

Taking Off...
We were so very excited for the first day of vacation to finally arrive! Even though our plane didn't leave until 5:45 pm, we both made the decision to take the day off from the "w" word.

Explanation: We made a deal not to talk about or mention the "w" word - work - on the trip at all. For every infraction, the user would have to put $1 in the kitty ... Rob has tactically changed the name to "My PlayStation 3 Fund" ... which is usually followed by a lengthy explanation of Blue-Ray DVD's vs. HD-DVD's and how PS3 is the cheapest Blue Ray player around, so if I let him buy a "Blue-Ray" player, it would be like we're geting a free PS3. Right -- I digress ...

After a leisurly morning of laundry, packing and some housecleaning, plus a couple of detours to Jamba Juice, Subway and Target, we were on our way. The flight from Sacramento to Seattle was super uneventful, with some pretty amazing views of Mount Rainier from the plane.

Mr. Habib's Wild Ride
We splurged on a cab ... little did we know, but this would become a bit of theme for the trip ... to make the trip from the airport to downtown Seattle and ended up with a cab driver whose navigation/driving skills resulted in a ride on par with the boat to Bishevo! Apparently he didn't believe in gradualy turning the wheel to make a turn or go around a curve-- NAY NAY! He would go straight for as long as he possibly could and then at the very last nano-second, he'd whipp the car around. Luckily he drove around 85 MPH so the 14 mile drive was (thankfully) over before we knew it.

We arrived relatively unscathed at the Renaissance Hotel, where they graciously gave us a room with a great view of the city from the 18th floor. Room 1812 to be exact ~ like Rob said, "You know, as in 'War of ...'"

Safe and Sound
We were starving and were on the point of venturing out in search of some reasonably-priced food, when Rob asked, "Are you sure Seattle is a safe enough city to be wandering around at night?" It looked fine -- nice and clean with quite a few people still walking around -- so I said, "Of course," and I kid you not, that very moment we looked out the front door and saw this crazy homeless man go running by, flailing his arms and screaming at the top of his lungs -- yet another recurring vacation theme, but more about that later!

We opted for a quiet dinner of beer and clam chowder bread bowls in the safety of the hotel's restaurant instead.

Camping at Ice House

Shelley, being the trail blazer we all know, came up with the idea for some last-minute camping this weekend. I got the call around Noon while hunting for the drip irrigation aisle at Lowe's and by 2:00, we were on our way out of town to what we hoped would be a camp ground with a bit of vacancy.

For those of you who aren't familiar with Ice House Reservoir, it's about 1 1/2 hour drive from Rancho Cordova towards South Lake Tahoe. The camp sites are right next to... you guessed it... Ice House Reservoir. This also happens to be the location of last year's igloo camping trip... I can say no more... What happens at igloo camping, stays at igloo camping.

Needless to say (I'm going to say it anyway since this is a blog) this was one of the most relaxing weekends Shelley and I have shared in a while. Most of Saturday afternoon/evening was spent reading in front of the best view of the lake. Dinner involved some hot dogs and self-heating chili (left over from the igloo camping trip). Do the math and that's camping with chili dogs.

This was also a nice opportunity to start consuming some of the wine we had bought in Fair Play (see last post for more details).

Fair Play Wine Tasting

Shelley and I got up this morning invigorated for a morning hike. However, since California is mostly on fire these days, we decided to detour to Fair Play, CA and taste some wine. We only hit two places in Fair Play:

Windwalker Vineyards - Very friendly people and good wine. I'd tell you what we bought, but the bottles are downstairs and I'm feeling lazy at the moment... wait, I remember we got the port. Did you know you can't call it Port anymore unless the wine comes from Portugal? Me neither.
http://www.windwalkervineyard.com/

Mt. Aukum Winery - Also good wine, but a bit dry for my taste. The Zinfandel was very good so we bought a bottle. It's a nice drive up to the winery... just make sure your car can handle the climb. I imagine that we would have some nice photos to share in this post, but most of the view was obstructed by all of the smoke.
http://www.mountaukumwinery.com/

Father's Day, Racing, and a Piano

I learned something new today. If you're not that fast of a runner, but still want to win an award (in this case a plaque), participate in a race scheduled on a holiday. Not many people in your age group will show up and the odds are in your favor. I finished about 3.2 miles in 27:35 and came in 1st in my age group (Men 25-29)... out of four people.
Quarry Ponds 5k Race Results

After the race, I still had plenty of time to get home and meet the piano movers before Father's Day. Yep... Shelley got a new Hamilton H370 (by Baldwin) piano for her birthday. The movers were right on time. The rest of the day was spent cooking up assorted livestock and poultry parts over two charcoal grills. Mmmmm. BBQ! Nom Nom Nom.