More from Scott's Visit

     The time went by so fast while Scott was here. He was a great visitor. The missionaries, young and old, all enjoyed meeting him and said how much fun they had talking with him. He is the first family to come among all of the office missionaries so he was the star of the week. We had 14 inches of snow the day after Scott arrived but we went to the zoo anyway. It was quiet and peaceful walking around and not very crowded. The animals had very heavy coats. I was surprised to see camels out. Polar bears don't hibernate but the enclosure was empty so we missed seeing any bears.

    It was still very cold on my birthday but we drove toward Girdwood and the Kenai peninsula to see the water. The wind was about 50 mph and very cold but Scott would still get out to take pictures. There were a lot of ice chunks in the water and the tide was out so it looked pretty rugged. 

We got pizza and ice cream cones. Some special Alaska flavors are Polar Bear (coconut) and Glacier (vanilla with ginger and cinnamon). It was ice cream at Alaska prices but a Rhode Island size scoop. 

    Some of the highlights in Fairbanks other than the Aurora were going dog sledding and visiting the dog kennel. The dogs were so fun. They were gentle but energetic. They loved getting attention. And Scott loved giving them attention. I think he petted all 50 dogs.

    It was interesting to see the hot springs in below zero temperatures. You can't see the people in the springs very well because of the steam but there was a man who had frost on his head. The springs are 106 degrees. There is a walkway to get into the springs that is about 10 feet long. I think you are so warm from being in the springs that you don't feel cold for the short walk to get indoors. 

    We went back to Fairbanks the next day and saw the The World Ice Art Sculpting Competition. It was very impressive. I loved walking through the woods seeing the sculptures. They also had an ice games area with slides, shuffleboard, ping pong, hockey table and putting green all made out of ice. Scott liked the Circus sculpture with the huge clown. I thought the Covid sculpture was interesting. The sculptures were beautiful with the ice so translucent. There were lights inside the ice that look really good at night. There were snow sculptures too. Yeti and Two Face were some of Scott's favorites.

    That night we ate at the Pump House which is a popular restaurant reminiscent of the 1890's Gold Rush in Alaska. The food was so delicious, the decor really fun and great company with Scott.  I think every local restaurant in Alaska has stuffed animals as part of the decor. These animals are actually from Cabela's in Anchorage but it is pretty amazing to see. 

    Scott was really hoping to see wild moose on our trip. We didn't see any on our way to Fairbanks but we saw 5 moose while driving east to Chena. Scott was so happy about that, but we were going too fast to get any pictures. When we were driving back to our hotel in Fairbanks I looked down a residential street and saw a moose in the middle of the road. We pulled over so Scott could take a picture. He rolled down the window and the moose started walking towards the car to look inside. I'm not sure that was a very wild moose but Scott got some good pictures.

    At home we cooked some spotted prawns and super colossal Alaskan King Crab for Scott's farewell dinner. It was delicious. We were so happy to have Scott visit and had such a fun time exploring. It was a little hard to get back to work after he left. All of the missionaries asked about the visit and were so happy he could come. I know some of the missionaries who went home the first part of March are planning to come back in June with family. It is so nice to be able to share the things you experience with your friends and family.

    Spiritual Thought: One of the things I have really enjoyed serving a mission is to hear missionary experiences and the testimonies of new members. It reminds me of why I am here and what the gospel means to me. I love the stories in the Book of Mormon that help me get through hard times. Examples of Lehi's family leaving their home in Jerusalem and traveling in the wilderness, getting the plates from Laban, building a ship in the desert and then being brave enough to sail in it to an unknown land. There is so much that helps me to see that I can do hard things and that the Lord will work miracles on my behalf. I am glad for our mission experience to get back to basics and remember the fundamental truths of the gospel. God loves us and will help us when we turn to him. I am excited for Summer and her chance to grow as a missionary too. She will have both hard experiences and joyful experiences. It is all good!

    We love you and think and pray for each of you! Hope you have a good week with good things to think about. It is still very cold here but there is more sunshine now. Hurray!

Happy Birthday to Summer (19) and Jack (1) both on March 24. Lots of adventure ahead in the next year.

Love,

Elder and Sister Robinson

    No real bears but a fun picture of a stuffed one. This info at the kennel was interesting to learn about Alaskan Huskies. And lastly this sign outside the grocery store in Chena gave a Wild West flavor to our trip to Fairbanks.