Ski Break

Perfect! Dream like snow surrounds the trails. Today Paul met me for lunch and we skied around the lake behind where I work. We skied from the door of my office and back.

This is the ultimate lunch break.

Thanksgiving

Starting out Thanksgiving morning with a ski is the perfect beginning to the holiday. It was a thanksgiving item for us. What fun and how lucky we are to have such great ski trails.

We had a great Thanksgiving complete with a smoked turkey with Ken and Sue and family. Then on Friday we went to the lighting of the town tree! Santa arrived with a full team of live reindeer--only in Alaska!

Philly

Fall in GA

My friend and her husband bought this incredible house just outside Atlanta. Acres of wild beauty! I spent a few days helping out and trimming the jungle and transplanting plants! What fun! Sound crazy to some but an ideal break for me :)

Fall

Fall Visitors—The last visitors of the season have come and gone.

Mom, Ellen and Dick came up to Alaska on a cruise and then took the train into Denali before coming to visit us in Anchorage. Their timing for visiting Denali was impeccable. What incredible fall colors! Check them out!

This has been the most beautiful fall that I have seen in Alaska. I think that the warmer than normal summer and the extra long fall have created such intense colors. We have not had snow in Anchorage yet, this is also a first for me in Alaska.

We had a great time with Mom, Ellen and Dick and showing them around Anchorage. We were able to spot bear, reindeer, and moose and of course eagles as we toured around. Anchorage is such a fun city to show visitor around. The diversity of food and cultures and the incredible natural beauty make being a tour guide easy.

Just spending some time at the house and hanging out was really nice. We played cards, watched the birds and of course mom did some landscaping :-) I am excited to see the bulbs that we planted come up next year.

I laughed as Mom and Ellen walked all over taking pictures of the mushrooms--Paul and I had done the same thing days before. The love of nature runs in the family. We even went to a mushroom festival in Girdwood, Alaska!

One Year Ago Today

I can't believe that it has been a year. It doesn't seem real and sometimes I think the distance makes it seem less real to me than to the rest of the family.

I miss Dad and his welcoming hug and the the cat play by play updates that he would give when I called home. Some guys, relive the game play by play and who did what and what resulted and who won. For Dad it was the cats: Blackie, Whitey and Orangie (a.k.a Cinder, Snowball and Pumpkin). "Blackies got Orangie down, Whiteys on the sidelines watching...whoa Whitey is in! Whitey is IN, and they are all rolling around. Blackies got Orangie by the tail..." It sounds corny, and it was, but I miss it.

Still healing and I'm still crying as I think about Dad being gone. 2008 was a difficult year, but refining. I was never more proud of my family and friends than in the time around Dad's death. There was so much that I learned about family and friendship as we prepared for the auction and sat around at the picnic tables on the patio with everyone that came to help. In short I am blessed.

I may have at times tears of sorrow but I find more joy in the incredible memories and relationships.

I put some video's that we showed at the Celebration of Life Service online. Next year I will put the rest up.

New England Excursion

We met up with friends of mine that I met in Oaxaca, Mexico in Boston. So nice to just hang out together for awhile.

Boston the streets overflow with history and you really come to understand and respect the quest for freedom and the importance of local governments.

We stood on the street and watched as the hearse carrying Senator Kennedy passed by. As all four brothers died while in service to our country it was an honor to pay our repects the the family.

We ate at Mike’s pastry—this was on par with every pastry that I had in Europe! AMAZING—Cannoli of Mike’s Pastry Shop you are in our dreams :-0

Vermont was as I remembered. Brattleboro is such a great little town and the wedding was beautiful and held at the bride's family farm overlooking the rolling hills across a covered bridge.

The whole trip just begged to be completed again on a bike leisurely exploring from town to town and following the “Midnight Ride”.

The trip was short but had everything that makes a trip complete. We returned feeling refreshed and excited about the great places we had discovered.

Chicago, Chicago I'll show you around - I love it

School’s Out! Paul finished his last final from his summer semester and we left for Chicago. I had a Community Health Center conference and Paul had some time to relax!

Karen, Haley and Abby met us at the airport as we waited and waited for our bags (the good thing with AK Airlines is that because we had to wait I got 5,000 miles for the inconvenience). Then it was off for a fun day of hanging out with the family. It was so nice just to be able to spend some family time and see the girls. We haven’t seen them since last November :-(

The hardest part for Paul and I of living in AK is that we do not get to see our families as often as we would like. Thank goodness Ken and Sue live here, Paul is certain that Jack is the cutest and smartest little boy, ever!

Since I was traveling for work we stayed at the Palmer House Hilton downtown, it was fun to get a different perspective on the city. I am so glad that my family came to visit Chicago in March 2008, Paul and I have memories of Dad there now. I called Sheri from the bus stop across from Millennium Park where I took a great picture of her and Dad.

While I was at the conference, Paul went swimming in Lake Michigan in the early morning toured the Robie House and talked to Obama’s mail lady. Mary Claire and Paul had quite the city tour! Paul’s friend Mark drove into the city and Paul and he spent a day biking on some trails that Paul had not been on. Next time I hope to be able to join in all the touring.

We got to see most of the family and celebrate Mary Clarie’s BD at a family dinner at Roger’s house. As usual there was not enough time for visiting with everyone, but it was a nice evening. We got to take Memere back to her home at Little Sister’s and talked with Dorthea. Dorthea is doing so well and it is inspirational to watch her as she has confidently journeyed through breast cancer this past year.

My manager Kate, was celebrating her birthday while we were in Chicago. We had quite the evening starting at the Berghoff where her grandfather had once worked and ending at the Signature Lounge on the 96th floor of the John Hancock Building for drinks overlooking the city. What a view of Chicago—even from the women’s restrooms (there is no view from the Men's)!

On our final evening in Chicago we joined Paul's two cousins on the Kotelman side of the family for a great Italian dinner. The streets were crowded and the El packed as people headed for the Cubs game in her neighborhood a beautiful evening!

Moose and Mushroom from My Patio

It is nice to be putting our stuff away and just enjoy being home. For the past few weeks we have been dealing with a water leak and mold in the apartment. We had boxes all over and cupboards emptied out as we tried to get the place dried out with fans.

The rainy weather did not aid in the drying but it is all coming back together.

The rainy weather though has resulted in mushrooms sprouting in the yard. I really like the bright orange ones. This one is about 6 inches tall and looks like it is straight from a fairytale.

The moose are also about—this Moose and her calf spent all Sunday afternoon just hanging out. We watched them from our patio as we ate lunch. They better eat up—winter is coming.

Mary Claire's Visit and Birthday Celebrations!

Happy Birthday to Ryker and Mary Claire

To celebrate Ryker’s BD we all got together at Ken and Sue’s for a deep frying production line. Ryker had requested for his BD Beer Battered Halibut. Well an online recipe and a borrowed deep fryer from our neighbors and we were ready. Bring on the halibut!

We were able to celebrate Mary Clarie’s BD while she was in Alaska with a meal out at VIP (Korean Food) and a big cookie. The cookie was a great hit with the kids but I must say that I preferred the Jeouju Dolsot bibimbap the rice covered with vegetables and an egg and served in a stone bowl. The bowl is so hot that it makes the rice on the bottom crispy—in fact after we finished dinner the bowl was still hot. (Note for Janice--find a good place for bibimbap in Korea)

I taught Autumn and Marah how to play Happy Birthday on the piano—the birthday song celebration has not stopped since then!

Whittier Excursion

The weather cleared, the road opened, and Paul’s test was complete as we headed to Whittier.

Whittier is such an interesting town—it is accessible only by water or tunnel. We traveled through the longest rail/road tunnel in North America. Whittier was established in WWII as the northernmost ice free port. Most of the town of around 300 lives in a high-rise left by the military and there is a large abandoned building that stretches across one end of town—it was a victim of the 1964 quake.

Most of the town is pretty rundown looking but the beauty surrounding the place on a clear day is breathtaking. It was our fortune to arrive there on a day that the sun was shining on the turquoise water and vibrant moss covers the rocky beach. What a way to see Alaska.

The Salmon Berries were ripe and we picked some near the waters edge for a true Alaskan snack.

Garden Tour

Mary Claire is here to visit. After waiting for some mileage tickets to open up Mary Claire was able to come to AK for a visit, Paul and I both unfortunately had crazy schedules at work and at school but we managed to get some great visiting, touring and special family times in.

On the day after her arrival Paul and I took Mary Claire around Anchorage for the annual Garden tour. There were a few gardens that were amazing. Yet the gardens in Anchorage are much not much compared to those that you find in the Midwest or in Seattle.

The view from one of the houses on the tour was breathtaking it was not the garden that I will remember but the view. How amazing to sit and watch the tides come in and go out of Turnagain Arm against the backdrop of the mountains! This was the highlight of the tour! Don’t you just want to sit in one of these chairs with a coffee?

Bore Tide

Bore Tide Picture

We decided to go see the Bore Tide this evening. We had drinks and apps with friends at one our favorite places—Simons and Seafort’s. Their stuffed halibut is the best!

Then Paul a friend of his from the Nursing Program and I headed south on the Seward Highway to go watch the Bore Tide.

What is the Bore Tide

The bore tide is a rush of seawater that returns to a shallow and narrowing inlet from a broad bay. Bore tides come in after extreme minus low tides created by the full or new moon.
Bore tides occur all over the world—there are around 60 of them—but only a few are large enough to make a name for themselves. One in China, for example, stretches almost 30 feet tall and travels more than 20 miles per hour. Alaska’s most famous bore tide occurs in Turnagain Arm, just outside Anchorage. It climbs up to 6 – 10 feet tall and can reach speeds of 10 to 15 miles per hour. It takes not just a low tide but also about a 27-foot tidal differential (between high and low tide) for a bore to form in Turnagain Arm.

We did not bring our camera so I had to find a picture online of the tide line. That is basically what it is a white line across the inlet. Not that exciting but interesting. In fact it would have been great just to watch it but it was CHILLY and the wind was blowing SO hard. I ended up at the Dr’s for ear drops (for some reason my ears are highly sensitive to wind) a few days later.

I think that seeing the tide from Gull Rock where we hiked on the 4th of July on the opposite side of the inlet would have been really cool as the wave on that side was over 6 ft. On the side we were on it was just a wave. The bore tide was a bit of a bore.

July 4th

The weekend started out rough—I admit it. After hours and hours of driving and not finding a site for our tent and discovering that the fish were not running that strong, we were very hungry.

Paul, Hayden and I stopped for some burgers and fries—it was so warm yet at 10 PM that we ate outside. We got less cranky as we ate and just enjoyed the evening sun. This is the most amazing summer.

Then our revelation came--in the form of a brochure for a rafting adventure. Paul had promised for our anniversary a white water trip that I have wanted to do for YEARS!!! We called and Chucach Outdoor answered the phone—we booked all of us for the trip the next day. We drove for 1.5 hours back towards Anchorage and found a great campsite. We camped next to the river and made breakfast over the campfire the next morning. Yum—biscuits and gravy :)

Then we headed to the center to gear up. This means, helmet, dry suit (the water temp is 40 degrees), lifejacket and a bit of courage as you jump into the current of the river for a practice swim for about 100 yards. You have to swim hard to get across the river. Hayden did AWESOME. It was so cool to see how excited he was to be experiencing everything.

This was no float trip—everyone had to paddle as we maneuvered the rapids…. We ran all three canyons and jumped out of the raft and floated the last ¼ mile. We were so excited—it was an amazing experience. I am ready to go again--so if anyone is up for it...I highly recommend Chucach Adventures.

That evening we grilled brats and onions on the campfire. They tasted good and must have smelled even better as Paul came across a black bear about 20 feet from the tent. Paul ran back to the car and got the gun and then the bear climbed a tree about 30 feet from the tent and proceeded to stay there for hours. It was watching traffic on the road. We slept in the car, until the very early morning when Paul and I moved back to the tent. Three people sleeping in the car is not that comfortable.

We spent some time exploring Hope, AK Pop. 137. Hope is an old gold mining town and there are still lots of people who have claims in the area. We saw a number of people panning or using the sluice box on the river. It is really a great little piece of Alaskana. We walked down to see the old cemetary and saw where Six Mile Creek enters the Arm.

We hiked 10 miles rt the next day out to Gull Rock and looked out over Turnagain Arm. We sat on Gull Rock and ate lunch as we watched the gulls float in the sky in front of us. What an incredible weekend, not your typical 4th of July but one that made me feel blessed to be out exploring part of such an incredible country.

FLORIDA

Mom, Janice and I took a vacation to Florida. I had a conference near in Clearwater (near Tampa) and flew in a few days early. We drove down to Naples and hung out at the beach and toured the Everglades. We saw scores of gators just floating in the canals alongside the road as we drove down to the Everglades. We took the must do airboat tour and were able to spot a manatee and hundreds of birds. Check out the pelican that landed on our airboat! We traveled out amongst the islands and had a dolphin surfing off of the wake of the boat. It was so much fun to just explore Naples and hang out with Mom and Bin.

How can I state how much that I enjoyed the 87 degree water? This was exceptional; I understand why people love the beach. The beach was only seconded by the beautiful flora and loads of wildlife.

I think that Bin’s favorite sight was the Banyan tree at the Edison plantation as the roots dropped from the branches and found the ground they have grown to around 400 ft circumference. We all thought that this would make an incredible playground. I wanted to play in amongst the tree—but it was roped off.

Later we drove back up to Clearwater so that I could attend the conference while Bin and Mom played and played on the beach. They wouldn’t get out of the water—until they became very sunburned. Luckily, my skin was preserved as I was inside under florescent lighting. :-) Mom found all kinds of fun seashells and spent hours digging the in sand for shells. One morning we got up early to go swimming and were splashing in the water when Bin got stung by a stingray. Then mom and I started looking around and counted over 7 stingrays in the water. Luckily the sting was not too bad and Janice is really tough as confirmed by the resort staff. ;-0

We traveled into Tampa for an afternoon and toured Busch Gardens. Bin and I braved two rollercoaster’s and took the safari tour with Mom and fed a giraffe a whole lot of lettuce—isn’t she cute!

I am ready to head back!