Thawing in Alaska: 2014

Wednesday, November 5, 2014

October 2014

Fall weather?!? I live in a state that actually gets fall weather! Unlike Houston which has two seasons, Summer and Summer, it's nice to see the leaves change. Now, my fellow Houstonians, do not think I'm saying anything bad about the weather. I constantly defend the weather to everyone I meet in Alaska. I am a True Texan and love all facets of it. I'm just saying that since I'm subjected to living in a state where most of it is frozen tundra, seeing some leaves change colors is nice before the big snow hits.

Has the snow and dark weather hit? Not too bad yet. We are getting around 7 hours of daylight and the snow is still mostly in the mountains. Snow is coming...They are forecasting it daily very soon. Temps are hovering around 30 in the day and 10s at night. We did not have any snow on the ground for Halloween, I am thankful for that. Local folks kept talking how unheard of it was to not have snow by now. So, either it will be another mild winter or the harsh weather will last extra long.

We've been active with school events this month. Choir concerts, Carnivals, Swim meets and Soccer games. I started a Bunco group here in AK to get to know some of the ladies I've met. It is such fun! We haven't done much hiking this month, but maybe in November. I want to see some of the places we went over the summer with snow. I think it will be so amazing. The Northern Lights have been pretty active this month too. With some cloud coverage it's hard to see though. I've been trying to get pictures, but unless they are really bright the pictures won't turn out. I'll keep trying though.

I do have to admit I have found something I like about living in Alaska. The radio stations crack me up! They don't really have a station that plays just Top 40 music. Most of the stations are all a mix of the 80s, 90s and today. Personally, being fond of the 80s music I find it's nice to be able to listen to both. For example here are the last few songs played on the radio (sorry if it's not the right song name, but you'll know what I'm talking about) : All about that Bass; Baby, Baby, Baby (TLC); Stay with Me (Sam Smith); Shoop (Salt and Pepper); Pompeii Song; Escapade (Janet Jackson) and If this is it (Huey Lewis and the News). So, as you can see it's quite the range.

I think with the weather changing and we won't be home for Thanksgiving it is making me a tad bit sad. I love spending the holidays with my family :) I'll be home soon enough though, so in the mean time I've been cooking up a storm! Salsas (Chuy's salsa fresco and creamy jalapeno), homemade calzones, cookies, cupcakes, and pumpkin bars.

Found a CopyCat recipe for Chuy's Creamy Jalapeno - modified slightly and it's sooo close!

My new favorite drink!

Halloween Carnival

Carnival at the school

Trick or Treating

Here are some of the fun license plates this month:

Better go! Hope everyone has a blessed Thanksgiving and talk to ya soon!

Saturday, October 4, 2014

Sept 2014

This month we are getting back to a routine. Mary Ann came to visit in early September and everyone is settling into school and after school activities.

As winter is approaching I'd like to take a moment and reflect on the road conditions in Alaska... When we first moved up in Feb, you couldn't see the roads from all the snow cover. Essentially, you drive on what you think is your side of the street/road. When the snow melts, most of the lines are non-existent, so you continue to drive on "your" side of the street or road. Road work begins as soon as the snow melts. The studded tires really wear the roads out fast. With it being light most of the time, they work late hours. Then mid summer lines start to appear on the roads. This is an example of the lines painted on my street..

I don't know about you, but driving down a straight road with wavy lines is always how I like to drive. The funniest part of it is the really big curve toward the end... So, as winter approaches and the lines will no longer be visible soon, I thought I'd share.

Speaking of winter coming, two things locals say about the snow. When the fireweed plant dies it's 6 weeks till winter/snow and when the snow is half way down the mountains, snow on the ground in 2 weeks. I guess it's like ground hog's day with these predictions, but I'll take them. Here is what a fireweed plant looks like. Super pretty in the summer, but a MESS in the winter. When they die off, they make this white seed stuff that flies EVERYWHERE! They started dying off late Aug/early Sept, so winter is soon....

Here are some fun things we did when Mary Ann was in town.

Face painting at the State Fair!

Rides at the Fair

Cream Puff at the Fair

Largest Veggies Grown! I've never seen veggies this big!

Jenna had a field trip, so we got to go too!

One of my neighbors has a firepit, so we made smores!

If you remember from last month, I turned 40. Well, so did my best friend early this summer. We try to take a girls trip every year, so we decided to go to Vancouver, BC to celebrate our milestone Bday. She doesn't like to be in pictures, so I'm being nice and just posting a few picts from the city :) We loved Vancouver! The city was awesome. So much to see and do. I definitely recommend it. We did the Vancouver Foodie Tour the first day. Great! They have several options, food trucks, restaurants, or the public market. We did the restaurant tour and sampled all the best places to eat! Yum!

City View

Got my hair cut! It's short!!

Drinks at Tableau...amazing drinks!

Sorta like Pike's Market, very cool!

"Poutin" - local favorite of French fries, gravy and cheese curds

Olympics

Bike riding around Stanley Park Seawall

Capilano Suspension Bridge!

Ok here are this month's custom license plates :)

That's it for this month! Talk to ya'll in October!

Thursday, September 4, 2014

August 2014 - The Big 4-0 year!

So, its finally happened...I turned 40 this month! Thoughts on turning Forty...

The first thought is "Am I really this weight?!?" I think that is the first thought of every day, but on the actual day, I pondered if I was "too old" to actually lose any of said weight gain. Having started back at the gym after a fun- food filled summer, time will tell.

The next thing that went thru my head is OMG my oldest daughter will be a teenager soon! How did that happen?! She will be in High School next year and I only have 4 short years until she is in college and not where I can be part of her life at all times. Yes, in case you don't know I am an OVERPROTECTIVE parent. I really do try to give her freedom, but it's sooooo hard. I let her walk home from the bus stop just the other day, so see I give her freedom! Lol. Honestly, she wants me to pick her up because heaven forbid she have to WALK home. Ugh teenagers.....

Next, I pulled myself outta bed after my mini attacks of being old, overweight, and having a teenager and ate a donut. Hey, I love donuts and they make me happy (see above for food filled summer).

Other Happenings in the month of August...

We were busy with getting ready for school and having family and friends visit.

Oh, the little one broke her arm! We had some fabulous new neighbors move in with two kids her age. They have razor scooters and zip around on them. My poor kid still had her Disney Princess - little kid friendly- scooter. After much begging that the new kids were younger and had razors we opted to getting her one. Jason aka. Dad puts it together and off she goes...down the driveway and on the street a little ways..."Hey Jenna, come back this way"...."OK"....turns "said" razor scooter and hits a rock and falls and brakes her arm. So, off to the ER we go and she gets a bright pink cast!

My parents and a family friend visited at the same time. With it being the last few weeks of summer we tried to pack lots of things in. Here are some photos of stuff: